Daniel Simpson was an English

English people

The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...

 footballer.

Playing career

Simpson played for Tunstall Town before joining Burslem Port Vale

Port Vale F.C.

Port Vale Football Club is an English football club currently playing in Football League Two. They are based in Burslem, Staffordshire — one of six towns that make up the city of Stoke-on-Trent. The club's traditional rivals in the city are Stoke City, and games between the two clubs are known as...

 in February 1896, after a successful trial. He immediately went into the first 11 and having scored 14 goals 1896–97 and 11 goals in 1897–98 was joint-top scorer in two consecutive seasons, along with Dick Evans

Dick Evans (footballer)

Richard "Dick" Evans was an English footballer, who played at outside-right, spending most of his career with Burslem Port Vale as well as a two-year spell at Southampton where he won two Southern League championships....

. He scored the only goal of the Staffordshire Senior Cup

Staffordshire Senior Cup

The Staffordshire Senior Challenge Cup is a football cup tournament based in the county of Staffordshire in England first competed for in 1877-78. Organised by the Staffordshire Football Association, it is competed for by a mix of clubs from Staffordshire and the surrounding areas. Both...

 final on 5 March 1898.

After suffering from poor health, he turned up at a match at Chesterfield

Chesterfield F.C.

Chesterfield Football Club is an English football club based in Chesterfield, Derbyshire. The club currently plays in Football League One, the third tier of English football. Despite being the fourth oldest Football League club in England, they have spent most of their existence in the lower...

 on 20 October 1900 at half-time, after missing his train. At the conclusion of the 1902–03 season

1902–03 Burslem Port Vale F.C. season

The 1902–03 season was Burslem Port Vale's fifth consecutive season of football in the Football League. Finishing in ninth place for the second time in three years, it would take just over two decades for the club to again reach the heights of a top ten second tier finish...

 he was released after being only intermittently selected for the past few seasons. He had played 151 matches (83 in the Football League

The Football League

The Football League, also known as the npower Football League for sponsorship reasons, is a league competition featuring professional association football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest such competition in world football...

) and scored 53 goals (23 in the football league).

His benefit match was held against rivals

Potteries derby

The Potteries derby is the football local derby in Stoke-on-Trent between Port Vale and Stoke City. The fans of each club both consider the other to be their main rivals; this has led to a heated atmosphere at these matches, especially with the rise of football hooliganism and the 'Naughty Forty'...

 Stoke

Stoke City F.C.

Stoke City Football Club is an English professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire that plays in the Premier League. Founded in 1863, it is the oldest club in the Premier League, and considered to be the second oldest professional football club in the world, after Notts...

on 21 April 1900, Stoke won the game 1–0.