Horace Burrows
Encyclopedia
Horace Burrows was a professional footballer who played for Mansfield Town
and Sheffield Wednesday
. Burrows was a left half
whose league career lasted from 1932 to 1939, his career was curtailed by the outbreak of World War II
. Burrows also played for the England national football team
on three occasions.
on 11 March 1910, as a youth he won honours with Nottinghamshire
Schools and played for local club Sutton Junction F.C. In February 1929 he was offered a trial by Division Three South
side Coventry City
and was signed on after a successful tryout. Burrows never managed to break into the Coventry first team and after a year was forced to drop back to playing Non-League football
with Mansfield Town who at that time were in the Midland Football League
. He had a successful year at Mansfield playing 44 games and helping them get elected to The Football League
. His good form was noticed by Sheffield Wednesday manager Bob Brown
and he signed for Wednesday on 1 May 1931 for a fee of £200.
and became Wednesday’s regular left half for the next six seasons up to the outbreak of World War II. He played in 136 consecutive games for Wednesday from April 1933 till March 1936. This sequence of games included Wednesday’s FA Cup
run in 1935
when they lifted the trophy. He was also capped three times by England in this period, being first called up in May 1934 against Hungary
. Subsequent internationals followed against Czechoslavakia and Holland
before he lost out to Wilf Copping
in the national side.
before being called up in January 1942 and joining the Sherwood Foresters
. He fought and was injured in the First Battle of El Alamein
. After leaving the army in 1945 he re-opened his sports shop in Sutton-in-Ashfield, he also became player-manager of Ollerton Colliery for a time. Horace Burrows continued to run his shop until his death on 22 March 1969. The shop is still trading, now run by his son Adrian who also played professional football between 1979 and 1993 making over 200 appearances for Plymouth Argyle
.
Mansfield Town F.C.
Mansfield Town Football Club is an English football club from the former mining town of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire. The club was formed in 1897 as Mansfield Wesleyans and changed its name to Mansfield Wesley in 1906 before settling on Mansfield Town in 1910...
and Sheffield Wednesday
Sheffield Wednesday F.C.
Sheffield Wednesday Football Club are a football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, who are currently competing in the Football League One in the 2011-12 season, in England. Sheffield Wednesday are one of the oldest professional clubs in the world and the fourth oldest in the...
. Burrows was a left half
Wing half
In association football, the position of wing half or wing half back) was popularly used in the late nineteenth and first half of the 20th centuries...
whose league career lasted from 1932 to 1939, his career was curtailed by the outbreak of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Burrows also played for the England national football team
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
on three occasions.
Non-league football
Burrows was born in Sutton-in-AshfieldSutton-in-Ashfield
Sutton-in-Ashfield is a market town in the Ashfield district of Nottinghamshire, England, with a population of around 43,000. It is situated four miles west of Mansfield, close to the Derbyshire border.-Geography:...
on 11 March 1910, as a youth he won honours with Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire is a county in the East Midlands of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west...
Schools and played for local club Sutton Junction F.C. In February 1929 he was offered a trial by Division Three South
Football League Third Division South
The Football League Third Division South was a level of English professional football which ran in parallel to Third Division North from 1921 to 1958....
side Coventry City
Coventry City F.C.
Coventry City Football Club, otherwise known as the Sky Blues owing to the traditional colour of their strip, are a professional English Football league club based in Coventry...
and was signed on after a successful tryout. Burrows never managed to break into the Coventry first team and after a year was forced to drop back to playing Non-League football
Non-league football
Non-League football is football in England played at a level below that of the Premier League and The Football League. The term non-League was commonly used well before 1992 when the top football clubs in England all belonged to The Football League; all clubs who were not a part of The Football...
with Mansfield Town who at that time were in the Midland Football League
Midland Football League
There have been at least two different football competitions in England which used the name Midland Football League.One existed until 1982 before merging with the Yorkshire League to form the Northern Counties League....
. He had a successful year at Mansfield playing 44 games and helping them get elected to 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...
. His good form was noticed by Sheffield Wednesday manager Bob Brown
Robert Brown (football manager)
Robert Brown was an English association football player and manager in the early twentieth century.After an undistinguished career in semi-professional football in his native north-east England, Brown joined Sheffield Wednesday as a scout. In 1911 he joined Portsmouth as secretary, a job he held...
and he signed for Wednesday on 1 May 1931 for a fee of £200.
Sheffield Wednesday
Burrows found it impossible to force his way into the Wednesday side at left half, initially being kept out by Gavin Malloch. He eventually made his debut on 27 December 1932 against Manchester CityManchester City F.C.
Manchester City Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Manchester. Founded in 1880 as St. Mark's , they became Ardwick Association Football Club in 1887 and Manchester City in 1894...
and became Wednesday’s regular left half for the next six seasons up to the outbreak of World War II. He played in 136 consecutive games for Wednesday from April 1933 till March 1936. This sequence of games included Wednesday’s FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
run in 1935
1935 FA Cup Final
The 1935 FA Cup Final was contested by Sheffield Wednesday and West Bromwich Albion at Wembley. Sheffield Wednesday won 4–2, with goals scored by Jack Palethorpe, Mark Hooper and Ellis Rimmer...
when they lifted the trophy. He was also capped three times by England in this period, being first called up in May 1934 against Hungary
Hungary national football team
The Hungary national football team represents Hungary in international football and is controlled by the Hungarian Football Federation....
. Subsequent internationals followed against Czechoslavakia and Holland
Netherlands national football team
The Netherlands National Football Team represents the Netherlands in association football and is controlled by the Royal Dutch Football Association , the governing body for football in the Netherlands...
before he lost out to Wilf Copping
Wilf Copping
Wilfred "Wilf" Copping was an English footballer who played for Leeds United, Arsenal and the England national team.-Leeds United:...
in the national side.
War and retirement
At the outbreak of war, Burrows continued to play for Wednesday in the wartime leagues and work in a sports shop that he had opened in his home town of Sutton-in-Ashfield. He played 49 wartime games for Wednesday and several as a guest for MillwallMillwall F.C.
Millwall Football Club is an English professional football club based in South Bermondsey, south east London, that plays in the Football League Championship, the second tier of English football. Founded as Millwall Rovers in 1885, the club has retained its name despite having last played in the...
before being called up in January 1942 and joining the Sherwood Foresters
Sherwood Foresters
The Sherwood Foresters was formed during the Childers Reforms in 1881 from the amalgamation of the 45th Regiment of Foot and the 95th Regiment of Foot...
. He fought and was injured in the First Battle of El Alamein
First Battle of El Alamein
The First Battle of El Alamein was a battle of the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War, fought between Axis forces of the Panzer Army Africa commanded by Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, and Allied forces The First Battle of El Alamein (1–27 July 1942) was a battle of the Western Desert...
. After leaving the army in 1945 he re-opened his sports shop in Sutton-in-Ashfield, he also became player-manager of Ollerton Colliery for a time. Horace Burrows continued to run his shop until his death on 22 March 1969. The shop is still trading, now run by his son Adrian who also played professional football between 1979 and 1993 making over 200 appearances for Plymouth Argyle
Plymouth Argyle F.C.
Plymouth Argyle Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Plymouth, Devon, that plays in Football League Two.Since becoming professional in 1903, the club has won five Football League titles, five Southern League titles and one Western League title. The 2009–10 season was the...
.