William Bennett was an English professional footballer who played as an inside forward. Born in Leyland, Lancashire

Leyland, Lancashire

Leyland is a town in the South Ribble borough of Lancashire, England, approximately six miles south of the city of Preston.Throughout the 20th and 21st century, the community has seen a large growth in industry, population and farming, due to the establishment of Leyland Motors, housing...

, he was spotted by Football League First Division

Football League First Division

The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....

 side Sheffield United

Sheffield United F.C.

Sheffield United Football Club is a professional English football club based in the city of Sheffield, South Yorkshire.They were the first sporting team to use the name 'United' and are nicknamed 'The Blades', thanks to Sheffield's worldwide reputation for steel production...

 while 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 Leyland Motors. He moved to Sheffield in February 1921, but was released in January 1922 after failing to make a first-team appearance.

Bennett subsequently rejoined Leyland Motors, but his stay was short-lived as he joined Chorley

Chorley F.C.

Chorley Football Club are a football club from Chorley, Lancashire, England. They were founded as a rugby union club in 1875 but switched to football in 1883. They have reached the FA Cup second round twice in 1986–87 and 1990–91. Their best performance in the FA Trophy was in 1995–96 when they...

 in March 1922. At the end of the season, he was signed by Football League Third Division North

Football League Third Division North

The Third Division North of The Football League was a tier in the English association football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran parallel to Third Division South with clubs elected to the League or relegated from a higher division allocated to one or the other according to geographical position...

 outfit Nelson

Nelson F.C.

Nelson F.C. are an English football club, based in Nelson, Lancashire. They are currently members of the North West Counties Football League Division One, who played their home matches at Victoria Park, Lomeshaye Way. They are full members of the Lancashire County Football Association.-Early years:...

. He initially played in the reserve team, but was called up to the first-team for the match against Rochdale

Rochdale A.F.C.

Rochdale Association Football Club is an English professional football club based in Rochdale, Greater Manchester. They play their home matches at Spotland Stadium. Formed in 1907, they were accepted into the Football League in 1921...

 on 25 November 1922 due to an injury to regular inside forward Arthur Wolstenholme

Arthur Wolstenholme

Arthur E. Wolstenholme was an English professional footballer who played as an inside forward. He was predominantly used as an inside-right, but could also play at inside-left if required. In a career spanning 17 years, he played for a number of Football League teams, in addition to spells in the...

. Bennett did not make an impact on the match as Nelson fell to a 1–2 defeat, and he returned to the reserves for the remainder of the campaign.

In March 1923, he again re-signed for Leyland Motors where he stayed until September 1924, when he joined Lytham St Annes. He left the club in 1925 and retired from football.