Alfred Alexander Thompson (28 April 1891 – 19 April 1969) was an English professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who played in

the Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...

for

Glossop Glossop is a market town in the Borough of High Peak, Derbyshire, England. It is located east of Manchester, north-west of Sheffield and north of the county town, Matlock. Glossop lies near Derbyshire's borders with Cheshire, Greater Manches ...

and

Brentford Brentford is a suburban town in West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the Thames, west of Charing Cross. Its economy has diverse company headquarters buildings whi ...

as an inside forward.

Career

An inside forward, Thompson began his career in

as a youth with

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

, before joining with

. He moved to Woolwich Arsenal, where he failed to make a first team appearance and instead spent his time with the club in the reserves. Thompson later dropped into

non-League football Non-League football describes football leagues played outside the top leagues of a country. Usually, it describes leagues which are not fully professional. The term is primarily used for football in England, where it is specifically used to de ...

and had a spell with Birmingham & District League club Walsall. After the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Thompson signed for Southern League First Division club

. He scored eight goals in 28 appearances during the 1919–20 season and earned another shot at league football, with Brentford being elected into the new

Third Division In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Association football *Belgian Thir ...

for the 1920–21 season. He managed 16 appearances and two goals and was released at the end of the season. Thompson dropped into non-league football and linked up with former Brentford teammate

Jimmy Hodson James Hodson (5 September 1880 – 27 February 1938) was an English professional footballer who played as a full back in the Football League for Oldham Athletic, Bury and Brentford. He later managed Guildford United and Belgian club Royal B ...

at Southern League South Division club Guildford United. He later played for

Tunbridge Wells Rangers Tunbridge Wells Football Club is a football club based in Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent, England. They are currently members of the . They play their home games at Culverden Stadium. The club is affiliated to the Kent County Football Association ...

Personal life

Thompson served as a gunner in the

Royal Garrison Artillery The Royal Garrison Artillery (RGA) was formed in 1899 as a distinct arm of the British Army's Royal Regiment of Artillery serving alongside the other two arms of the Regiment, the Royal Field Artillery (RFA) and the Royal Horse Artillery (RHA) ...

during the First World War.

Career statistics

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thompson, Alfred Alexander 1891 births 1969 deaths Footballers from Manchester English footballers Association football inside forwards Liverpool F.C. players Glossop North End A.F.C. players Arsenal F.C. players Walsall F.C. players Brentford F.C. players Guildford City F.C. players Tunbridge Wells F.C. players English Football League players Southern Football League players British Army personnel of World War I Royal Garrison Artillery soldiers Military personnel from Manchester