Arthur Moss (14 November 1887 – 3 April 1964) was an English

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 as a half back. He made over 220

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 ...

appearances in the years before and after the First World War.

Career

Moss was born of farming stock from Cheshire and Shropshire. He was initially trained as a joiner, but later worked at the Crewe locomotive works for the

London and North Western Railway The London and North Western Railway (LNWR, L&NWR) was a British railway company between 1846 and 1922. In the late 19th century, the L&NWR was the largest joint stock company in the United Kingdom. In 1923, it became a constituent of the Lo ...

as a locomotive fitter. He was skilled as a marksman and won many medals and silver spoons at shooting range competitions. He also played football and was taken on by Crewe Alexandra in the Birmingham & District League. Later, he played for

Aston Villa F.C. Aston Villa Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their ho ...

and then

Bristol City Bristol City Football Club is a professional football club based in Bristol, England, which compete in the , the second tier of English football. They have played their home games at Ashton Gate since moving from St John's Lane in 1904. The ...

, He ceased to work at the locomotive works when layoffs became necessary and his foreman indicated that since he had his football he did not need his work as a fitter. After the First World War, during which he served in the

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is heade ...

and was wounded in France, being awarded the

Croix de Guerre The ''Croix de Guerre'' (, ''Cross of War'') is a military decoration of France. It was first created in 1915 and consists of a square-cross medal on two crossed swords, hanging from a ribbon with various degree pins. The decoration was first awa ...

for an attack on a machine gun post. Moss rejoined Crewe Alexandra. He was ever present (42 appearances) at right half in both the 1919–20 and 1920–21 seasons in the Central League as the "Railwaymen" finished 3rd and then runners up before Crewe Alexandra returned to the Football League being elected to the newly formed Third Division North in 1921–22. After retiring from professional football, he continued to work as a fitter at the Crewe locomotive works, which was now owned by the

London, Midland and Scottish Railway The London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMSIt has been argued that the initials LMSR should be used to be consistent with LNER, GWR and SR. The London, Midland and Scottish Railway's corporate image used LMS, and this is what is generally u ...

. After retirement he moved to Pembrokeshire, and then Wiltshire, where he died in 1964. He is buried in Chiseldon, Wiltshire.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Moss, Arthur 1887 births 1964 deaths Footballers from Crewe English men's footballers Men's association football defenders Crewe Alexandra F.C. players Whitchurch F.C. players Aston Villa F.C. players Bristol City F.C. players Runcorn F.C. Halton players English Football League players