Arthur Wilson (6 October 1908 – 31 January 2000) 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 as either a half back or

inside forward Forwards (also known as attackers) are outfield positions in an association football team who play the furthest up the pitch and are therefore most responsible for scoring goals as well as assisting them. As with any attacking player, the role ...

for various clubs in the 1920s and 1930s.

Football career

Wilson was born in

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...

and represented Newcastle & Northumberland Schools before joining

Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End ...

as a trainee. Never progressing beyond the third team, he was allowed to leave in early 1927 to join

Scotswood Benwell and Scotswood is an electoral ward of Newcastle upon Tyne in North East England. The ward encompasses the Benwell and Scotswood housing areas, as well as the Newcastle Business Park, which is located on the banks of the River Tyne and ...

playing in the

North Eastern League The North Eastern League was an association football league for teams in the North East of England. The league was founded in 1906 and was initially successful, with teams defecting from the rival Northern Football Alliance to play. Although som ...

. He was quickly spotted by scouts from

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

and he joined the south coast club in August 1927. After spending two seasons in the reserves, where he showed "admirable skill", he made his first-team debut when he replaced the veteran

Bert Shelley Frederick Albert "Bert" Shelley (11 August 1899 – 29 December 1971) was an English footballer, who played as a half back for Southampton, for whom he made nearly 450 appearances, before becoming a coach at Southampton. His total of 448 appeara ...

for a

Second Division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...

match away to

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of Letter (alphabet), letters, symbols, etc., especially by Visual perception, sight or Somatosensory system, touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process invo ...

on 14 December 1929. Wilson retained his position at left-half for the remainder of the season and for the start of the 1930–31 season. After three matches, he lost his place to Bill Adams and briefly switched to

inside left Forwards (also known as attackers) are outfield positions in an association football team who play the furthest up the pitch and are therefore most responsible for scoring goals as well as assisting them. As with any attacking player, the role ...

before being replaced by

Herbert Coates Herbert James Leopold "Rigger" Coates (29 September 1901 – 25 October 1965) was an English amateur footballer who played as an inside forward for Southampton in the 1920s and 1930s. Royal Navy Coates was born in West Ham, Essex and joined the ...

. In the following season, Wilson alternated with Coates and

Peter Dougall Peter Dougall (21 March 1909 – 12 June 1974) was a Scottish footballer who played at inside left for various clubs in the 1920s and 1930s. He later managed in the Netherlands. Football career Dougall was born in Denny, Stirlingshire and play ...

for the inside-left position. In May 1932, with the club in financial difficulties, Southampton placed Wilson on the transfer list and he was soon signed by

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, hav ...

for a fee of £500. In his first season at Upton Park, Wilson managed 33 appearances at inside-left in league and cup matches, scoring 15 goals, including two against his former club on 4 February 1933. The following season, however, he lost his place to

Len Goulden Leonard Arthur Goulden (16 July 1912 – 14 February 1995) was an English footballer who played as an inside-left. His son Roy was also a footballer. Club career Goulden was born at Homerton, in Hackney, London, and raised in nearby Plai ...

and made only two appearances before joining

Chester Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...

in March 1934. At Chester, his signing helped the club win eight of their last ten fixtures, thus avoiding relegation from

Division Three North The Third Division North of the Football League was a tier in the English football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran in parallel with the Football League Third Division South, Third Division South with clubs Re-election (Football League), ele ...

. The following season, Chester finished third in the table, going one better in the next; at this time, only the champions were promoted. Wilson remained with Chester until November 1937, before joining

Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club (), commonly known as Wolves, is a professional football club based in Wolverhampton, England, which compete in the . The club has played at Molineux Stadium since moving from Dudley Road in 1889. The club's ...

where he failed to make a first-team appearance. He moved on to his last club,

Torquay United Torquay United Football Club is a professional football club based in Torquay, Devon, England. The team currently compete in the , the fifth tier of English football. They have played their home matches at Plainmoor since 1921 and are nicknamed ...

, in January 1939 where he remained until the start of the Second World War.

References

External links

Career details on www.11v11.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Arthur 1908 births 2000 deaths Footballers from Newcastle upon Tyne English men's footballers Southampton F.C. players West Ham United F.C. players Chester City F.C. players Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. players Torquay United F.C. players English Football League players Men's association football midfielders Men's association football forwards Scotswood F.C. players