Albert Childers Meysey-Thompson (13 July 1848 – 20 March 1894) was an English barrister and an amateur

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 for Wanderers in the

1872 FA Cup Final The 1872 FA Cup Final was a football match between Wanderers and Royal Engineers on 16 March 1872 at Kennington Oval in London. It was the final of the first staging of the Football Association Challenge Cup (known in the modern era as the FA C ...

and for

Old Etonians Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...

in the

1875 Events January–March * January 1 – The Midland Railway of England abolishes the Second Class passenger category, leaving First Class and Third Class. Other British railway companies follow Midland's lead during the rest of the ...

and

1876 FA Cup Final The 1876 FA Cup Final was a football match between Wanderers and Old Etonians on 11 March 1876 at Kennington Oval in London. It was the fifth final of the world's oldest football competition, the Football Association Challenge Cup (known in t ...

Family and education

Born at Kirby Hall near Little Ouseburn, as Albert Childers Thompson, he was the son of

Sir Harry Meysey-Thompson, 1st Baronet Sir Harry Stephen Meysey-Thompson, 1st Baronet (1809–1874) was Liberal Member of Parliament for Whitby between 1859 and 1865. Thompson was well known as an agriculturalist who helped found the Yorkshire Agricultural Society in 1837, becoming i ...

(1809–1874) and Elizabeth Anne Croft. Albert's brother

Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*k ...

played for Wanderers in the

1873 FA Cup Final The 1873 FA Cup Final was a football match between Wanderers and Oxford University on 29 March 1873 at Lillie Bridge in London. It was the second final of the world's oldest football competition, the Football Association Challenge Cup (known i ...

and the Old Etonians in the first match of the replayed

. Thompson was educated at

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...

and

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by Henry VIII, King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge ...

, where he graduated

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in 1871. He began studying law at

Lincoln's Inn The Honourable Society of Lincoln's Inn is one of the four Inns of Court in London to which barristers of England and Wales belong and where they are called to the Bar. (The other three are Middle Temple, Inner Temple and Gray's Inn.) Lincoln ...

in 1869, before migrating to the

Inner Temple The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple, commonly known as the Inner Temple, is one of the four Inns of Court and is a professional associations for barristers and judges. To be called to the Bar and practise as a barrister in England and Wal ...

in 1872.

Sports career

Thompson had played football at Eton, and continued while in university for Cambridge University and the Eton Cambridge Football Club. He played at half-back or full-back.

C.W. Alcock Charles William Alcock (2 December 1842 – 26 February 1907) was an English sportsman, administrator, author and editor. He was a major instigator in the development of both international football and cricket, as well as being the creator of ...

variously described him as "...the king of backs. The ease with which he kicks the ball in the most difficult positions suggests the belief that at one time in his life he must have gone into training with a view to an acrobatic career." He was also praised as "the best half-back out, an unerring kick and the most reliable back against any team", while in 1876 it was said: "Still holds his own as a half-back; one of the most brilliant kickers of the day". At the first F.A. Cup Final of 1872, the combination of himself and full-back

Edgar Lubbock Edgar Lubbock LLB (22 February 1847 – 9 September 1907) was an English amateur footballer who twice won the FA Cup and played first-class cricket. He later became a partner in the Whitbread Brewery, a Director and Deputy Governor of the Bank ...

at play with faultless kicking was said to be a great feature of the match as they repulsed all attempts by 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 ...

team to score against the Wanderers, who won 1–0.Warsop. p. 40. His next two Cup Finals were played for the Old Etonians. He was in their team in the 1–1 drawn first match between them and the Royal Engineers on 13 March 1875 at Kennington Oval, but was unavailable for the replay three days later when the Engineers defeated them in his absence. History repeated itself the following year, when they played against the Wanderers, when again they drew 1–1. In the same match his brother Charles was a teammate on the left but neither brother appeared in the replay, when Wanderers beat them 3–0.Warsop. pp. 43-46. Thompson appeared in both the England v Scotland representative international matches in 1872. He also played in representative matches for London and the counties of Middlesex and Surrey. He was also a cricketer and a member of the M.C.C.

Legal career and later life

Thompson was called to the bar on 6 June 1872 and practised as a barrister on the North-Eastern Circuit, becoming a

Q.C. QC may refer to: * Queen's Counsel, the title of a King's Counsel, a type of lawyer in Commonwealth countries, during the reign of a queen * Quality control, the process of meeting products and services to consumer expectations Places * Quebec, ...

He died, aged forty-five, at his home in

Marylebone Marylebone (usually , also , ) is a district in the West End of London, in the City of Westminster. Oxford Street, Europe's busiest shopping street, forms its southern boundary. An Civil parish#Ancient parishes, ancient parish and latterly a ...

, London, on 20 March 1894, three days after returning home from the West Coast of the United States where he wintered because of failing health over his last three years. He was buried in the parish churchyard at Holy Trinity, Little Ouseburn, Yorkshire.

Sports honours

Wanderers *F.A. Cup winner:

1872 Events January–March * January 12 – Yohannes IV is crowned Emperor of Ethiopia in Axum, the first ruler crowned in that city in over 500 years. * February 2 – The government of the United Kingdom buys a number of forts on ...

Old Etonians *F.A. Cup finalist:

1876 Events January–March * January 1 ** The Reichsbank opens in Berlin. ** The Bass Brewery Red Triangle becomes the world's first registered trademark symbol. * February 2 – The National League of Professional Base Ball Clubs i ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Meysey-Thompson, Albert Childers 1848 births 1894 deaths Footballers from York People educated at Eton College Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge English footballers Wanderers F.C. players Old Etonians F.C. players England v Scotland representative footballers (1870–1872) Association footballers not categorized by position FA Cup Final players 19th-century English lawyers Younger sons of baronets English barristers