Bernard Hackett (7 September 1933 - 21 May 2022) was an English former professional footballer, builder and Black Country poet. He 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

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 the 1950s.

Playing career

Although born in Ramsbottom, Hackett grew up in the West Midlands.Player Memories - Bernard Hackett, Chester City v Crewe Alexandra matchday programme 29 November 94, p 15 As a youngster he represented

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see His ...

at county level and Birmingham City's junior side before joining

Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club is a professional 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 home ground, Villa Park ...

. He turned professional in 1953 but left two years later without making a league appearance. Hackett was one of several forwards to sign for Chester in the summer of 1955, as manager Louis Page also purchased Charlie Jolley, George Allman, Jack Haines, Jim Collins and

Frank Wayman Frank Wayman (30 December 1931 − 7 February 2008) was an English footballer. Born in Bishop Auckland, Wayman began his career in professional football as a winger with Preston North End in 1953, but never made any appearances for Preston's f ...

. The competition for places and a knee injury meant Hackett was not a regular in the side and he was released in the summer of 1957. After leaving Chester, Hackett dropped into non-league football and played for

Altrincham Altrincham ( , locally ) is a market town in Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, south of the River Mersey. It is southwest of Manchester city centre, southwest of Sale and east of Warrington. At the 2011 Census, it had a population o ...

Witton Albion Witton may refer to one of several places in England: *Witton, historic name of an area of Northwich, Cheshire **Witton Albion F.C. *Witton Gilbert, County Durham *Witton-le-Wear, County Durham *Witton, an area of Blackburn, Lancashire * Witton, B ...

Macclesfield Town Macclesfield Town Football Club was an English professional association football, football club based in Macclesfield, Cheshire, that was liquidation, wound-up after a High Court of Justice, High Court ruling on 16 September 2020. Initially kno ...

, Lockheed Leamington, Halesowen Town and Cradley Town while working in the building trade.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hackett, Bernard 1933 births 2022 deaths People from Ramsbottom Sportspeople from the Metropolitan Borough of Bury English men's footballers Men's association football forwards English Football League players Aston Villa F.C. players Chester City F.C. players Leamington F.C. players Halesowen Town F.C. players Cradley Town F.C. players Footballers from Greater Manchester