Charles Radford (19 March 1900 – 14 July 1924) 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 ...

who played as a full-back, having been converted from

centre-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 ...

early in his career. Born in

Walsall Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre in the West Midlands County, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located north-west of Birmingham, east of Wolverhampton and from Lichfield. Walsall is t ...

, he played for

and

Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...

. He died in a motorcycle accident in 1924.

Career

Radford began his career as a schoolboy playing as a

, and was twice capped for the England Schoolboys team in 1914. He began his senior career with

in the Birmingham & District League before signing for

in May 1920. However, he was unable to break into either the first team or the reserves as a forward, so he was tried out at right-back for much of the 1920–21

Central League The or is one of the two professional baseball leagues that constitute Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship plays against the winner of the Pacific League in the annual Japan Series. It currently cons ...

season.Dykes (1994), p. 312. With the reserves having won the Central League title that year, Radford was given his first-team debut in the final game of the

1920–21 Football League The 1920– 21 season was the 29th season of The Football League. The Football League Third Division was introduced, in effect the Third Division South of the following season, when Third Division North was introduced. This expanded the League' ...

season – a 3–0 win at home to

Derby County Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Derby, Derbyshire, England. In 2022, it was announced that DCFC was acquired by Clowes Developments (UK) Ltd, a Derbyshire-based property group. Founded in 1884 ...

on 7 May 1921. Radford became Manchester United's regular right-back for the 1921–22 season, playing in 26 of their 42 league matches; however, he was unable to prevent them from finishing bottom of the First Division with the worst defensive record in the division. The following season, he missed just eight league matches, and scored his first goal for Manchester United in a 2–1 home win over

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Located on the northwest coast of England, it is the main settlement within the borough also called Blackpool. The town is by the Irish Sea, between the Ribble and Wyre rivers, and ...

on 7 April 1923. He missed a further 12 matches in 1923–24, including the last eight games of the season, which he missed due to suspension, having been sent off in a match against

Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

in March 1924.McCartney (2013), p. 346. He never played for Manchester United again as he was killed in a motorcycle accident in Wolverhampton in July 1924. His last game for the club came in a 1–1 draw away to

Hull City Hull City Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England, that compete in the . They have played home games at the MKM Stadium since moving from Boothferry Park in 2002. The club's ...

on 22 March 1924.

References

;General * * * ;Specific

External links

Profile
at StretfordEnd.co.uk {{DEFAULTSORT:Radford, Charlie 1900 births Footballers from Walsall 1924 deaths Motorcycle road incident deaths English men's footballers Walsall F.C. players Manchester United F.C. players Road incident deaths in England Men's association football defenders