Frank Vivian Monk (1886 – 15 November 1962) was an English

amateur An amateur () is generally considered a person who pursues an avocation independent from their source of income. Amateurs and their pursuits are also described as popular, informal, autodidacticism, self-taught, user-generated, do it yourself, DI ...

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 had a brief career with several

professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and skil ...

clubs around 1910.

Early career

Monk was born in

Salisbury Salisbury ( ) is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers Avon, Nadder and Bourne. The city is approximately from Southampton and from Bath. Salisbury is in the southeast of Wil ...

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...

and was educated at Queens Road School,

Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * ...

and St Marks College, Chelsea where he trained to be a

teacher A teacher, also called a schoolteacher or formally an educator, is a person who helps students to acquire knowledge, competence, or virtue, via the practice of teaching. ''Informally'' the role of teacher may be taken on by anyone (e.g. whe ...

. He was an outstanding all-round amateur sportsman who gained honours at swimming,

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

and

athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competiti ...

(turning out for St Martins Harriers) and was the 1909 Salisbury

marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair div ...

champion.

Football career

He joined

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 ...

of the Southern League on amateur terms in the summer of 1910. His teaching commitments prevented him from playing regularly for the "Saints" and he made his debut after seven games of the 1910–11 season, when he took the place of Sam Jepp at

centre-half In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

against Crystal Palace on 22 October 1910. When he played, "''he used his athleticism to good effect''" and was a sure tackler. He managed 19 league appearances, with either Jepp or

Billy Beaumont William Edward Beaumont (9 November 1883 – 19 November 1911) was an English footballer who played as a half back for three Southern League clubs in the early part of the twentieth century. Football career Beaumont was born in Ashton-in-Mak ...

taking his place when he was unavailable. On 11 February 1911, he played as an emergency centre-forward at Swindon Town. His form attracted the attention of the England amateur selectors and, after a successful trial in January 1911, he won four amateur international caps. In September 1911, Monk made two appearances for

Glossop Glossop is a market town in the Borough of High Peak, Derbyshire, England. It is located east of Manchester, north-west of Sheffield and north of the county town, Matlock. Glossop lies near Derbyshire's borders with Cheshire, Greater Manches ...

in the

Football League Second Division The Football League Second Division was the second level division in the English football league system between 1892 and 1992. Following the foundation of the FA Premier League, the Football League divisions were renumbered and the third ti ...

, followed by brief spells with

Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...

and one match back at The Dell (a 2–1 defeat against West Ham United on 6 January 1912).

Later career

In the summer of 1912, his teaching career took him away from

, which brought his brief excursion into professional football to an end.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Monk, Frank 1886 births 1962 deaths Sportspeople from Salisbury English footballers England amateur international footballers Association football defenders Salisbury City F.C. players Southampton F.C. players Glossop North End A.F.C. players Fulham F.C. players Southern Football League players English Football League players