George Huth Cotterill (4 April 1868 – ) was an English 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 made four appearances for
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
as a
forward
Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward.
Forward may also refer to:
People
* Forward (surname)
Sports
* Forward (association football)
* Forward (basketball), including:
** Point forward
** Power forward (basketball)
** Sm ...
in the 1890s, captaining the side on his last two appearances. He usually played as an
inside right
Forwards (also known as attackers) are Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield positions in an association football team who play the furthest up the pitch and are therefore most responsible for scoring Goal (sport)#Association footbal ...
or
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 ...
.
Career
Education
Cotterill was born in
Brighton
Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London.
Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...
, Sussex and was educated at
Brighton College
Brighton College is an independent, co-educational boarding and day school for boys and girls aged 3 to 18 in Brighton, England. The school has three sites: Brighton College (the senior school, ages 11 to 18); Brighton College Preparatory Sc ...
where he first showed his all-round athletic ability. He began his football career with the college in 1882 and was appointed team captain two years later,
retaining this position for three years before going up to
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 ...
in 1887.
At
Cambridge University
, mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts.
Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge.
, established =
, other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...
, he was awarded his football
blue
Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between violet and cyan on the spectrum of visible light. The eye perceives blue when obs ...
in each of the years from 1888 to 1891 (including being captain in 1890).
Corinthians and England
He first played for
Corinthian Corinthian or Corinthians may refer to:
*Several Pauline epistles, books of the New Testament of the Bible:
**First Epistle to the Corinthians
**Second Epistle to the Corinthians
**Third Epistle to the Corinthians (Orthodox)
*A demonym relating to ...
aged 18 in 1886, making his debut against
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 6 November 1886, when he scored in a 3–2 victory. His appearances were infrequent until 1888–89, when he made six appearances, scoring three times including two against
Preston North End
Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional football club in Preston, Lancashire, England, who currently play in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league syste ...
on 9 March 1889. He also put two goals past
Sheffield United
Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history of cutlery production. The team have played home games at ...
on 6 January 1890.
His performances for both Corinthians and
Cambridge University
, mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts.
Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge.
, established =
, other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...
ultimately led to a call-up to the
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
team. He made his international debut against
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
on 7 March 1891, while still at Cambridge University. For the second year running, England played both
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
and Ireland on the same day, and, for the match against Ireland played at
Molineux,
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton () is a city, metropolitan borough and administrative centre in the West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in 2011 to 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunian ...
, England selected a predominantly Midlands based team, with five players making their debut. Cotterill played at
inside right
Forwards (also known as attackers) are Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield positions in an association football team who play the furthest up the pitch and are therefore most responsible for scoring Goal (sport)#Association footbal ...
and was amongst the scorers as England, who were "too skilfull (sic) for the Irish" won 6–1. This match was
Tinsley Lindley
Dr. Tinsley Lindley OBE (27 October 1865 – 31 March 1940) was an English footballer. He was described as "an ideal centre forward". He scored three goals in his debut aged 16 for Nottingham Forest. He was an amateur who did not wear football ...
's final appearance for England, and he marked the occasion with two goals.
On 19 December 1891, Cotterill played for England in an "unofficial" match against
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
, when he scored in a 6–1 victory. Fellow Corinthian,
C. B. Fry
Charles Burgess Fry (25 April 1872 – 7 September 1956) was an English sportsman, teacher, writer, editor and publisher, who is best remembered for his career as a cricketer. John Arlott described him with the words: "Charles Fry could b ...
also played for England in this match. During the 1891–92 season, Cotterill made six appearances for Corinthian scoring seven goals including a
hat trick
A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...
in a 4–4 draw with
West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pla ...
on 20 February 1892.
On 5 March 1892, England again played simultaneous matches against Wales and Ireland. This time, Cotterill was selected as part of a predominantly amateur team (most of the players were members of the
Corinthian Corinthian or Corinthians may refer to:
*Several Pauline epistles, books of the New Testament of the Bible:
**First Epistle to the Corinthians
**Second Epistle to the Corinthians
**Third Epistle to the Corinthians (Orthodox)
*A demonym relating to ...
club) to play against Wales at the
Racecourse Ground
The Racecourse Ground ( cy, Y Cae Ras) is a football stadium in Wrexham, Wales. It is the home of Wrexham A.F.C.
It is the world's oldest international football stadium that still hosts international matches, having hosted Wales' first home i ...
,
Wrexham
Wrexham ( ; cy, Wrecsam; ) is a city and the administrative centre of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. It is located between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley, near the border with Cheshire in England. Historically in the count ...
, and was one of only three players in the side who had previous international experience. England were "a little too skilful for the Welsh" and ran out 2–0 winners with goals from
Arthur Henfrey Arthur Henfrey may refer to:
* Arthur Henfrey (footballer) (1867–1929), English footballer
* Arthur Henfrey (botanist)
Arthur Henfrey (1 November 1819 – 7 September 1859) was an English surgeon and botanist.
Life
Henfrey was born of Engl ...
and
Rupert Sandilands
Rupert Renorden Sandilands (7 August 186820 April 1946) was an English international footballer who played as an outside left.
Early and personal life
Sandilands was born on 7 August 1868 at the vicarage in Denford, near Thrapston in Northampto ...
.
In April 1892, Corinthians played a multi-sport tournament against the
Barbarian
A barbarian (or savage) is someone who is perceived to be either Civilization, uncivilized or primitive. The designation is usually applied as a generalization based on a popular stereotype; barbarians can be members of any nation judged by som ...
s rugby club. Cotterill played at
inside right
Forwards (also known as attackers) are Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield positions in an association football team who play the furthest up the pitch and are therefore most responsible for scoring Goal (sport)#Association footbal ...
in the soccer match which Corinthian won 6–0, with
Tinsley Lindley
Dr. Tinsley Lindley OBE (27 October 1865 – 31 March 1940) was an English footballer. He was described as "an ideal centre forward". He scored three goals in his debut aged 16 for Nottingham Forest. He was an amateur who did not wear football ...
scoring a
hat-trick
A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three.
Origin
The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wic ...
. Cotterill also played in the
rugby
Rugby may refer to:
Sport
* Rugby football in many forms:
** Rugby league: 13 players per side
*** Masters Rugby League
*** Mod league
*** Rugby league nines
*** Rugby league sevens
*** Touch (sport)
*** Wheelchair rugby league
** Rugby union: 1 ...
match, which Corinthian won 16–13, although the match was not a very serious encounter and was described by
The Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...
newspaper as "a very amusing game". The rugby match was followed by an athletics meeting in which
C. B. Fry
Charles Burgess Fry (25 April 1872 – 7 September 1956) was an English sportsman, teacher, writer, editor and publisher, who is best remembered for his career as a cricketer. John Arlott described him with the words: "Charles Fry could b ...
was prominent, winning both the
long jump
The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a takeoff point. Along with the triple jump, the two events that measure jumping for distance as a gr ...
and
high jump
The high jump is a track and field event in which competitors must jump unaided over a horizontal bar placed at measured heights without dislodging it. In its modern, most-practiced format, a bar is placed between two standards with a crash mat f ...
, with Cotterill winning the "Putting the Weight" with a distance of 34 ft 1in. Finally, the two clubs met a few weeks later in a
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 ...
match in which Cotterill played alongside several other prominent Corinthians, including Fry, Lindley and
Charles Wreford-Brown
Charles Wreford-Brown (9 October 1866 – 26 November 1951) was an English sportsman. He captained the England national football team and was a county cricketer during the Victorian age, and later acted as a sports legislator during the 20th ce ...
, with the Barbarians winning by four wickets.
By now Cotterill had left University and his primary registration was now with
Old Brightonians, although he continued to turn out on a regular basis for Corinthian. He started the 1892–93 season with goals in each of the first three matches for Corinthian, including a hat-trick in a 4–2 victory against
Sunderland
Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...
on 12 November. For the first time, Cotterill was able to join a Corinthian tour of northern England and Scotland, when he played five games in eight days in December and January against professional teams scoring five times.
Cotterill was appointed
team captain
In team sport, captain is a title given to a member of the team. The title is frequently honorary, but in some cases the captain may have significant responsibility for strategy and teamwork while the game is in progress on the field. In eithe ...
for the
1893 British Home Championship
Events
January–March
* January 2 – Webb C. Ball introduces railroad chronometers, which become the general railroad timepiece standards in North America.
* Mark Twain started writing Puddn'head Wilson.
* January 6 – Th ...
matches against Ireland and
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
. For the match against Ireland, played at
Perry Barr
Perry Barr is a suburban area in north Birmingham, England. It is also the name of a council constituency, managed by its own district committee. Birmingham Perry Barr is also a parliamentary constituency; its Member of Parliament is Khalid Ma ...
, Birmingham on 25 February 1893, the selectors again called up a predominantly amateur, Corinthians dominated eleven with another seven débutantes. Amongst the débutantes was
Walter Gilliat
Walter Evelyn Gilliat (22 July 1869 – 2 January 1963) was an English amateur footballer who played for Oxford University and Old Carthusians, as well as making one appearance for the English national side, when he scored three goals. He subs ...
of
Old Carthusians who scored a
hat-trick
A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three.
Origin
The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wic ...
in his only appearance in an England shirt. England "won the game with ease" as further goals from
G.O. Smith
Gilbert Oswald Smith (25 November 1872 – 6 December 1943
), familiarly known as G. O. Smith or simply as G. O. ...
,
William Winckworth
William Norman Winckworth (9 February 1870 – 9 November 1941) was an English international footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are ass ...
and
Rupert Sandilands
Rupert Renorden Sandilands (7 August 186820 April 1946) was an English international footballer who played as an outside left.
Early and personal life
Sandilands was born on 7 August 1868 at the vicarage in Denford, near Thrapston in Northampto ...
enabled England to run out convincing 6–1 victors.
For the next match, against Wales, the England selectors chose an entirely different, professional eleven players. Cotterill was restored for the final international match of the season at
Richmond, London
Richmond is a town in south-west London,The London Government Act 1963 (c.33) (as amended) categorises the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames as an Outer London borough. Although it is on both sides of the River Thames, the Boundary Commiss ...
on 1 April 1893 against Scotland who were hoping to avenge their defeat in each of the two previous seasons. England selected a strong eleven, with only Cotterill's fellow
Old Brightonian,
Leslie Gay
Leslie Hewitt Gay (24 March 1871 – 1 November 1949) was a first-class cricketer who played for Cambridge University, Hampshire, Somerset and England. As a footballer, he played for Cambridge University, the Corinthians and England.
Educatio ...
making his debut in goal. Cotterill scored England's second goal to bring the scores level after 58 minutes, with England eventually running out 5–2 victors, thus enabling them to claim the championship for the third consecutive season.
In 1893, he again started the season well for Corinthian with a hat-trick in an 11–0 defeat of The Army (
Rupert Sandilands
Rupert Renorden Sandilands (7 August 186820 April 1946) was an English international footballer who played as an outside left.
Early and personal life
Sandilands was born on 7 August 1868 at the vicarage in Denford, near Thrapston in Northampto ...
scored six). He repeated this on 13 January 1894 in a 4–6 defeat against
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 ...
. Villa had taken a three-goal lead before Cotterill's hat-trick brought the score to 3–4. He finished the 1893–94 season with 16 goals from 13 appearances.
Over the next few seasons, he was only able to make a handful of appearances for Corinthian and he bowed out at the end of the 1897–98 season, having played 65 matches, scoring 53 goals in his thirteen seasons with the club.
In his football career, he also played for
Weybridge
Weybridge () is a town in the Borough of Elmbridge in Surrey, England, around southwest of central London. The settlement is recorded as ''Waigebrugge'' and ''Weibrugge'' in the 7th century and the name derives from a crossing point of the ...
and
Burgess Hill
Burgess Hill is a town and civil parish in West Sussex, England, close to the border with East Sussex, on the edge of the South Downs National Park, south of London, north of Brighton and Hove, and northeast of the county town, Chichester. It ...
, and represented Surrey and Sussex.
Cricket
He played seven matches for
Cambridge University
, mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts.
Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge.
, established =
, other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...
in 1888–89, but did not obtain his Blue.
He also appeared in ten matches for
Sussex
Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...
between 1886–90. In his total first-class career, he played 17 matches and scored 305 runs at an average of 10.16. As a right-arm slow bowler, he claimed three wickets at an average of 38.33.
His father,
George Edward Cotterill, also played cricket for Cambridge University (1858–1860), Cambridgeshire (1858) and Sussex (1869–1874), and his uncle,
Joseph Cotterill played for Sussex (1870–1888).
Other sports
He was an all round athlete, rowed for
Weybridge Rowing Club
Weybridge Rowing Club, founded in 1880, is a rowing club by the Thames in England, on the Surrey bank.
The club organises head races, notably the Weybridge Silver Sculls which has had Olympian winners and co-organises a May/June regatta. It con ...
, played rugby for
Richmond
Richmond most often refers to:
* Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States
* Richmond, London, a part of London
* Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England
* Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada
* Richmond, California, ...
and Surrey, and at university he was a member of the track, field and rowing teams.
Military career
On 24 July 1886, aged 18, he was appointed to the rank of Lieutenant in the 2nd Volunteer Battalion, the
Queen's (Royal West Surrey Regiment)
The Queen's Royal Regiment (West Surrey) was a line infantry regiment of the English and later the British Army from 1661 to 1959. It was the senior English line infantry regiment of the British Army, behind only the Royal Scots in the British Arm ...
.
On the outbreak of the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, he enlisted in the 11th Battalion,
The Lancashire Fusiliers
The Lancashire Fusiliers was a line infantry regiment of the British Army that saw distinguished service through many years and wars, including the Second Boer War, the First and Second World Wars, and had many different titles throughout its 280 ...
, being temporarily promoted to the rank of
Captain
Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...
on 22 September 1914.
He subsequently achieved the rank of Major.
He died at
Llandaff
Llandaff (; cy, Llandaf ; from 'church' and '' Taf'') is a district, community and coterminous electoral ward in the north of Cardiff, capital of Wales. It was incorporated into the city in 1922. It is the seat of the Bishop of Llandaff, whose ...
,
Glamorgan
, HQ = Cardiff
, Government = Glamorgan County Council (1889–1974)
, Origin=
, Code = GLA
, CodeName = Chapman code
, Replace =
* West Glamorgan
* Mid Glamorgan
* South Glamorgan
, Motto ...
, Wales on 1 October 1950, aged 82.
References
External links
*
Profile on CricinfoProfile on www.englandfc.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cotterill, George
1868 births
1950 deaths
Footballers from Brighton
Rugby union players from Brighton
People educated at Brighton College
England international footballers
English footballers
Cambridge University A.F.C. players
Corinthian F.C. players
Burgess Hill Town F.C. players
English cricketers
English cricketers of 1864 to 1889
Cambridge University cricketers
Sussex cricketers
British Army personnel of World War I
Lancashire Fusiliers officers
Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge
English rugby union players
Marylebone Cricket Club cricketers
Old Brightonians A.F.C. players
Association football forwards