John Hunter (September 1852 – 9 April 1903) 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 won the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...

with

Blackburn Olympic Blackburn () is an industrial town and the administrative centre of the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire, England. The town is north of the West Pennine Moors on the southern edge of the Ribble Valley, east of Preston and north-no ...

in 1883 and made seven 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 ...

between

1878 Events January–March * January 5 – Russo-Turkish War – Battle of Shipka Pass IV: Russian and Bulgarian forces defeat the Ottoman Empire. * January 9 – Umberto I becomes King of Italy. * January 17 – Bat ...

and

1882 Events January–March * January 2 ** The Standard Oil Trust is secretly created in the United States to control multiple corporations set up by John D. Rockefeller and his associates. ** Irish-born author Oscar Wilde arrives in t ...

playing at half back.

Career

Hunter was born in

Sheffield Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire a ...

in September 1852 and worked as a

butcher A butcher is a person who may slaughter animals, dress their flesh, sell their meat, or participate within any combination of these three tasks. They may prepare standard cuts of meat and poultry for sale in retail or wholesale food establishm ...

and

silver Silver is a chemical element with the symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical ...

cutler in the city whilst playing for various clubs, including

Heeley Heeley is a former cluster of villages. Which all now form a suburb in the south of the City of Sheffield, England. The village has existed at least since 1343, its name deriving from ''Heah Leah'', ''High Lea'' then ''Hely'', meaning a high, ...

, Providence, Sheffield Albion and

The Zulus :''This article relates to an English football team. There are also separate articles on the African language and South African peoples.'' The Zulus were a short lived football team established in Sheffield, England that existed from 1879 to 1882. ...

. He won all his

caps whilst playing for Sheffield Heeley, a club he originally joined in 1870. His first international appearance was at Hampden Park,

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

against

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

on 2 March 1878. Although England "fielded a side they thought capable of defeating the Scots, ...(they) returned home with a humiliating 7-2 defeat". He was next selected in March 1880 for matches away to Scotland (lost 5-4) and

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

which resulted in a 3–2 victory; this was Hunter's only victory in his seven England appearances. He was again selected the following year for the two home internationals. In the match against Wales, played at

Alexandra Meadows Alexandra Meadows is the home ground of the East Lancashire Cricket Club in Blackburn. Between 1878 and 1881 the ground was used as the home venue for the Blackburn Rovers football team, following their move from the Pleasington Cricket Ground. ...

Blackburn Blackburn () is an industrial town and the administrative centre of the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire, England. The town is north of the West Pennine Moors on the southern edge of the Ribble Valley, east of Preston and north-n ...

on 26 February 1881, he was appointed captain, but Wales achieved their first victory on English soil with a 1-0 success. For the following game, Hunter retained his place but the captaincy moved to Norman Bailey. In the match, played at

Kennington Oval The Oval, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Kia Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, located in the borough of Lambeth, in south London. The Oval has been the home ground of Surrey County Cricket Club since it ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

on 12 March 1881, England suffered yet another "humiliating" defeat as the Scots returned home with a 6–1 victory. Despite England's poor performances against the Scots, Hunter was again selected for the international matches in March 1892. In both these matches, England conceded five goals going down 5–1 at Hampden Park,

on 11 March and 5–3 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 ...

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 ...

two days later. These two defeats brought Hunter's international career to a close. After a short spell with

The Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an offshoot of ...

, Hunter was appointed manager of a public house in Blackburn where he joined the Olympic in 1882 as both player and coach. Blackburn Olympic had been founded in August 1877 and soon evolved into one of the finest sides in

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancash ...

. Hunter, an astute coach and tactician, taught the Olympic players the art of the passing game. Hunter coached a team of tradesmen and weavers to overcome the dominance of local rivals,

Blackburn Rovers Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. Th ...

, and the amateur teams of

southern England Southern England, or the South of England, also known as the South, is an area of England consisting of its southernmost part, with cultural, economic and political differences from the Midlands and the North. Officially, the area includes ...

to win the

in 1883. It was Hunter who decided to take the team to Blackpool for a few days' relaxation prior to the final, which had been unheard of previously. In the final (against

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, ...

played on 31 March 1883 at the

), Hunter played 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 ...

and marshalled the defence, who were able to keep the Old Etonians forwards at bay thus allowing the fitter Olympics side to come from behind to claim the cup with a 2–1 victory after extra time. Hunter remained with Olympic until 1887, before joining Blackburn Rovers. After a short spell playing for Rovers, Hunter became assistant trainer and groundsman at Ewood Park, as well as working as a licensee in

. From 1897 Hunter had a short spell as coach to Cheshire side

New Brighton Tower New Brighton Tower was a steel lattice observation tower at New Brighton in the town of Wallasey, Cheshire (now in the Borough of Wirral, in Merseyside), England. It stood high, and was the tallest building in Great Britain when it opened ...

, helping that team rise from the Lancashire League to a brief sojourn in the Football League. He died of

consumption Consumption may refer to: *Resource consumption *Tuberculosis, an infectious disease, historically * Consumption (ecology), receipt of energy by consuming other organisms * Consumption (economics), the purchasing of newly produced goods for curren ...

on 9 April 1903.

Honours

Blackburn Olympic *

: Winner 1883

References

;Sources * * *

External links

*
England profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hunter, Jack 1852 births 1903 deaths Footballers from Sheffield English footballers England international footballers Sheffield Wednesday F.C. players Blackburn Olympic F.C. players Blackburn Rovers F.C. players Association football midfielders FA Cup Final players FA Cup winning managers 20th-century deaths from tuberculosis Tuberculosis deaths in England Blackburn Rovers F.C. non-playing staff Heeley F.C. players