Jack Parr (21 November 1920 – 28 March 1985) was an English footballer who 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

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 ...

and

Shrewsbury Town Shrewsbury Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of English football. The club plays its home games at the New Meadow, having mo ...

, among others.

Career

Early career

Parr played for Holbrook Miners Welfare during his youth, as well as

Little Eaton Little Eaton is a village and civil parish in the English county of Derbyshire. The population as taken at the 2011 Census was 2,430. The name originated from Anglo Saxon times and means the "little town by the water". It is on the former rou ...

St Peter's, where he later became captain. He signed amateur forms with Derby in December 1937, not long before the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. He frequently played for the club during the war seasons. Parr was spotted by Derby while playing against them during a game for Holbrook, having just returned from a leg injury. He remarked during a 1977 interview that had he not sustained the injury, he may not have had the opportunity to later play against Derby.

Main career

During Derby's 1945–46 season, where they won in the 1946 FA Cup final, Parr played in every game of the cup competition, except for the final, as he fractured his arm three weeks beforehand. He featured in a total of 134 games for Derby during peacetime. Following the conclusion of the 1952–53 season, Parr left Derby to join

in July 1953, despite a late bid from

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 ...

. He left the club in May 1956 on a free transfer.

Late career

In August 1956, Parr signed for Gresley Rovers, then managed by former team-mate

Sammy Crooks Samuel Dickinson Crooks (16 January 1908 – 3 February 1981) was an English footballer who played as outside forward or outside right for Derby County in the mid-war era. He was one of the best-known footballers of the 1920s and 1930s and was c ...

. He later joined

Burton Albion Burton Albion Football Club is a professional association football club in the town of Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The club moved its home groun ...

in June 1957, also then managed by Crooks, where he made six appearances in the first team before being released in November the same year. Parr re-signed for Gresley Rovers that same month and later for Belper Town in May 1958. In May 1959, Parr was announced as having moved into a player-coach role for Belper Town.

Death

Parr died on 28 March 1985 in hospital and was survived by his wife and children. He was cremated the following month.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Parr, Jackie 1920 births 1985 deaths Footballers from Derby English men's footballers English Football League players Belper Town F.C. players Burton Albion F.C. players Derby County F.C. players Gresley Rovers F.C. players Shrewsbury Town F.C. players Men's association football fullbacks