Edward A. Brooks (born

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

, Ireland) was an Irish

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 played as centre-forward or inside-left for, among others, Shelbourne,

Bohemians Bohemian or Bohemians may refer to: *Anything of or relating to Bohemia Beer * National Bohemian, a brand brewed by Pabst * Bohemian, a brand of beer brewed by Molson Coors Culture and arts * Bohemianism, an unconventional lifestyle, origin ...

, Stockport County and

Athlone Town Athlone Town Association Football Club () is an Irish football club from Athlone who are playing in the League of Ireland. The club is the oldest in the League as it was founded in 1887. First elected to the League of Ireland in 1922, they pl ...

. Brookes was a dual internationalist and played for both Ireland teams – the IFA XI and the FAI XI.

Club career

Shelbourne

Brooks played at Shelbourne during the 1919–20 season alongside

Val Harris Valentine Harris (Irish: ''Vailintín Ó hEarchaí''; 23 June 1884 in Ringsend, Dublin, Ireland – 9 November 1963), commonly referred to as Val Harris, was an Irish footballer who played Gaelic football for the Dublin county team and soccer f ...

and

Bob Fullam Robert "Bob" Fullam (1895–1971) was an Irish footballer and one of the best-known players in the League of Ireland in the 1920 A versatile attacking player, he was skilful but also had a tough-man image. Born in Ringsend, the son of John and ...

and finished as the club's top goalscorer. He also helped Shelbourne win the

Irish Cup The Irish Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly referred to as the Irish Cup (currently known as the Samuel Gelston's Whiskey Irish Cup for sponsorship purposes) is the primary football knock-out cup competition in Northern Ireland. Ina ...

. Shelbourne were awarded the cup after both

Belfast Celtic Belfast Celtic Football Club was a football club. Founded in 1891 in Belfast, Northern Ireland, it was one of the most successful teams in Ireland until it withdrew permanently from the Irish League in 1949. The club left the league for polit ...

and

Glentoran Glentoran Football Club is a professional football club that plays in the NIFL Premiership. The club was founded in 1882. History Early history In 1914, Glentoran won the Vienna Cup, becoming the first United Kingdom team to win a European t ...

were expelled from the competition. While playing for Shelbourne, Brooks also represented the Irish League XI against a Scottish League XI in a 2–0 defeat at

Windsor Park Windsor Park is a football stadium in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is the home ground of Linfield F.C. who own the land the stadium is built on, while the Irish Football Association own and operate the stadium and pay Linfield an annual rent ...

in 1919.

Irish international

When Brooks began his international career in 1920, Ireland was represented by a single team, selected by the

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...

-based

Irish Football Association The Irish Football Association (IFA) is the governing body for association football in Northern Ireland. It organised the Ireland national football team from 1880 to 1950, which after 1954, became the Northern Ireland national football team. ...

. However, during the 1920s, Ireland was partitioned into Northern Ireland and the

Irish Free State The Irish Free State ( ga, Saorstát Éireann, , ; 6 December 192229 December 1937) was a state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-year Irish War of Independence between th ...

. Amid these political upheavals, a rival association, the Football Association of Ireland, emerged in

and from 1924 organised their own national team. As a result, several notable Irish players from this era, including Brookes played for both teams – the IFA XI and the FAI XI.

IFA XI

Brooks made his one and only appearance for the IFA XI while playing for Shelbourne. On 3 March 1920, in a team that also included Elisha Scott,

Bert Manderson Bert Manderson (9 May 1893 – 27 April 1946) was an Irish footballer who played as a right-back for Rangers and Ireland. Playing career Manderson made his Rangers debut in a 1–1 draw with Aberdeen on 27 March 1915. He had joined Rangers fr ...

, Bill Lacey and Billy Gillespie, he played for the IFA XI against

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 ...

in a 3–0 defeat at Celtic Park.

FAI XI

On 14 June 1924, while playing for

, Brooks also played for the FAI XI, 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 ...

against the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

in 3–1 win at

Dalymount Park Dalymount Park (Irish: ''Páirc Cnocán Uí Dhálaigh'') is a football stadium in Phibsborough on the Northside of Dublin, Ireland. It is the home of Bohemian F.C., who have played there since the early 20th century. Affectionately known as D ...

. His teammates that day included, among others, Frank Collins,

Paddy Duncan Paddy Duncan (1894 – 9 April 1949) was an Irish association football, footballer. At the Ireland at the 1924 Summer Olympics, 1924 Olympic Games he scored the Republic of Ireland national football team, Ireland (FAI)'s first ever goal in a sen ...

, Tommy Muldoon,

Charlie Dowdall Charles Dowdall (7 April 1898 – 7 November 1987) was an Irish footballer. He played for several clubs in both the League of Ireland and the English League and was also capped at international level by Ireland. He was born in Dublin. Club car ...

and

Johnny Murray Johnny Murray (25 February 1898 – 12 November 1954) was an Irish soccer player during the 1920s. Murray was a skilful winger who played for Ormeau, Blue Crusaders, Bohemians and Drumcondra F.C. He joined Bohs in 1921 and stayed at Dalymount ...

. In March 1926 while playing for

, Brooks was also called up for the FAI XI to play in an away game against

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. However a personal tragedy meant he was unable to travel and win another cap. A week before the team was due to leave for Italy, his seven-year-old son, Harold, was knocked down by a car and died in hospital. ''The Boys In Green – The FAI International Story'' (1997): Sean Ryan
/ref>

Family

He was married to Elizabeth Brooks (née Smyth) and had another child named Pauline who died during infancy. He also had two sons named Cecil and Stanley (stan) and a daughter Phyllis. Brooks died on 8 March 1958 and was buried in Deansgrange Cemetery with his wife Elizabeth and son Stan.

Honours

Shelbourne *

**''Winners'' 1920: 1

References

External links

Northern Ireland's Footballing Greats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brookes, Ed Association footballers from County Dublin Irish association footballers (before 1923) Republic of Ireland association footballers Irish Free State association footballers Dual Irish international footballers Pre-1950 IFA international footballers Bohemian F.C. players Shelbourne F.C. players Stockport County F.C. players Athlone Town A.F.C. players League of Ireland players 1958 deaths 1881 births Burials at Deans Grange Cemetery League of Ireland XI players Irish League representative players Association football forwards Irish Olympic Council international footballers