Billy Balmer (29 July 1875 – February 1961) 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 played as a

right-back 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 ...

for Everton, as well as the England national side. His brother

Bob Bob, BOB, or B.O.B. may refer to: Places * Mount Bob, New York, United States *Bob Island, Palmer Archipelago, Antarctica People, fictional characters, and named animals *Bob (given name), a list of people and fictional characters *Bob (surname ...

played alongside him for Everton and his nephew was

Jack Balmer John Balmer (6 February 1916 — 25 December 1984) was an English footballer who played as a striker for English club Liverpool. Life and playing career Born in West Derby, Liverpool, Lancashire, England, Balmer played for Collegiate Old Boys ...

Career

Balmer was a tough-tackling full-back. He joined Everton in 1897 from South Shore and went on to play 331 games, scoring one goal. His brother Bob – four years his junior – also played for Everton. His nephew, Jack, attained fame with local rivals

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...

. His only England appearance came in a 1–1 draw with

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 ...

in 1905. Balmer spent the 1909–10 and 1910–11 seasons in the Southern League with

Croydon Common Croydon Common Football Club was an amateur and, later on, professional football club based in Croydon. History The team formed in 1897 as an amateur church team competing in local leagues. They turned professional in 1907, joining the Southern L ...

, making 64 appearances and scoring four goals. In 1912, 35-year-old Balmer joined Chester in the

Lancashire Combination The Lancashire Combination was a football league founded in the North West of England in 1891–92. It absorbed the Lancashire League in 1903. In 1968 the Combination lost five of its clubs to the newly formed Northern Premier League. In 1982 it ...

, but he left after just two games as he was deemed to be too slow and past his best. In 1921, Balmer was appointed as trainer at

Huddersfield Town Huddersfield Town Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The team have played home games at the Kirklees Stadium since moving from Leeds Road in 1994. Th ...

and progressed to become a coach with the club.

References

External links

* 1875 births 1961 deaths People from West Derby English men's footballers Footballers from Liverpool Men's association football fullbacks England men's international footballers English Football League representative players English Football League players Southern Football League players Everton F.C. players Chester City F.C. players Croydon Common F.C. players Huddersfield Town A.F.C. non-playing staff South Shore F.C. players {{England-footy-defender-1870s-stub