Percy Weston (27 March 1852 – 30 June 1905) was an English amateur athlete who played for England in two of the unofficial football matches against Scotland in 1871 and 1872. In his professional life, he was a successful stockbroker.

Early life

Weston was born in Hackney, London, on 27 March 1852, the fourth son of John Weston (1817–1887) and his wife Augusta Ellen née Wood (1817–1891). His father was a merchant and financial agent.

Rowing

Percy and his four brothers were members of the

London Rowing Club London Rowing Club (LRC, or colloquially, 'London') is the second-oldest of the non-academic active rowing clubs on the Thames in London, United Kingdom. It was founded in 1856 by members of the long-disbanded Argonauts Club wishing to compete at ...

; being small in stature, they made perfect coxes. Between 1865 and 1871, Percy won several prizes with the London Rowing Club; his rowing crews often included

E. C. Morley Ebenezer Cobb Morley (16 August 1831 – 20 November 1924) was an English sportsman. He is regarded as one of the fathers of the Football Association (FA) and modern football. Early life Morley was born at 10 Garden Square, Princess Street in ...

, the first secretary of

the Football Association The Football Association (also known as The FA) is the Sports governing body, governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Bailiwick of Guernsey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the ...

, or his successors, R. W. Willis and R. G. Graham.

Football

Weston played for the

Barnes Club __NOTOC__ Barnes Football Club is an association football club in Barnes, London. The club had great importance in the development of the game in the nineteenth century and was the first team ever to win a match in the FA Cup. History Origins T ...

between 1868 and 1875, and scored a goal in their first

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 ...

match, a 2–0 victory over the

Civil Service The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil servants hired on professional merit rather than appointed or elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leaders ...

on 11 November 1871. His brothers Edward and Vincent played alongside him in this match. Weston represented London against Sheffield in 1871 and 1872, and served on the FA committee in 1872–73. In November 1871,

Charles W. Alcock Charles William Alcock (2 December 1842 – 26 February 1907) was an English sportsman, administrator, author and editor. He was a major instigator in the development of both international football and cricket, as well as being the creator of ...

was organising the fourth "international" match between an England XI and a Scotland XI. Alcock had originally selected Henry Lake of Hampstead Heathens and

Thomas Hooman Thomas Charles Hooman (28 December 1850 – 22 September 1938) was a leading English association football player of the Victorian era. He played for Wanderers in the 1872 FA Cup Final and was also chosen to represent England on several occasions ...

( Wanderers), but both were unable to play and were replaced by Weston and

Jarvis Kenrick Jarvis Kenrick (13 November 1852 – 29 January 1949) was an English footballer. Career Born in Chichester, Sussex, Kenrick scored the first ever goal in the FA Cup, for Clapham Rovers in a 3–0 victory over Upton Park on 11 November 1871. K ...

. The match was played on 18 November at the

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 ...

; England won 2–1, with R. S. F. Walker scoring both England's goals. According to the report on the match in ''

Bell's Life ''Bell's Life...'' was a group of newspapers produced in Australia in the mid-nineteenth century based upon the English publication ''Bell's Life in London''. Most publications lasted a short duration. The subtitles were usually ''sporting ch ...

'', Walker's second goal came from "the ball having been splendidly run down by Weston". Weston retained his place in the England XI for the next match, played at The Oval on 24 February 1872. The match was won by the England XI, with the only goal coming from

Charles Clegg Charles Myron Clegg Jr. (June 29, 1916 – August 25, 1979) was an American author, photographer, and railroad historian. Clegg is primarily remembered as the lifelong romantic partner of famed railroad author Lucius Beebe, and was a co-author o ...

. One match report praised Weston's "forward play" while ''Bell's Life'' commented that "on several occasions, ... Weston seriously endangered the safety of the Scotch goal".

Family

Weston married Blanche Katharine Williams (1851–1925) on 8 July 1873 at St Mary's Church,

Putney Putney () is a district of southwest London, England, in the London Borough of Wandsworth, southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. History Putney is an ancient paris ...

. She was the daughter of the late Frederick Sims Williams (1812–1863) and his wife Katharine; he was a barrister who wrote several legal reference books, including ''The New Practice of the Court of Chancery...''. Percy and Blanche had nine children: four sons and five daughters. At the 1881 census, the couple and their eldest five children were living at "Greenfields", Upper Sheen,

Mortlake Mortlake is a suburban district of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames on the south bank of the River Thames between Kew and Barnes. Historically it was part of Surrey and until 1965 was in the Municipal Borough of Barnes. For many centu ...

, with six staff, when Percy gave his occupation as a "Member of the

London Stock Exchange London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a stock exchange in the City of London, England, United Kingdom. , the total market value of all companies trading on LSE was £3.9 trillion. Its current premises are situated in Paternoster Square close to St Pau ...

". Twenty years later, the 1901 census shows the couple still living at "Greenfields" with two daughters and three staff; Percy was now described as a "Stock dealer – own account". Their first son, Digby St Aubyn Percy (1874–1944), was born in April 1874; he had a long service in the Royal Navy, reaching the rank of

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

. The third son, Spencer Vaughan Percy (1883–1973), became a

brigadier Brigadier is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several thousand soldiers. In ...

with the 17th Battalion

Royal Fusiliers The Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regiment) was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in continuous existence for 283 years. It was known as the 7th Regiment of Foot until the Childers Reforms of 1881. The regiment served in many wars ...

in 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 ...

; in 1943, he survived the sinking of the by the Italian submarine , off the West African coast. He married Henrietta Valerie Compton-Smith (1890–1980), whose brother Geoffrey Lee Compton-Smith (born 1889) was executed by the

Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA) is a name used by various paramilitary organisations in Ireland throughout the 20th and 21st centuries. Organisations by this name have been dedicated to irredentism through Irish republicanism, the belief tha ...

in April 1921. The youngest of the four sons, Howard Vernon Percy (1884–1965), also served with the Royal Navy, reaching the rank of

lieutenant commander Lieutenant commander (also hyphenated lieutenant-commander and abbreviated Lt Cdr, LtCdr. or LCDR) is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander. The corresponding rank i ...

. A daughter, Beatrice Dorothy (1881–1970), married John Alexander Duncan (1878–1943). He was also a Royal Navy officer, reaching the rank of Commander. He was appointed a CB in June 1915. Their daughter was Ursula Katharine Duncan (1910–1985), who became an eminent bryologist.

Death

Weston died on 30 June 1905 at 55a

Welbeck Street Welbeck Street is a street in the West End, central London. It has historically been associated with the medical profession. Location The street runs approximately north–south between New Cavendish Street at the northern end, crossing Wigm ...

, and was buried at St Mary's Church, Mortlake on 6 July. He left an estate valued at £24,062, equivalent to over £2.2 million at 2013 prices.

References

Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Weston, Percy 1852 births 1905 deaths Footballers from the London Borough of Hackney People from Hackney, London England men's representative footballers (1870–1872) English men's footballers English male rowers English stockbrokers Barnes Football Club players Men's association football players not categorized by position 19th-century English businesspeople