Stanley Clare Pearson (11 January 1919 – 20 February 1997) 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, rugb ...

. Born in

Salford Salford () is a city and the largest settlement in the City of Salford metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. In 2011, Salford had a population of 103,886. It is also the second and only other city in the metropolitan county afte ...

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 Lancas ...

, Pearson was signed by

Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The ...

as an amateur in December 1935 and turned professional in May 1937. His first senior game came against Chesterfield in 1937. When his career was interrupted by the

Second World War 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 opposi ...

, he served with the 2nd/4th Lancashires. He helped United win the 1948 FA Cup (scoring in the final) and 1952 league championship. He retired in 1953 with 148 career goals (good for 9th in team history) in 343 appearances; just two goals behind

Ruud van Nistelrooy Rutgerus Johannes Martinus van Nistelrooij (anglicised to Van Nistelrooy; born 1 July 1976) is a Dutch professional football coach and former player. He is currently the coach of PSV Eindhoven. A former footballer, Van Nistelrooy is often consi ...

. During his time at Manchester United, he scored five

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 w ...

s; four in the league and one in the FA Cup. His first came in a 5–0 victory over Liverpool in 1946, and in the 1948 FA Cup semi-final he scored all the goals when United won 3–1 against

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 188 ...

at Hillsborough 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 ...

. His hat-trick against Liverpool in September 1946 occurred at

Maine Road Maine Road was a football stadium in Moss Side, Manchester, England, that was home to Manchester City F.C. from 1923 to 2003. It hosted FA Cup semi-finals, the Charity Shield, a League Cup final and England matches. Maine Road's highest a ...

(due to bomb damage to

Old Trafford Old Trafford () is a football stadium in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, and the home of Manchester United. With a capacity of 74,310 it is the largest club football stadium (and second-largest football stadium overall after Wembl ...

), and would be the last hat-trick by a Manchester United player against the

Anfield Anfield is a football stadium in Anfield, Liverpool, Merseyside, England, which has a seating capacity of 53,394, making it the seventh largest football stadium in England. It has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since their formation in 1892 ...

club until September 2010, when Bulgarian

Dimitar Berbatov Dimitar Ivanov Berbatov ( bg, Димитър Иванов Бербатов; born 30 January 1981) is a Bulgarian former professional footballer. A striker, he captained the Bulgaria national team from 2006 to 2010, and is the country's all-ti ...

scored all three of United's goals in a 3–2 league win at

. Pearson went on to average more than one goal every two games in three years at Bury before his playing career ended with two years at

Chester Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...

from 1957 to 1959. At 40 years, 101 days, Pearson remains the oldest player to make a

Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in Association football around the wor ...

appearance for the club when he played his final match against Crewe Alexandra on 22 April 1959. Upon his retirement, Pearson was a popular appointment as Chester manager after John Harris moved to

Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history of cutlery production. The team have played home games at ...

. Despite making signings such as his former

colleague

Frank Clempson Frank Clempson (27 May 1930 – 24 December 1970) was an English professional footballer born in Salford who played in The Football League for three clubs. He was part of the Manchester United squad when they won the First Division title in 1 ...

, Chester struggled during Pearson's reign in charge. After finishing 20th and 24th in successive

Division Four The Football League Fourth Division was the fourth-highest division in the English football league system from the 1958–59 season until the creation of the Premier League prior to the 1992–93 season. Whilst the division disappeared in name ...

seasons, Pearson left the club following a 1–0 home defeat to non-league

Morecambe Morecambe ( ) is a seaside town and civil parish in the City of Lancaster district in Lancashire, England. It is in Morecambe Bay on the Irish Sea. Name The first use of the name was by John Whitaker in his ''History of Manchester'' (1771), ...

in November 1961 in 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 compet ...

. After retiring from football Pearson became sub-postmaster of Prestbury Post Office in Cheshire. He died at

Alderley Edge Alderley Edge is a village and civil parish in Cheshire, England. In 2011, it had a population of 4,780. Alderley Edge is northwest of Macclesfield and south of Manchester, at the base of a steep and thickly wooded sandstone escarpment, Alder ...

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county tow ...

, in February 1997, aged 78.

References

External links

Biography on official Manchester United website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pearson, Stan 1919 births 1997 deaths Footballers from Salford English footballers English Football League players England international footballers Bury F.C. players Chester City F.C. players Manchester United F.C. players English football managers Chester City F.C. managers English Football League representative players Association football inside forwards FA Cup Final players British Army personnel of World War II