William J. "Tucker" Fryer (22 July 1895 in Burradon,

Northumberland Northumberland () is a county in Northern England, one of two counties in England which border with Scotland. Notable landmarks in the county include Alnwick Castle, Bamburgh Castle, Hadrian's Wall and Hexham Abbey. It is bordered by land ...

, England – 29 August 1960 in Linden, New Jersey) was an English-American soccer half back. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame. Fryer began his career with Byker West End. In 1919, he signed with Barnsley F.C. and spent two season with the club before leaving England for the United States. When he arrived, he signed with

Tebo Yacht Basin F.C. Tebo Yacht Basin was an amateur U.S. soccer team sponsored by the Tebo Yacht Basin company of Brooklyn, New York. It had a brief impact on the U.S. soccer scene from 1918 to 1921. In the fall of 1918, Tebo was drawn with Vikings in the first rou ...

of the New York State League. Tebo won both the league and South New York State Cup titles in 1921, but there are no records which show Fryer was with them during that period. In the fall of 1921, Fryer moved to

Todd Shipyards Todd or Todds may refer to: Places ;Australia: * Todd River, an ephemeral river ;United States: * Todd Valley, California, also known as Todd, an unincorporated community * Todd, Missouri, a ghost town * Todd, North Carolina, an unincorporated ...

of the newly established American Soccer League. In 1922, Fryer and this teammates fell in the final of the National Challenge Cup to

St. Louis Scullin Steel F.C. St. Louis Scullin Steel was a U.S. soccer team established in St. Louis, Missouri in 1918. It spent seven seasons in the St. Louis Soccer League, winning three league titles and one National Challenge Cup. History In 1918, Scullin Steel of St. Lo ...

Todd Shipyards left the league at the end of the season and Fryer moved to Paterson F.C. Fryer and Paterson went to the

1923 National Challenge Cup Nineteen or 19 may refer to: * 19 (number), the natural number following 18 and preceding 20 * one of the years 19 BC, AD 19, 1919, 2019 Films * ''19'' (film), a 2001 Japanese film * ''Nineteen'' (film), a 1987 science fiction film Music ...

final, defeating Scullin Steel for the title. In 1923, Paterson was sold to new ownership which moved the team to New York, renaming it the New York Giants. Fryer began the 1923–1924 season, but was sold to the

Fall River Marksmen Fall River Marksmen was an American soccer club based in Fall River, Massachusetts. They originally played as Fall River United before becoming known as the Marksmen after their owner, Sam Mark. During the 1920s and early 1930s they were one of t ...

for the record fee of $1,500. He remained in Fall River until 1927 when he moved to the

Brooklyn Wanderers The Brooklyn Wanderers was a U.S. soccer team which was a founding member of the National Association Football League in the late nineteenth century. Later versions joined the original American Soccer League and the reorganized American Soccer Le ...

. During his time in Fall River, Fryer won three league titles. In 1930, he moved to the

Newark Americans Newark Americans were a team in the first American Soccer League. They were founded in 1930, but folded following the spring 1932 season. Year-by-year Defunct soccer clubs in New Jersey American Soccer League (1921–1933) teams 1930 establ ...

. He finished his career with the semi-professional Clan Gordon of an unknown league. Fryer was inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 1951.

References

External links

National Soccer Hall of Fame profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fryer, William 1895 births 1960 deaths English footballers Barnsley F.C. players Tebo Yacht Basin F.C. players American Soccer League (1921–1933) players Todd Shipyards (soccer team) players Paterson F.C. (NAFBL) players New York Giants (soccer) players Fall River Marksmen players Brooklyn Wanderers players Newark Americans players National Soccer Hall of Fame members Association football midfielders British emigrants to the United States