Arthur Smith (footballer, Born 1915)
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Arthur Hoyle Smith (8 May 1915 – 21 August 2021) was an English professional
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 lea ...
. At age 106 he was, at the time of his death, the oldest living former professional
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, it is the oldest football league in Association football around the world, the w ...
player.


Career

Smith's career started with Bury, where he signed as an amateur in November 1934. The following month, he made his debut for the club against
Notts County Notts County Football Club is a professional association football, football club in Nottingham, England, which competes in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of Football in England, English football, following promotion and relegation, promotion ...
, and turned out for the club three more times over the course of the 1934–35 season. In September 1935, Smith signed for Bury as a professional, but found himself playing regularly for the reserve side. As a result, he did not feature for the first team again, and in 1938, he joined
Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...
on a free transfer. Smith's time at Leicester was brief, owing to the outbreak of the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. In his first season with Leicester, he made eight appearances, and in his second, he made two more, with a brace against
Manchester City Manchester City Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in Manchester, England, that competes in the Premier League, the English football league system, top flight of Football in England, English footbal ...
. In the 1940–41
Wartime League The Wartime League was a football league competition held in England during World War II, which replaced the suspended Football League. The exclusion of the FA Cup in these years saw the creation of the Football League War Cup. History The be ...
, Smith then made five more appearances for the club, and although he was registered with Leicester until 1946, he never played another match for them. From 1935 to 2015 (with the exception of five years' war service in the
British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...
), Smith was the organist and choirmaster at Christ Church, Walmersley. Because of his dedication to the church, he was awarded the
British Empire Medal The British Empire Medal (BEM; formerly British Empire Medal for Meritorious Service) is a British and Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth award for meritorious civil or military service worthy of recognition by the Monarchy of the United Ki ...
in the
2013 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2013 were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebrati ...
. He retired as organist on his 100th birthday. Smith died in
Bolton Bolton ( , locally ) is a town in Greater Manchester in England. In the foothills of the West Pennine Moors, Bolton is between Manchester, Blackburn, Wigan, Bury, Greater Manchester, Bury and Salford. It is surrounded by several towns and vill ...
in August 2021 at the age of 106.


References

1915 births 2021 deaths English men's footballers Bury F.C. players Leicester City F.C. players Recipients of the British Empire Medal British Army personnel of World War II Men's association football wingers English Anglicans 20th-century English organists 21st-century English organists English men centenarians British Army soldiers Military personnel from Lancashire Sportspeople from the Metropolitan Borough of Bury Footballers from Greater Manchester {{England-footy-midfielder-1910s-stub