Albert Clarke

Albert Clarke
Personal information
Date of birth	25 December 1916
Place of birth	Sheffield, England
Date of death	16 June 1944 (aged 27)
Place of death	France
Height	5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)
Position(s)	Forward
Senior career*
Years	Team
–	Mexborough Town
–	Frickley Colliery
1934–1936	Torquay United
1936–1938	Birmingham
1938–1944	Blackburn Rovers
	*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Albert W. Clarke (25 December 1916 – 16 June 1944) was an English professional footballer who played as a forward. He scored 39 goals in 84 appearances in the Football League playing for Torquay United, Birmingham and Blackburn Rovers.^[2]

Clarke was born in Sheffield, and began his football career with Mexborough Town and Frickley Colliery.^[3] Together with Frickley teammate Melvyn Millington, he turned professional with Torquay United of the Third Division South after a successful trial.^[4] He spent 16 months with Torquay before moving to First Division club Birmingham in 1936. Before the 1938–39 season he moved again, joining Blackburn Rovers in exchange for Wally Halsall. He averaged a goal every other game for Blackburn, helping them to the Second Division title, before the Football League was suspended on the outbreak of the Second World War.^[3] During the war he made guest appearances for Torquay and was a finalist in the 1939–40 War League Cup with Blackburn.^[5] He died in 1944 on active service in France with the 12th Battalion, Devonshire Regiment, part of the 6th Airlanding Brigade of the 6th Airborne Division.^[3]^[6]

References[edit]

^ "Birmingham. Few old hands". Sunday Dispatch Football Guide. London. 23 August 1936. p. iv – via Newspapers.com.
^ Joyce, Michael (2004). Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939. Nottingham: SoccerData (Tony Brown). p. 54. ISBN 978-1-899468-67-6.
^ ^a ^b ^c Matthews, Tony (1995). Birmingham City: A Complete Record. Derby: Breedon Books. p. 78. ISBN 978-1-85983-010-9.
^ "300 miles for a trial". Nottingham Evening Post. 2 November 1934. p. 14 – via British Newspaper Archive.
^ Rollin, Jack (2005). Soccer at War 1939–45. London: Headline. pp. 260, 425. ISBN 978-0-7553-1431-7.
^ "Clarke, Albert". Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Retrieved 13 July 2015.

External links[edit]

Profile at Frickley Athletic Museum website

This biographical article related to association football in England, about a forward born in the 1910s, is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

[1] "Birmingham. Few old hands". Sunday Dispatch Football Guide. London. 23 August 1936. p. iv – via Newspapers.com.

[2] Joyce, Michael (2004). Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939. Nottingham: SoccerData (Tony Brown). p. 54. ISBN 978-1-899468-67-6.

[Matthews-3] Matthews, Tony (1995). Birmingham City: A Complete Record. Derby: Breedon Books. p. 78. ISBN 978-1-85983-010-9.

[4] "300 miles for a trial". Nottingham Evening Post. 2 November 1934. p. 14 – via British Newspaper Archive.

[5] Rollin, Jack (2005). Soccer at War 1939–45. London: Headline. pp. 260, 425. ISBN 978-0-7553-1431-7.

[6] "Clarke, Albert". Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Retrieved 13 July 2015.

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