Tom Brittleton

John Thomas Brittleton (23 April 1882 – 22 February 1955) was a professional footballer. He was one of the pioneers of the long throw-in.[3] With a career spanning over 30 years, including 24 seasons in the Football League, he is the oldest person to play for Sheffield Wednesday in a competitive game.

Tom Brittleton

Personal information
Full name	John Thomas Brittleton[1]
Date of birth	23 April 1882[1]
Place of birth	Winsford, Cheshire, England[1]
Date of death	22 February 1955 (aged 72)[1]
Place of death	Winsford, Cheshire, England[1]
Height	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[2]
Position(s)	Wing half back
Youth career
1892–1894	Winsford Juniors
1894–1896	Winsford Celtic
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1896–1902	Winsford United
1902–1905	Stockport County	45	(10)
1905–1920	Sheffield Wednesday	343	(30)
1920–1925	Stoke	114	(5)
1925–1928	Winsford United
Total		502	(45)
National team
1912–1914	England	5	(0)
Teams managed
1925–????	Winsford United (Player-manager)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Early years

Brittleton was born in Winsford, Cheshire on St George's Day 1882. He started his football career by playing for Winsford Juniors at the age of 10. Whilst at his next junior club, Winsford Celtic, he played in every position including goalkeeper.[3]

After leaving school at the age of 14, Brittleton signed for the town's senior side, Winsford United. He went on to play many County League games and earned several winners medals in the Cheshire Amateur Cup, appearing in three district finals in one season.[3]

Whilst at United, a Stockport County fan, who was visiting his girlfriend in Winsford, watched Brittleton play a match and informed the Stockport management of his skills. Shortly afterwards he signed amateur forms with County at the age of nineteen.[3] He continued his job at the Winsford Salt Works, and even, on one occasion, missed a Stockport game that he was due to play in so that he could instead play for Winsford in a Cheshire Amateur Cup game.[3] Despite his apparent lack of commitment to County he eventually signed professional forms with the club and hence started his Football League career.

Professional career

Stockport County

Brittleton began his league career with Stockport County in 1902 as an inside forward. He went on to score ten goals in forty-five appearances for the Lancashire club, and after County had played a game at Ashton in December 1904, the referee sent a report to Sheffield Wednesday recommending the player. Wednesday immediately sent a £200 bid to Stockport which was rejected. Undeterred, the Owls improved their offer to a club record fee of £300,[4] and Brittleton signed for the Yorkshire club on 6 January 1905.

Sheffield Wednesday

Brittleton made his debut for Wednesday on 14 January 1905,[5] playing in the inside right position in place of Harry Chapman. During his early time at The Owlerton Stadium, Brittleton played in most of the outfield positions before becoming established as a wing-half and a long-term replacement for Harry Ruddlesdin.[3]

Brittleton played in all of Sheffield Wednesday's matches in the 1906–07 FA Cup,[6] culminating in the club's 2–1 victory against Everton in the final at Crystal Palace.

In 1911, Brittleton was invited to represent the Football Association for a summer tour of South Africa. However, the player, once described as "the biggest home bird you could ever meet",[3] declined, preferring instead to spend the off-season fishing.

Brittleton made his international debut on 10 February 1912 at the age of 29 in a match against Ireland which England won 6–1.[7] He won four more international caps, and did not lose a game that he played for his country.[8]

In 1919, Wednesday allowed Brittleton to move back to Winsford, although he continued to play for the club. He went on to make a total of 373 appearances for the Owls in all competitions, scoring 33 goals in the process. His last match for Sheffield Wednesday was against Oldham Athletic on 1 May 1920; aged 38 years and 8 days, Brittleton became the oldest man to play for the Owls.[3] After more than 15 years with the club he was rewarded with a free transfer.

Stoke

After looking set to re-join non-league Winsford United, Brittleton moved to Second Division Stoke.[1] Brittleton family folklore has it that he actually signed for Winsford before moving almost immediately to Stoke and that the Cheshire club received a small transfer as part of the deal, however no records have been found to back up the claim.[3] He joined Stoke at the age of 41 and many questioned as to Brittleton could still play a part in professional football.[1] However, despite his advancing years he still commanded respect and was indeed able to play as through he was in his twenties.[1] Due to his experience he was appointed player-coach at Stoke working alongside Arthur Shallcross.[1] He helped Stoke gain promotion to the First Division in 1921–22 but Stoke struggled the following season and Shalcross was sacked.[1] Jock Rutherford took over but soon left and Brittleton was given the opportunity to become manager but he rejected. Instead he carried on playing in the 1924–25 season playing in eight matches at the age of 45, a record not to be surpassed until Stanley Matthews.[1]

Return to Winsford

After retiring from League football Brittleton returned to his hometown to take up the position of player-manager at Winsford United whilst also working for ICI.[3] When he finally stopped playing, he became the landlord of the town's Navigation Inn.

Personal life

His younger brother, Sam (b. 1885), was also a professional footballer with Stockport County, Preston North End and Southampton.[9]

His son, John (1906–1982), played for Aston Villa for three seasons in the 1920s.[10]

Career statistics

Club

Source:[11]

Club	Season	League			FA Cup		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Stockport County	1902–03	Second Division	16	4	0	0	16	4
	1903–04	Second Division	29	6	3	0	32	6
	Total		45	10	3	0	48	10
Sheffield Wednesday	1904–05	First Division	12	3	0	0	12	3
	1905–06	First Division	19	3	1	0	20	3
	1906–07	First Division	31	1	8	0	39	1
	1907–08	First Division	36	6	1	0	37	6
	1908–09	First Division	33	4	4	1	37	5
	1909–10	First Division	32	6	2	0	34	6
	1910–11	First Division	32	1	0	0	32	1
	1911–12	First Division	29	2	2	0	31	2
	1912–13	First Division	34	0	4	1	38	1
	1913–14	First Division	30	1	5	1	35	2
	1914–15	First Division	24	1	2	0	26	1
	1919–20	First Division	31	2	1	0	32	2
	Total		343	30	30	3	373	33
Stoke	1920–21	Second Division	41	4	1	0	42	4
	1921–22	Second Division	14	0	5	0	19	0
	1922–23	First Division	16	1	2	0	18	1
	1923–24	Second Division	35	0	1	0	36	0
	1924–25	Second Division	8	0	0	0	8	0
	Total		114	5	9	0	123	5
Career Total			502	45	42	3	544	48

International

Source:[12]

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
England	1912	3	0
	1913	1	0
	1914	1	0
Total		5	0

References

1. Matthews, Tony (1994). The Encyclopaedia of Stoke City. Lion Press. ISBN 0-9524151-0-0.
2. Trentsider (21 August 1922). "Few big transfers in the First Division of the Football League. Nottingham Forest". Athletic News. Manchester. p. 5.
3. Jason Dickinson & John Brodie (2005). The Wednesday Boys: A Definitive Who's Who of Sheffield Wednesday Football Club 1880–2005. Sheffield: Pickard Communication. pp. 43–44. ISBN 0-9547264-9-9.
4. Andrew Drake. "Transfers". The Owl Football Historian. Archived from the original on 30 June 2012. Retrieved 17 August 2008.
5. Jackson Stuart. "Tom Brittleton profile". The Sheffield Wednesday Archive. Bullock, Adrian. Retrieved 17 August 2008.
6. "SWFC Legends A–C". Sheffield Wednesday Official Website. Sheffield Wednesday F.C. 27 June 2008. Retrieved 17 August 2008.
7. "Match Statistics". TheFA.com. The Football Association. Archived from the original on 29 October 2007. Retrieved 17 August 2008.
8. "John Brittleton Playing Career". TheFA.com. The Football Association. Retrieved 17 August 2008.
9. Duncan Holley & Gary Chalk (1992). The Alphabet of the Saints. ACL & Polar Publishing. p. 46. ISBN 0-9514862-3-3.
10. "John Brittleton". Aston Villa player database. Archived from the original on 6 September 2008. Retrieved 31 December 2008.
11. Tom Brittleton at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
12. Brittleton, Tom at National-Football-Teams.com

External links

• Tom Brittleton at Englandstats.com