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Jack Leslie (English footballer)

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Jack Leslie
File:Jack Leslie.jpg
Personal information
Full name John Francis Leslie[1]
Date of birth (1901-08-17)17 August 1901
Place of birth Canning Town, England
Date of death 1988 (aged 86–87)
Position(s) Inside left
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
Barking Town
1921–1935 Plymouth Argyle 384 (133)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

John Francis Leslie (17 August 1901 – 25 November 1988)[1] was an English professional footballer who played as an Inside left.

Leslie was the only black professional player in England during his time with Plymouth Argyle. Leslie enjoyed a 14-season spell with Argyle, having joined the club from Barking Town in 1921. A creator and scorer of goals, his partnership with outside left Sammy Black has gone down in history as one of their very best.[2] Leslie played alongside Black 327 times, with the duo scoring 319 goals between them in all competitions, with Leslie contributing 137 of them. In 1930, The Plymouth Herald described him as "known throughout England for his skill and complexion."

Life and career

Leslie was born in Canning Town, London, to a Jamaican father also called John Francis Leslie, a gas fitter labourer in London, and an English mother, Annie Leslie, a seamstress.

He played for local team, Barking Town scoring more than 250 goals and helping them win the Essex Senior Cup in 1920 and London League Premier Division title in 1921.[3] Also in 1921 he joined Plymouth Argyle. Predominantly a centre-forward or an inside-left, Leslie was described as being versatile and able to provide cover wherever needed.[4]

It took until his eleventh appearance for Argyle for him to get his first goal, in a 2–0 win against Gillingham in 1923.[5]

Across a total of fourteen seasons at Argyle he scored 133 league goals in 384 games, making him Argyle's ninth record highest appearance maker, and fourth highest goal scorer.

England call-up

Leslie was called up to the national team in 1925; his manager, Bob Jack, told him he had been selected to play for England against Ireland. However, the invitation to play for his country was withdrawn. It has been speculated that this was because of belated objections to his colour by members of the FA who had been unaware of his ethnicity.[6] Later in life, Leslie told the journalist Brian Woolnough: "They must have forgot I was a coloured boy."[7]

Leslie was never picked for England again. As a consequence, it was not until 1962 that John Charles (footballer, born 1944) became the first black player to appear in an England shirt.[8]

Retirement

He retired from professional football in 1935, playing his last game, and scoring his last goal, on 29 December 1934 in a 3–1 win against Fulham.[9]

He later worked as a member of the backroom staff of his local club, West Ham United, as the boot-boy.[10] He was offered the job by West Ham manager, Ron Greenwood who recognised Leslie as a great player. During his time at West Ham Leslie cleaned the boots of World Cup winners, Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst and Martin Peters and of England international Trevor Brooking and Clyde Best who at the time was one of only a very small number of black players in the top flight of English football.[11] He died in 1988.

Legacy

In December 2019, the boardroom at the newly redeveloped Mayflower Grandstand at Plymouth Argyle's ground Home Park was named in Leslie's honour.[12][13]

In early 2020 The Jack Leslie Campaign was set up, with the aim of building a statue of Leslie outside Home Park.[14][15] Crowd-funding for the project began on 1 July 2020.[16]

On 18 June 2020, following the George Floyd protests in the United Kingdom and a petition signed by over 500 people, it was reported that Plymouth City Council had proposed to rename Sir John Hawkins Square in the City Centre to the 'Jack Leslie Square'.[17][18]

Honours

Plymouth Argyle

Career statistics

Club Division Season League FA Cup Club Total International Total Games
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Plymouth Argyle Third 1921–22 9 0 - - 9 0 - - 9 0
Third 1922–23 6 3 1 0 7 3 - - 7 3
Third 1923–24 17 5 - - 17 5 - - 17 5
Third 1924–25 40 14 1 0 41 14 - - 41 14
Third 1925–26 40 17 1 0 41 17 - - 41 17
Third 1926–27 33 14 1 0 34 14 - - 34 14
Third 1927–28 41 15 1 0 42 15 - - 42 15
Third 1928–29 41 21 4 1 45 22 - - 45 22
Third 1929–30 32 8 4 1 36 9 - - 36 9
Second 1930–31 39 9 1 0 40 9 - - 40 9
Second 1931–32 41 20 2 1 43 21 - - 43 21
Second 1932–33 33 4 1 1 34 5 - - 34 5
Second 1933–34 11 2 - - 11 2 - - 11 2
Second 1934–35 1 1 - - 1 1 - - 1 1
Total 384 133 17 4 401 137 0 0 401 137
Career Totals 384 133 17 4 401 137 0 0 401 137

References

  1. ^ a b Vasili, Phil (17 September 2015). "Leslie, John Francis [Jack] (1901–1988), footballer". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/100409. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  2. ^ Danes (2009), Complete Record, p. 104.
  3. ^ "Barking Town, Plymouth Argyle and England: The story of black pioneer Jack Leslie". Kick It Out.
  4. ^ "Jack Leslie". www.greensonscreen.co.uk. Retrieved 1 July 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. ^ "18 April 1923, Argyle 2–0 Gillingham". Greens On Screen. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
  6. ^ Phil Vasili (12 November 2012). The First Black Footballer: Arthur Wharton 1865-1930: An Absence of Memory. Routledge. pp. 76–. ISBN 978-1-136-32247-1.
  7. ^ "England's 92 Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) Players". England Football Online. 17 November 2019. Retrieved 29 April 2008.
  8. ^ Coleman, Clive (1 July 2020). "Statue campaign for dropped black player". BBC News. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  9. ^ "29 December 1934, Argyle 3–1 Fulham". Greens On Screen. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
  10. ^ Knight, Brian (1989). Plymouth Argyle A Complete Record 1903–1989. p. 88. ISBN 0-907969-40-2.
  11. ^ Coleman, Clive (1 July 2020). "Statue campaign for dropped black player" – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  12. ^ "Finding Jack's Family". PAFC.co.uk. 18 December 2019. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
  13. ^ Errington, Chris (19 December 2019). "Plymouth Argyle honour black pioneer Jack Leslie by naming boardroom after the Pilgrims legend". The Herald. Plymouth. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
  14. ^ "The Jack Leslie Campaign, Newsletter April 2020". 2 April 2020. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
  15. ^ Tiller, Matt (12 June 2020). "Jack Leslie Campaign: 'Time for supporters to know his name'". The Football Supporters' Association. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
  16. ^ "The Jack Leslie Statue". Crowdfunder UK. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  17. ^ "Plymouth square named after slave trader to be renamed". BBC News. 9 June 2020. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
  18. ^ "Plymouth square to be renamed after black footballer Jack Leslie". BBC News. 18 June 2020. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
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