Arthur Box

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Arthur Box
Personal information
Full name Arthur Box[1]
Date of birth (1884-09-18)18 September 1884[1]
Place of birth Hanley, Staffordshire, England[1]
Date of death 7 June 1960(1960-06-07) (aged 75)[2]
Place of death Stoke-on-Trent, England[2]
Height 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[2]
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Youth career
Hanley Villa
Northwood Mission
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1903–1904 Stoke 0 (0)
1904–1907 Burslem Port Vale 50 (1)
1907–1908 Stoke 33 (0)
1909–1910 Birmingham 28 (0)
1910 Leek Victoria
1910–1911 Croydon Common 21 (0)
1911–19?? Crewe Alexandra
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Arthur Box (18 September 1884 – 7 June 1960) was an English footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He made more than 100 appearances in the Football League playing for Burslem Port Vale, Stoke and Birmingham.[3] He also played for Croydon Common and Crewe Alexandra.

Career[edit]

Early career[edit]

Box was born in Hanley, Staffordshire, the son of Thomas, a boilermaker, and Edna.[2] He was on the books at Hanley Villa, Northwood Mission and Stoke (without making a first-team appearance), before joining Burslem Port Vale in August 1904.[1]

Burslem Port Vale[edit]

He played three Second Division games in the 1904–05 season, but was mainly a back-up to Harry Cotton.[1] He became the club's first-choice goalkeeper in the 1905–06 season, playing 35 league games to George Boote's three.[1] Unusually for a goalkeeper he actually scored a goal, albeit a penalty, in a 1–0 win over Manchester United at the Athletic Ground on 24 March 1906.[1] In the 1906–07 campaign, he played only 12 matches, as new signing Howard Matthews was preferred.[1] Box returned to Stoke in July 1907, with Vale in the midst of financial meltdown.[1]

Stoke[edit]

His rivals at the Victoria Ground were Wales international Leigh Richmond Roose and the inexperienced Fred Rathbone. Box played in 39 of the club's 44 fixtures in 1907–08, as the "Potters" finished in 10th position in the Second Division. However, heavy financial problems saw the club enter liquidation and leave the Football League at the end of the 1907–08 season.[4]

Birmingham[edit]

He joined Birmingham in September 1909 for a fee of £100,[2] and took over first-team duties from Jack Dorrington at the end of the 1908–09 season. However, the team finished bottom of the Second Division and Box left St Andrew's at the end of the 1909–10 season.[5]

Later career[edit]

He then moved into non-League football with Leek Victoria, Croydon Common, for whom he played 21 games in the Southern League as well as 29 in the South-Eastern League and 11 in the London League, and Crewe Alexandra.[2]

Career statistics[edit]

Source:[6]

Club Season Division League FA Cup Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Stoke 1903–04 First Division 0 0 0 0 0 0
Burslem Port Vale 1904–05 Second Division 3 0 0 0 3 0
1905–06 Second Division 35 1 2 0 37 1
1906–07 Second Division 12 0 0 0 12 0
Total 50 1 2 0 52 1
Stoke 1907–08 Second Division 33 0 6 0 39 0
Birmingham 1908–09 Second Division 4 0 0 0 4 0
1909–10 Second Division 24 0 1 0 25 0
Total 28 0 1 0 29 0
Career total 111 1 9 0 120 1

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Kent, Jeff (1996). Port Vale Personalities. Witan Books. p. 39. ISBN 0-9529152-0-0.
  2. ^ a b c d e f "Arthur Box" (PDF). Croydon Common FC. Alan Futter. Retrieved 5 February 2021.
  3. ^ Joyce, Michael (2004). Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939. Nottingham: SoccerData (Tony Brown). p. 32. ISBN 978-1-899468-67-6.
  4. ^ Matthews, Tony (1994). The Encyclopaedia of Stoke City. Lion Press. ISBN 0-9524151-0-0.
  5. ^ Matthews, Tony (1995). Birmingham City: A Complete Record. Derby: Breedon Books. pp. 13, 74, 156. ISBN 978-1-85983-010-9.
  6. ^ Arthur Box at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
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