Henry Deacon (25 April 1900 – 15 January 1946) was an English professional footballer who made 479 appearances in the Football League playing for Birmingham, Swansea Town, Crewe Alexandra, Southport, Accrington Stanley and Rotherham United.[1] He played as an inside forward.
Playing career
Deacon was born in the Darnall district of Sheffield, and played football for Hallam before joining Sheffield Wednesday as an amateur.[1][3] He moved on to Birmingham in 1920,[3] and made his debut in the First Division on 4 February 1922, deputising for Johnny Crosbie in a home game against Liverpool which resulted in a 2–0 defeat.[4] After two games in two seasons, unable to dislodge Crosbie from the inside right position, Deacon moved on to Swansea Town where he found considerably more success.[3]
In nine seasons with the club, he scored 86 goals in 316 league games,[1] played a major role in their promotion to the Second Division as Third Division South champions in the 1924–25 season,[2] and helped them reach the final of the Welsh Cup and the semi-final of the FA Cup the following season.[5][6] In recognition of his service to the club, Swansea awarded him a testimonial match which was attended by 9,000 spectators.[3]
Deacon went on to spend three seasons with Crewe Alexandra where he scored 47 goals in 118 Third Division North games.[1] He then began the 1934–35 season at Southport,[7] finishing it with Accrington Stanley, where his 11 goals gave him runner-up spot in their scoring charts despite arriving midway through the season.[8] He ended his professional career with Rotherham United, making his last Football League appearance just before Christmas 1935.[2]
Deacon died in Rotherham, Yorkshire, in 1946 at the age of 45.[2]
References
- ^ a b c d e f Joyce, Michael (2004). Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939. Nottingham: SoccerData. p. 72. ISBN 978-1-899468-67-6.
- ^ a b c d "A–Z Past Players (Pre-1939)". Rotherham United F.C. Archived from the original (DOC) on 10 August 2011. Retrieved 6 May 2009.
- ^ a b c d e Matthews, Tony (1995). Birmingham City: A Complete Record. Derby: Breedon Books. p. 82. ISBN 978-1-85983-010-9.
- ^ Matthews, p. 164.
- ^ "Welsh Cup Final 1925/26". Welsh Football Data Archive. Retrieved 2 June 2019.
- ^ "Club History". Swansea City A.F.C. 13 May 2008. Archived from the original on 14 April 2009. Retrieved 6 May 2009.
- ^ "1934/35". SouthportFCStats. Archived from the original on 27 August 2008. Retrieved 6 May 2009.
- ^ "League Record". Accrington Stanley History. Greger Lindberg. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Retrieved 6 May 2009.
"League Appearances D–H". Accrington Stanley History. Greger Lindberg. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011. Retrieved 6 May 2009.
You must be logged in to post a comment.