Francis Heron

Charles Francis William Heron (1853 – 23 October 1914) was an English footballer who made one appearance as a forward for England and was a member of the Wanderers side that won the FA Cup in 1876.

For the English entomologist, see Francis Arthur Heron.

Francis Heron
Personal information
Full name Charles Francis William Heron[1]
Date of birth 10 September 1853
Place of birth Uxbridge, England
Date of death 21 January 1914(1914-01-21) (aged 60)
Place of death England
Position(s) Forward
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
Uxbridge
Wanderers
Swifts
Windsor Home Park
International career
1876 England 1 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Playing career

Heron, the younger brother of Hubert Heron, was born in Uxbridge, west London and attended Mill Hill School and Cranleigh School. He was a founding member of the Uxbridge Football Club on 3 February 1871 before joining his brother at Wanderers F.C. in the 1874-75 season.[2]

He made his solitary appearance for England in the fifth international match played at Hamilton Crescent, Partick on 4 March 1876. Heron played alongside his elder brother Hubert who was appointed team captain. According to Philip Gibbons, "England struggled throughout the game, which saw the home team run out winners by three goals to nil."[3]

A week after the England match, he was part of the Wanderers team that met the Old Etonians in the 1876 FA Cup Final at the Kennington Oval. En route to the final, he scored two "crucial" goals against Sheffield in the third round.[4]

In the final, the first match ended in a 1–1 draw, with the Wanderers victorious 3–0 in the replay on 18 March, with two goals from Thomas Hughes and one by Charles Wollaston. Hubert also played for Wanderers in this match; it would be another 120 years before a pair of brothers again played together in an FA Cup-final winning side and for England in the same season, when Gary and Phil Neville did so in 1996.[5] During his career he also played for Swifts[6] and Windsor Home Park.[7]

Later career

Heron played as an amateur and earned his living as a wine merchant in Bournemouth.[8]

Honours

Wanderers

References
  1. "Frank Heron". England Football Online. Retrieved 7 July 2018.
  2. "Football. Wanderers v. Harrow School". Morning Post. 16 December 1874. p. 3.
  3. Gibbons, Philip (2001). Association Football in Victorian England - A History of the Game from 1863 to 1900. Upfront Publishing. p. 46. ISBN 1-84426-035-6.
  4. Rob Cavallini (2005). The Wanderers F.C. - "Five times F.A. Cup winners". Dog N Duck Publications. p. 95. ISBN 0-9550496-0-1.
  5. "Red Anniversaries: 22–28 May". manutd.com. Retrieved 27 January 2008.
  6. "Wanderers v. Swifts". The Field, The Country Gentlemen's Newspaper. 15 November 1873. p. 35 (517).
  7. "The Association Challenge Club". The Morning Advertiser. 25 November 1872. p. 6.
  8. Graham Betts (2006). England: Player by player. Green Umbrella Publishing. p. 126. ISBN 1-905009-63-1.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.