Harold Halse

Harold James Halse (1 January 1886 – 25 March 1949)[2] was an English football forward, who played most of his career for Manchester United and then for Chelsea. He was the first player to appear in three FA Cup finals for three clubs. He is also the highest scoring player in a Charity Shield match, having scored six goals in the 1911 edition for Manchester United.

Harold Halse
Personal information
Full name Harold James Halse
Date of birth (1886-01-01)1 January 1886
Place of birth Stratford, London, England
Date of death 25 March 1949(1949-03-25) (aged 63)
Place of death Colchester, Essex, England
Height 1.73 m (5 ft 8 in)[1]
Position(s) Forward
Youth career
Wanstead
Newportians
Barking Town
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1905–1906 Clapton Orient 2 (1)
1906–1907 Southend United 65 (91)
1908–1912 Manchester United 109 (41)
1912–1913 Aston Villa 31 (21)
1913–1921 Chelsea 96 (23)
1921–1923 Charlton Athletic 21 (5)
Total 324 (182)
International career
1909 England 1 (2)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Career

He was born in Stratford, London and started his football career as an amateur with Wanstead, Newportians, Barking Town and Clapton Orient, where he made two appearances with one goal in the Football League.[3]

On 21 July 1906 he signed for Southend United ahead of their first professional season in the Second Division of the Southern League,[4] scoring 91 goals in 65 appearances in just under two seasons. He transferred to Manchester United in March 1908 for the maximum transfer fee allowed at that time, £350. He scored 56 goals in 125 appearances for United, who won the First Division title in 1908 and 1911, and the FA Cup in 1909. In the 1911 FA Charity Shield against Swindon Town, Halse scored six goals for United in an 8–4 win for his team.

He moved to Aston Villa for £1200 in 1912. He won the 1913 FA Cup with Villa and also scored all five goals when Aston Villa beat Derby County 5–1, but signed for Chelsea shortly afterwards. While at Chelsea Halse once again reached an FA Cup final, in 1915, although this time he finished on the losing side. He remained with Chelsea until 1921, scoring 25 goals in 111 games,[5] and had a spell at Charlton Athletic before retiring in 1923.

Halse was the first player to appear in three FA Cup finals for three clubs.[6][7]

Halse was capped once for England, in an 8–1 win over Austria on 1 June 1909. He scored twice in this game.[8]

He died on 25 March 1949, aged 63, and was buried at Walton-on-the-Naze Cemetery.[9]

Honours

Manchester United

Aston Villa

Chelsea

References
  1. Strack-Zimmermann, Benjamin. "Harold Halse (Player)". www.national-football-teams.com. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  2. "England players: Harold Halse". englandfootballonline. Retrieved 25 September 2018.
  3. Complete Record of Leyton Orient - 1888-2006, by Neilson N. Kaufman
  4. "Southend United F.C.: Increase in nominal capital: Prospectus (August 1906)". Companies House. Retrieved 30 August 2023.
  5. Glanvill, Rick (2006). Chelsea FC: The Official Biography - The Definitive Story of the First 100 Years. Headline Book Publishing Ltd. p. 403. ISBN 0-7553-1466-2.
  6. "FA Cup Trivia". The FA. Archived from the original on 6 January 2004. Retrieved 28 January 2008.
  7. Unknown (1915). Cup Final Programme.
  8. Harold Halse at Englandstats.com, Retrieved 25 September 2018
  9. Dwan, James (10 May 2021). "Bid to repair grave of 1920s Chelsea and Manchester Utd star". Clacton Gazette. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
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