Joseph Gettins

Joseph Holmes Gettins OBE, DSO, BA (19 November 1873 – 6 June 1954) was an English amateur footballer who played as a centre forward. He is best remembered for his association with Millwall Athletic and he played in the Football League for hometown club Middlesbrough.

Joseph Gettins
Gettins while with Millwall Athletic in 1898
Personal information
Full name Joseph Holmes Gettins[1]
Date of birth 19 November 1873
Place of birth Middlesbrough, England
Date of death 6 June 1954(1954-06-06) (aged 80)[1]
Place of death East Molesey, England[2]
Position(s) Centre forward
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1894–1895 Brentford 0 (0)
Millwall Athletic
Middlesbrough
Millwall Athletic
Corinthian
Millwall Athletic
1899 Middlesbrough 3 (0)
Millwall Athletic
1900 Middlesbrough 3 (1)
Millwall Athletic
1902 Middlesbrough 4
Millwall
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Club career

Millwall Athletic

An amateur centre forward, Gettins' longest association was with Millwall Athletic, playing for the club in multiple spells between 1892 and 1904, by which time the club was simply known as Millwall.[2] He scored an impressive 69 goals in 71 appearances with the club and won the 1894–95 and 1895–96 Southern League titles back to back, in addition to two United League titles and two FA Cup semi-finals.[2]

Middlesbrough

Gettins appeared for hometown club Middlesbrough in four spells and was a part of the club's 1894–95 FA Amateur Cup-winning team.[2] He also helped the club to the 1896–97 Northern League title and played in Middlesbrough's first ever Football League match against Lincoln City on 2 September 1899.[2][3]

Brentford

Gettins had a short spell with non-League club Brentford during the 1894–95 season and his student friends inadvertently created the club's Bees nickname, by chanting Borough Road College's war-cry "buck up Bs" at a match.[2] He made three cup appearances for the club.[4]

Representative career

Gettins was one of 14 players included in Corinthian squad which toured South Africa in 1897,[2] the first English team to play outside Europe.[5]

Personal life

Gettins served as a captain (being promoted to a temporary major for a time) in the Royal Army Service Corps Territorial Force during the First World War.[2] He was awarded the DSO in 1918.[2] Before and after the war, Gettins worked in various teaching roles at Isleworth School, Borough Road College, Reading University and Liverpool University.[2] In 1920, he returned to the army and became Chief Education Officer of the Army Education Corps and later commanded the Army School of Education,[2] having risen to the rank of lieutenant colonel by the time of his retirement in 1933.[6] Gettins was awarded an OBE in 1933.[2]

Career statistics
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League FA Cup Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Brentford 1894–95[4] — 3[lower-alpha 1] 0 3 0
Middlesbrough 1899–1900[7] Second Division 3 0 0 0 — 3 0
1900–01[7] 3 1 0 0 — 3 1
1902–03[7] First Division 4 0 0 0 — 4 0
Total 10 1 0 0 — 10 1
Career total 10 1 0 0 3 0 13 1
  1. 2 appearances in Middlesex Senior Cup, 1 appearance in West Middlesex Cup

Honours

Millwall Athletic

Middlesbrough

References
  1. Joyce, Michael (2012). Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939. Nottingham: Tony Brown. p. 109. ISBN 978-1905891610.
  2. Martinez, Dolores; Mukharji, Projit B. (2015). Football: From England to the World. Routledge. pp. 10–13. ISBN 978-1138883536.
  3. "Lincoln City v Middlesbrough, 02 September 1899". Retrieved 3 August 2015.
  4. White, Eric, ed. (1989). 100 Years Of Brentford. Brentford FC. p. 353. ISBN 0951526200.
  5. "Corinthian Tours". Corinthian-Casuals Football Club. Retrieved 3 August 2015.
  6. Terret, Thierry; Mangan, J.A. (2012). Sport, Militarism and the Great War: Martial Manliness and Armageddon. Routledge. p. 221. ISBN 978-0415699167.
  7. "Joseph Gettins". 11v11.com. Retrieved 10 January 2017.
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