Noel George

Frank Noel George (26 December 1897 – 1929) was an English footballer in the 1910s and 1920s who played as a goalkeeper.[2]

Noel George
Personal information
Full name Frank Noel George
Date of birth (1897-12-26)26 December 1897
Place of birth Lichfield, England
Date of death 1929
Height 5 ft 11+1⁄2 in (1.82 m)[1]
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
? Hednesford Town ?
1919–1928 Wolves 222 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Early career and Army

Born in Lichfield, he started playing as a forward with Hednesford Town before joining the Royal Army Service Corps in World War I. It was during his days in the army that he switched to the goalkeeper position.[3]

Wolverhampton Wanderers

George was signed by Wolverhampton Wanderers (Wolves) in the summer of 1919, making his senior debut in February 1921 in an FA Cup replay against Derby County. Wolves were to go on and make the final of the competition that season, and George played in the final, which was lost to Tottenham Hotspur.[3]

He established himself as the Wolves keeper, and was an ever-present in the 1921–22, 1923–24 and 1924–25 seasons,[3] and in all he made 242 senior competitive appearances for Wolves,[3][4] 222 of which were in The Football League.[2] He kept a total of 73 clean sheets for Wolves.[4]

Illness and death

George started to miss a number of games through injury in the 1925–26 and 1926–27 seasons and by November 1927 he was in the early stages of a terminal illness,[3] and he retired in 1928.[4] It was diagnosed as a disease of the gums and he died in 1929.[5] His manager at Wolves, Frank Buckley, was convinced that his death was a result of ill-fitting dentures and thus from then on he ensured any of his players with dentures made regular visits to the dentist.[5]

Honours

Wolverhampton Wanderers

References
  1. "Optimists of the North. Wolverhampton Wanderers". Athletic News. Manchester. 6 August 1923. p. 6.
  2. Joyce, Michael (2004). Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939. Soccerdata. ISBN 1-899468-67-6.
  3. Matthews, Tony (2001). The Wolves Who's Who. Britespot. ISBN 1-904103-01-4.
  4. Wolves A to Z player stats – wolves-stats.co.uk Archived 27 February 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  5. "Noel George". The Encyclopedia of British Football. Spartacus Educational. Archived from the original on 17 May 2010. Retrieved 22 December 2010.
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