Sam English
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Samuel English | ||
| Date of birth | August 18, 1908 | ||
| Place of birth | Crevolea, Northern Ireland | ||
| Date of death | April 1967 (aged 58) | ||
| Place of death | Vale of Leven, Scotland | ||
| Playing position | Striker | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1929–1931 | Yoker Athletic | ||
| 1931–1933 | Rangers | 60 | (54) |
| 1933–1935 | Liverpool | 47 | (24) |
| 1935–1936 | Queen of the South | 24 | (8) |
| 1936–1938 | Hartlepool United | 69 | (27) |
| National team | |||
| 1933 |  Northern Ireland | 2 | (1) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals). | |||
Samuel English (18 August 1908 – April 1967) was an Northern Irish footballer who played for several clubs, but is mainly remembered for his time with Rangers.
Early life
Samuel English was born in the hamlet of Crevolea in Aghadowey, Northern Ireland. In 1924 his family moved to Dalmuir in Scotland, and for a time he worked at the John Brown & Company Shipyard.
Career
During the 1930s, English played with Yoker Athletic Juniors and with Rangers. He holds the Rangers record for the most league goals scored in one season: 44 goals from 35 appearances in 1931-32. He was also capped twice for Northern Ireland in 1932, although he ended up on the losing side on both occasions (0-4 v Scotland and 1-4 v Wales).
English's career was overshadowed by an incident in September 1931 where he was involved in a collision with John Thomson, the Celtic goalkeeper. Thomson dived for the ball and his head collided with English's knee (not his boot, as sometimes claimed). Thomson suffered serious injuries to his skull and died in hospital a few hours later. The official enquiry found that the collision was an accident, and cleared English of any blame, a view which was fully supported by Thomson's family and all players from both teams who were on the field at the time. Nevertheless, English was deeply traumatised by what had happened to Thomson.
Although he was cleared of malice in incident, jeering by Scottish crowds caused his transfer to England. He played for Liverpool, then for George McLachlan at Queen of the South, and then Hartlepool United. He was to find that his reputation had preceded him, he often faced similar taunts, and he never recovered his playing form. Eventually he gave up football at the age of 28.
English died in the Vale of Leven Hospital, in West Dunbartonshire, at the age of 58 after battling motor neurone disease.
External links
- Northern Ireland’s Footballing Greats
- Sam English's Football League career history at www.since1888.co.uk
- Honour call for NI soccer star BBC News