George Samuel Eccles (1874 – 18 December 1945) was an English footballer who played at right-back in the Football League and Southern League for Burslem Port Vale, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Everton, Preston North End, West Ham United and Bolton Wanderers. He helped Bolton Wanderers to win promotion out of the Second Division in 1904–05.

George Eccles
Personal information
Full name George Samuel Eccles[1]
Date of birth c. 1874[1]
Place of birth Newcastle-under-Lyme, England[1]
Date of death (1945-12-18)18 December 1945 (age 70–71)[1]
Place of death Bolton, England[1]
Position(s) Right-back
Youth career
Middleport
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1893–1896 Burslem Port Vale 50 (0)
1896–1898 Wolverhampton Wanderers 36 (1)
1898–1901 Everton 56 (0)
1901–1902 Preston North End 0 (0)
1902–1904 West Ham United 59 (0)
1904–1905 Bolton Wanderers 6 (0)
Total 207 (1)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Career

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Eccles played for Middleport before joining Burslem Port Vale in June 1893.[1] He played six Second Division games in the 1893–94 season.[1] He featured once in the FA Cup and made 27 league appearances in the 1894–95 season, claiming one goal in a 4–4 draw with Newcastle United at the Athletic Ground on 6 October.[1] On 26 February, when heading for a match against Notts County at Trent Bridge, he misread the train timetables. He selected a non-existent train that only ran on market days, thereby missing the game.[1] He played 17 league and two FA Cup games in the 1895–96 season, and broke his collarbone in February 1896.[1] He was sold to Wolverhampton Wanderers for a 'considerable' fee in May 1896.[1] "Wolves" finished tenth and third in the First Division in 1896–97 and 1897–98. Eccles scored one goal in 36 league games during his two years at Molineux and then moved on to league rivals Everton. The "Toffees" finished fourth, eleventh, and seventh in 1898–99, 1899–1900, and 1900–01. He played 56 league games during his three seasons at Goodison Park before switching to Preston North End. He did not feature in the Second Division for the "Lambs" in 1901–02, and instead transferred to West Ham United. The "Hammers" finished tenth and twelfth in the Southern League in 1902–03 and 1903–04, with Eccles playing 59 league games at the Memorial Grounds. He then made a brief return to the Football League, playing six league games to help Bolton Wanderers win promotion out of the Second Division in 1904–05.

Career statistics

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Source:[2][3]

Club Season Division League FA Cup Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Burslem Port Vale 1893–94 Second Division 6 0 0 0 6 0
1894–95 Second Division 27 0 1 0 28 0
1895–96 Second Division 17 0 2 0 19 0
Total 50 0 3 0 53 0
Wolverhampton Wanderers 1896–97 First Division 18 1 0 0 18 1
1897–98 First Division 18 0 1 0 19 0
Total 36 1 1 0 37 1
Everton 1898–99 First Division 10 0 0 0 10 0
1899–1900 First Division 20 0 1 0 21 0
1900–01 First Division 12 0 2 0 14 0
1901–02 First Division 14 0 1 0 15 0
Total 56 0 4 0 60 0
Preston North End 1901–02 Second Division 0 0 0 0 0 0
West Ham United 1902–03 Southern League First Division 25 0 1 0 26 0
1903–04 Southern League First Division 34 0 4 0 38 0
Total 59 0 5 0 64 0
Bolton Wanderers 1904–05 Second Division 6 0 0 0 6 0
Career total 207 1 13 0 220 1

Honours

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Bolton Wanderers

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Kent, Jeff (1996). Port Vale Personalities. Witan Books. p. 93. ISBN 0-9529152-0-0.
  2. ^ George Samuel Eccles at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
  3. ^ "George Eccles". www.westhamstats.info. Retrieved 24 April 2018.