Edward John Orton Hemsley (born 1 September 1943) is an English former professional footballer, playing at left-back for Sheffield United and Shrewsbury Town. He was also a first-class cricketer for Worcestershire.
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Edward John Orton Hemsley | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 1 September 1943 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Stoke-on-Trent, England | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Left back | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1958–1960 | Shrewsbury Town | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1961–1968 | Shrewsbury Town | 235 | (21) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1968–1977 | Sheffield United | 247 | (7) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1977–1979 | Doncaster Rovers | 32 | (1) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 514 | (29) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Football career
editHemsley was born in Stoke-on-Trent, and was still a schoolboy when he signed professional terms with Shrewsbury Town in 1961.[1] He made 235 league appearances for the Shrews with 21 league goals.[2] In 1968, Sheffield United appointed Arthur Rowley as manager, who had spent the previous ten years in charge at Shrewsbury.[3] Rowley's first signing was to be his old club captain: Hemsley.
He was given his chance in the starting line-up at left-back and soon made the position his own. His debut for Sheffield United was against Millwall at Bramall Lane in 1968 in a 1–0 victory.[2] He was a regular in the team over the next few years, and played 40 matches (out of a possible 42) when the Blades won promotion to the First Division in 1970–71.[2]
He played for Sheffield United for 9 years; his final appearance was at Ewood Park against Blackburn Rovers on 5 March 1977.[2] In total, he made 247 league appearances for Sheffield United, scoring 7 goals.[4] He finished his footballing career with Doncaster Rovers, making 32 league appearances over two seasons.[2]
Cricket career
editHemsley was a right-hand batsman. As a bowler he was a right-arm medium pace. He played first-class cricket for Worcestershire between 1962 and 1982. He was mentioned as a possible England batsman when he helped Worcestershire, for whom he played 243 first-class games and 219 one-dayers, to the County Championship in 1964. In total, Hemsley scored 9740 first-class runs for Worcestershire. He also (uniquely) played cricket on his home football ground, Worcs v Yorkshire at Bramall Lane[5]
His younger brother, Colin Hemsley, played List A cricket for Shropshire.[6]
References and notes
edit- ^ Worcester News (Retrieved 19 January 2007)
- ^ a b c d e Ted Hemsley at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
- ^ Clarebrough & Kirkham (2012). Sheffield United The Complete Record. Derby Books Publishing. p. 246.
- ^ Clarebrough & Kirkham (2012). Sheffield United The Complete Record. Derby Books Publishing. p. 642.
- ^ Cricket Archive (Retrieved 19 January 2007)
- ^ "Colin Hemsley". CricketArchive. Retrieved 20 December 2017.
