William Smith (footballer, born 1886)

William Smith
Personal information
Full name	William Ernest Smith
Date of birth	1886
Place of birth	Lostock Hall, England
Position(s)	Forward
Senior career*
Years	Team
	Darwen
	Nelson
1908	Bradford City
1908–1909	Huddersfield Town
1909–1913	Stoke
1914	Preston North End
Total
	*Club domestic league appearances and goals

William Edward Smith (1886–1956) was an English footballer who played for Bradford City and Stoke.^[1]

Career

Smith started his football career at his local sides in Lancashire, Darwen and Nelson before joining Bradford City and Huddersfield Town.^[1] In 1909 he joined Stoke who at the time were playing in the Southern Football League after being liquidated in 1908 which forced the club to drop out of the Football League. He made a perfect start as he scored four goals on his debut in an 11–0 win against Merthyr Tydfil. He went on to be a prolific goal scorer for Stoke and scored 60 goals in 138 matches.^[1]

Club	Season	League			FA Cup		Birmingham Cup		Total
Club	Season	Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Bradford City	1908–09	First Division	3	0	0	0	—		3	0
Stoke^[1]	1909–10	Birmingham & District League / Southern League Division Two	37	18	6	1	3	2	46	21
	1910–11	Birmingham & District League / Southern League Division Two	53	27	3	1	—		56	28
	1911–12	Southern League Division One	29	9	1	1	—		30	10
	1912–13	Southern League Division One	5	3	0	0	—		5	3
	1913–14	Southern League Division Two	4	0	0	0	—		4	0
	Total		128	57	10	3	3	2	141	62
Career Total			131	57	10	3	3	2	144	62

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Matthews, Tony (1994). The Encyclopaedia of Stoke City. Lion Press. ISBN 0-9524151-0-0.

Personal information
Full name	William Ernest Smith^[1]
Date of birth	1886^[1]
Place of birth	Lostock Hall, England^[1]
Position(s)	Forward
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
	Darwen
	Nelson
1908	Bradford City	3	(0)
1908–1909	Huddersfield Town
1909–1913	Stoke	128	(57)
1914	Preston North End	0	(0)
Total		131	(57)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals