| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | William Albert Sharpley [1] | ||
| Date of birth | December 1890 [2] | ||
| Place of birth | Bow, England | ||
| Date of death | 1 July 1916 (aged 25) [3] | ||
| Place of death | Somme, France [4] | ||
| Position(s) | Left back | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | ( Gls) |
| 1912 | Leicester Fosse | 1 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
William Albert Sharpley DCM (December 1890 – 1 July 1916) was an English professional footballer who played as a left back in the Football League for Leicester Fosse. [1]
Personal life
Prior to 1912, Sharpley enlisted in the Essex Regiment of the British Army. [5] After the outbreak of the First World War, his battalion arrived on the Western Front on 21 August 1914 and saw action at Le Cateau, Marne, Messines and Armentières. [5] [4] Serving as a sergeant, he was mentioned in dispatches and won the Cross of St. George 2nd Class "for conspicuous gallantry in rescuing and bringing in across the open and under fire, a wounded NCO" in late 1914. [5] In February 1916, Sharpley won the Distinguished Conduct Medal for bringing another wounded man in under fire, southeast of Hébuterne. [5] He was killed on the first day of the Somme in an area between Serre-lès-Puisieux and Beaumont-Hamel and is commemorated on the Thiepval Memorial. [3] [4] As a result of his death, Sharpley's sister Kate became an anarchist campaigner. [4]
Career statistics
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Leicester Fosse | 1911–12 [2] | Second Division | 1 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | |
| Career total | 1 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | |||
References
- ^ a b Joyce, Michael (2012). Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939. Nottingham: Tony Brown. p. 261. ISBN 978-1905891610.
- ^ a b "William Sharpley | Leicester City career stats". FoxesTalk. 16 September 2017. Retrieved 3 June 2017.
- ^ a b "Casualty Details". Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Retrieved 3 October 2016.
- ^ a b c d McCrery, Nigel (18 June 2015). The Final Season: The Footballers Who Fought and Died in the Great War. Penguin Random House. pp. 122–125. ISBN 9780099594666.
- ^ a b c d "Leicester Fosse And The First World War: Part Eight". www.lcfc.com. Retrieved 3 October 2016.
 | This biographical article related to association football in England, about a defender born in the 1890s, is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
- 1890 births
- Footballers from the London Borough of Tower Hamlets
- People from Bow, London
- English men's footballers
- Men's association football fullbacks
- English Football League players
- British Army personnel of World War I
- 1916 deaths
- Military personnel from London
- Essex Regiment soldiers
- British military personnel killed in the Battle of the Somme
- Leicester City F.C. players
- Recipients of the Distinguished Conduct Medal
- Recipients of the Cross of St. George
- English football defender, 1890s birth stubs