Arthur Box

Arthur Box (18 September 1884 – 7 June 1960) was an English footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He made more than 100 appearances in the Football League playing for Burslem Port Vale, Stoke and Birmingham.[3] He also played for Croydon Common and Crewe Alexandra.

Arthur Box
Personal information
Full name Arthur Box[1]
Date of birth (1884-09-18)18 September 1884[1]
Place of birth Hanley, Staffordshire, England[1]
Date of death 7 June 1960(1960-06-07) (aged 75)[2]
Place of death Stoke-on-Trent, England[2]
Height 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[2]
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Youth career
Hanley Villa
Northwood Mission
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1903–1904 Stoke 0 (0)
1904–1907 Burslem Port Vale 50 (1)
1907–1908 Stoke 33 (0)
1909–1910 Birmingham 28 (0)
1910 Leek Victoria
1910–1911 Croydon Common 21 (0)
1911–19?? Crewe Alexandra
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Playing career

Early career

Box was born in Hanley, Staffordshire, the son of Thomas, a boilermaker, and Edna.[2] He was on the books at Hanley Villa, Northwood Mission and Stoke (without making a first team appearance), before joining Burslem Port Vale in August 1904.[1]

Burslem Port Vale

He played three Second Division games in the 1904–05 season, but was mainly a back-up to Harry Cotton.[1] He became the club's first choice goalkeeper in the 1905–06 season, playing 35 league games to George Boote's three.[1] Unusually for a goalkeeper he actually scored a goal, albeit a penalty, in a 1–0 win over Manchester United at the Athletic Ground on 24 March 1906.[1] In the 1906–07 campaign, he played only 12 matches, as new signing Howard Matthews was preferred.[1] Box returned to Stoke in July 1907, with Vale in the midst of financial meltdown.[1]

Stoke

His rivals at the Victoria Ground were Wales international Leigh Richmond Roose and the inexperienced Fred Rathbone. Box played in 39 of the club's 44 fixtures in 1907–08, as the "Potters" finished in 10th position in the Second Division. However, heavy financial problems saw the club enter liquidation and leave the Football League at the end of the 1907–08 season.[4]

Birmingham

He joined Birmingham in September 1909 for a fee of £100,[2] and took over first-team duties from Jack Dorrington at the end of the 1908–09 season. However, the team finished bottom of the Second Division and Box left St Andrew's at the end of the 1909–10 season.[5]

Later career

He then moved into non-League football with Leek Victoria, Croydon Common, for whom he played 21 games in the Southern League as well as 29 in the South-Eastern League and 11 in the London League, and Crewe Alexandra.[2]

Statistics

Source:[6]

Club Season Division League FA Cup Total
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Stoke1903–04First Division000000
Burslem Port Vale1904–05Second Division300030
1905–06Second Division35120371
1906–07Second Division12000120
Total 50120521
Stoke1907–08Second Division33060390
Birmingham1908–09Second Division400040
1909–10Second Division24010250
Total 28010290
Career total 1111901201

References
  1. Kent, Jeff (1996). Port Vale Personalities. Witan Books. p. 39. ISBN 0-9529152-0-0.
  2. "Arthur Box" (PDF). Croydon Common FC. Alan Futter. Retrieved 5 February 2021.
  3. Joyce, Michael (2004). Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939. Nottingham: SoccerData (Tony Brown). p. 32. ISBN 978-1-899468-67-6.
  4. Matthews, Tony (1994). The Encyclopaedia of Stoke City. Lion Press. ISBN 0-9524151-0-0.
  5. Matthews, Tony (1995). Birmingham City: A Complete Record. Derby: Breedon Books. pp. 13, 74, 156. ISBN 978-1-85983-010-9.
  6. Arthur Box at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
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