Jack Astley

Jack Astley
Personal information
Full name John Astley[1]
Date of birth (1909-12-03)3 December 1909
Place of birth Warrington, England
Date of death 8 November 1984(1984-11-08) (aged 74)[2]
Place of death Whitley, England
Playing position Right back
Youth career
St. Elfin's Parish Church
Chadwick Recreation
Warrington Bedouins
Elmwood Avenue Methodists
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1930–1933 Southport 2 (0)
1932–1933 → Shelbourne (loan)
1933–1936 Brentford 49 (0)
1936–1939 Coventry City 140 (0)
National team
League of Ireland XI
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

John "Jack" Astley (3 December 1909 – 8 November 1984) was an English professional football right back who played in the Football League for Southport, Brentford and Coventry City.[3]

Club career

Early years

A right back, Astley began his career in his native north west, playing for a number of amateur clubs before signing for Division Three North side Southport in 1930.[2] He made just two appearances for the club before joining League of Ireland side Shelbourne on loan for the 1932–33 season.[2] He left Southport at the end of the 1932–33 season.[2]

Brentford

Astley signed for Division Two side Brentford in May 1933.[3] He went straight into the team and made 41 appearances during the 1933–34 season, in which the Bees finished fourth in Division Two.[4] The arrival of full backs Arthur Bateman and George Poyser in the summer of 1934 and an injury saw Astley lose his place in the team,[2] making just one appearance during the 1934–35 season, in which Brentford secured promotion to Division One as champions.[4] He instead played for the reserves, winning the 1935 London Challenge Cup with the team.[5] Astley managed to make eight appearances in Division One during the first half of the 1935–36 season,[4] before departing Griffin Park in February 1936.[3] Astley made 50 appearances for Brentford.[3]

Coventry City

Astley joined Division Three South high-flyers Coventry City in February 1936.[3] He made 14 appearances in what remained of the 1935–36 season and helped the Sky Blues to the Division Three South title.[6] Astley displaced Vic Brown from the team and with former Brentford teammate Walter Metcalf on the other flank, was an ever-present until professional football was suspended in 1939 upon to the outbreak of the Second World War.[3] He made 148 appearances for the Sky Blues.[6]

Representative career

While with Shelbourne, Astley played for the League of Ireland representative team against their Welsh League counterparts.[3]

Personal life

Astley served in the British Army during and after the Second World War and rose to the rank of captain.[2] He married his wife, an Estonian, during five-and-a-half years stationed in Germany.[2] Astley later settled in Coventry in 1950 and began working for the General Electric Company, retiring in 1974.[2] He died of a heart attack in Whitley Hospital in November 1984.[2]

Honours

Brentford Reserves

Coventry City

Career statistics

Club Season League FA Cup Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Southport 1931–32[2] Third Division North 2 0 0 0 2 0
Brentford 1933–34[4] Second Division 40 0 1 0 41 0
1934–35[4] 1 0 0 0 1 0
1935–36[4] First Division 8 0 — 8 0
Total 49 0 1 0 50 0
Coventry City 1935–36[6] Third Division South 14 0 3 0 17 0
1936–37[6] Second Division 42 0 3 0 45 0
1937–38[6] 42 0 1 0 43 0
1938–39[6] 42 0 1 0 43 0
Total 140 0 8 0 148 0
Career total 191 0 9 0 200 0

References

  1. ↑ Joyce, Michael (2012). Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939. Nottingham: Tony Brown. p. 12. ISBN 190589161X.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Jack Astley (Player Profile)". 18 March 2016. Retrieved 5 January 2017.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Haynes, Graham; Coumbe, Frank (2006). Timeless Bees: Brentford F.C. Who's Who 1920–2006. Harefield: Yore Publications. p. 13. ISBN 978-0955294914.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 White, Eric, ed. (1989). 100 Years Of Brentford. Brentford FC. pp. 372–373. ISBN 0951526200.
  5. 1 2 Haynes, Graham (1998). A-Z Of Bees: Brentford Encyclopaedia. Yore Publications. p. 82. ISBN 1 874427 57 7.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Jack Astley". 11v11.com. Retrieved 14 June 2015.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.