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Players Index Page Last Updated
9 December 2022
 
 

George Hilsdon

Chelsea FC

8 appearances, 14 goals
2 penalties

P 8 W 7 D 1 L 0 F 33: A 4
94% successful

1907-09

captain: none
minutes played:
720

Timeline

  Lance Corporal George Hilsdon
  There is no evidence in Hilsdon's registrations that he was given the middle name of Richard. His Birth registration excludes it, as does his marriage and death registrations. None of his census entries confirm a middle name either.
Birth 10 August 1885 in Donald Street, Bromley-by-Bow, Middlesex [registered as George Hilsdon in Poplar, September 1885].
notes: Bromley was part of the Middlesex County Registration until 1889;
Attended Marner Street School and Plashet Lane School from 1897.
 

According to the 1891 census, George is the sixth of seven children to James Irving and Mary (née Cocklin). They live in 19 Lingen Street in Bromley. His father is a general labourer.

 

According to the 1901 census, George is now an office boy, and he remains at home with his parents with five of his siblings. They now live at 11 Abbotts Road in East Ham. His father is now a scaffolder.

Marriage to Katherine Ethel Kelly [registered in West Ham, Essex, December 1906]. They apparently lived on the Fulham Palace Road.
 

According to the 1911 census, the twenty five year old George is a professional footballer married to Katherine. They have two children, George (b.25 April 1907) and Katherine. They also have one servant and they live at 34 Lansdown Road in Forest Gate.

According to the 1921 census, George, a billiard marker at the White Hart Hotel, is still married, and with their two children, they live at 21 Westbury Road in West Ham.
"George Hilsdon, said to be an international footballer, of Westbury Road, Forest Gate, was fined £10 at West Ham for frequenting Ferndale Road, Forest Gate, for the purposes of betting." - The Essex Chronicle, Friday, 22 September 1922
  Cannot be found on the 1939 register.
Death 10 September 1941, aged 56 years 31 days [registered as George Hilsdon in Market Bosworth, Leicestershire, September 1941].
Only his son, George, his daughter, Katherine and her husband, Christopher McNeil, and their child, Terence, attended his funeral that was paid for by the Football Association.

Source

Douglas Lammings' An English Football Internationalist Who's Who [1990] &

Playing Career

Club(s) captained his school side and then played centre-half for East Ham Boys FC and played for South-West Ham FC. Hilsdon was spotted playing for Boleyn Castle FC by Syd King and subsequently joined West Ham United FC in November 1904. After suffering injuries achieving just sixteen league appearances and seven goals, Chelsea signed Hilsdon in June 1906 on a free transfer. He went on to score 99 goals (five of them on his debut) in 150 league outings before he returned to West Ham United FC on 7 June 1912, again on a free transfer, to make another 69 league appearances and to score another 24 goals. Guested for Heart of Midlothian FC during the war, as well as representing The Army. Assisted Chatham Town FC in 1919, but his damaged lungs would not allow him to surpass six matches, despite scoring fourteen. He retired soon after.
Club honours Football League Division Two runners-up 1906-07, 1911-12;
Individual honours Football League (two appearances)
Distinctions His son, George was a television actor, playing Hazell's father in BBC's Hazell, amongst other roles.
Height/Weight 5' 8½", 12st. 2lbs [1911].

Source

Douglas Lammings' An English Football Internationalist Who's Who [1990].

England Career

Player number One of five who became 321st players (325) to appear for England
Position(s) Centre-forward
First match No. 89, 16 February 1907, England 1 Ireland 0, a British Championship match at Goodison Park, Walton, Liverpool, aged 21 years 190 days.
Last match No. 99, 13 February 1909, England 4 Ireland 0, a British Championship match at Horton Park Avenue, Horton Park, Bradford, aged 23 years 187 days.
Major tournaments British Championship 1906-07, 1907-08, 1908-09;
Team honours British Championship shared 1907-08, winners 1908-09;
Individual honours England's Top Goascorer (twelve, 1909) a new record
Distinctions Died sixteen days after Jimmy Ward

Beyond England

Hilsdon was part of the East Surrey Regiment and during WW1, he was badly gassed at Arras in June 1917. He had theatrical connections and in 1924 he joined Fred Karno's Troup, a popular vaudeville act. One method of publicising the company was to arrange a charity football match between the cast of the show and some local organization. - An English Football Internationalists' Who's Who. Douglas Lamming (1990). Hatton Press, p.129/30.

 

George Hilsdon - Career Statistics
Squads Apps comp. apps Mins. Goals goals ave.min comp. goals Capt. Disc.
9 8 5 720 14 51 min 6 none none
minutes are an approximation, due to the fact that many matches rarely stick to exactly ninety minutes long, allowing time for injuries and errors.

 

George Hilsdon - Match Record - All Matches
Type P W D L F A GD FTS CS FAv AAv Pts% W/L
Home 2 2 0 0 5 0 +5 0 2 2.50 0.00 100.0 +2
Away 6 5 1 0 28 4 +24 0 2 4.667 0.667 91.7 +5
All 8 7 1 0 33 4 +29 0 4 4.125 0.50 93.8 +7

 

George Hilsdon - Match Record - By Type of Match
Type P W D L F A GD FTS CS FAv AAv Pts% W/L
British Championship 5 4 1 0 16 3 +13 0 2 3.20 0.60 90.0 +4
Friendly 3 3 0 0 17 1 +16 0 2 5.667 0.333 100.0 +3
All 8 7 1 0 33 4 +29 0 4 4.125 0.50 93.8 +7

 

George Hilsdon - Match Record - Tournament Matches
British Championship Competition
Type P W D L F A GD FTS CS FAv AAv Pts% W/L
BC 1906-07 1 1 0 0 1 0 +1 0 1 1.00 0.00 100.0 +1
BC 1907-08 3 2 1 0 11 3 +8 0 0 2.667 1.00 83.3 +2
BC 1908-09 1 1 0 0 4 0 +4 0 1 4.00 0.00 100.0 +1
BC All 5 4 1 0 16 3 +13 0 2 3.20 0.60 90.0 +4
All Competition
Type P W D L F A GD FTS CS FAv AAv Pts% W/L
BC 5 4 1 0 16 3 +13 0 2 3.20 0.60 90.0 +4
All 5 4 1 0 16 3 +13 0 2 3.20 0.60 90.0 +4

 

George Hilsdon - Match History
 Club: Chelsea F.C. - 8 full appearances

F.A. International Select Committee - 8 full capsx

Age 25
1 89 16 February 1907 - England 1 Ireland 0, Goodison Park, Liverpool BC HW Start ir
Age 26
2 92 15 February 1908 - Ireland 1 England 3, Solitude Ground, Belfast BC AW Start 7, 83 ir
3 93 16 March 1908 - Wales 1 England 7, Cardiff Arms Park, Cardiff AW Start 40, 63 ir
4 94 4 April 1908 - Scotland 1 England 1, Hampden Park, Glasgow AD Start ir
5 95 6 June 1908 - Austria 1 England 6, Cricketer Platz, Wien tour AW Start 57, 70 ir
- 96 8 June 1908 - Austria 1 England 11, Hohe Warte Stadion, Wien AW reserve
6 97 10 June 1908 - Hungary 0 England 7, Millenáris Sportpálya, Buda-Pesth AW Start

28,48,71,88
ir
7 98 13 June 1908 - Bohemia 0 England 4, Stadión Letná, Praha AW Start 24, 50 ir
Age 27
8 99 13 February 1909 - England 4 Ireland 0, Horton Park Avenue, Bradford BC HW Start 50, 87 ir

Notes

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