Philip Smith (footballer, born 1885)

Philip Smith
Personal information
Date of birth	1885
Place of birth	Newcastle-under-Lyme, England
Date of death	29 September 1918 (aged 32–33)
Place of death	Pas-de-Calais, France
Position(s)	Centre forward
Youth career
	Knutton
Senior career*
Years	Team
1905–1906	Burslem Port Vale
	Crewe Alexandra
1910	Chelsea
1910–1911	Burnley
1911–1912	Crewe Alexandra
	Stalybridge Celtic
Total
	*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Philip Smith (1885 – 29 September 1918) was an English footballer who played at centre-forward for Burslem Port Vale, Crewe Alexandra, Chelsea, Burnley, and Stalybridge Celtic. He was killed in action during World War I.^[2]

Career

Smith played for Knutton before joining Burslem Port Vale in August 1905.^[3] After making his debut in a 3–1 defeat to Lincoln City at Sincil Bank on 2 September, he became a regular in the first-team.^[3] He got his first League goal seven days later, in a 4–3 win over Chesterfield at the Athletic Ground.^[3] He claimed eight goals in 25 Second Division appearances in the 1905–06 season.^[3] However, he was later released, most likely in the summer of 1906.^[3] He later played for Crewe Alexandra, before joining Chelsea for a £250 fee in April 1910.^[1] He played one First Division match for the club, a 1–0 defeat at Bristol City on 16 April 1910.^[1] He left Chelsea in October 1910 and went on to play for Burnley and Stalybridge Celtic.

Smith was the older brother of footballer Joe Smith.^[4] He served as a gunner in the Royal Field Artillery during World War I and was killed in action whilst fighting in the Western Front on 29 September 1918.^[2]

Sourced by Philip Smith at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)

Club	Season	Division	League		FA Cup		Other		Total
Club	Season	Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Burslem Port Vale	1905–06	Second Division	25	8	1	0	3	1	29	9
Chelsea	1909–10	First Division	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
Burnley	1910–11	Second Division	7	0	0	0	0	0	7	0
Total			33	8	1	0	3	1	37	9

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "Philip Smith Player Profile on Stamford-Bridge.com". stamford-bridge.com. Retrieved 28 October 2022.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Philip Smith | Service Record". Football and the First World War. Retrieved 9 March 2019.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Kent, Jeff (1996). Port Vale Personalities. Witan Books. p. 273. ISBN 0-9529152-0-0.
^ "What happened when war made football grind to a halt at Wanderers". The Bolton News. Retrieved 9 March 2019.