Charlie Fletcher (footballer) explained

Charlie Fletcher
Fullname:Charles Alfred Fletcher
Birth Date:28 October 1905
Birth Place:Homerton, England
Death Place:Hither Green, England
Height:5ft 11in
Position:Outside left
Years1:–1928
Clubs1:Clapton Orient
Caps1:0
Goals1:0
Years2:1928–1929
Clubs2:Crystal Palace
Caps2:7
Goals2:0
Years3:1929–1930
Clubs3:Merthyr Town
Caps3:24
Goals3:1
Years4:1930–1933
Clubs4:Clapton Orient
Caps4:120
Goals4:32
Years5:1933–1936
Clubs5:Brentford
Caps5:103
Goals5:24
Years6:1936–1937
Clubs6:Burnley
Caps6:62
Goals6:21
Years7:1937–1938
Clubs7:Plymouth Argyle
Caps7:23
Goals7:6
Years8:1938–1945
Clubs8:Ipswich Town
Caps8:29
Goals8:9
Years9:1945
Clubs9:Leyton Orient
Totalcaps:321
Totalgoals:93

Charles Alfred Fletcher (28 October 1905 – 22 August 1980) was an English professional footballer, best remembered for his spells as an outside left in the Football League with Clapton Orient and Brentford.

Career

An outside left, Fletcher began his career at Clapton Orient and failed trials with Football League clubs Aston Villa and Plymouth Argyle,[1] before signing with Third Division South club Crystal Palace in 1928.[2] He made seven league appearances during the 1928–29 season,[2] before moving to division rivals Merthyr Town in August 1929.[3] Fletcher returned to Clapton Orient, who had by then been relegated to the basement division, in 1930.[4] He became a regular at the Lea Bridge Stadium and scored 32 goals in 120 league matches to earn the nickname "Thunderboots".

In August 1933, Fletcher moved across London to sign for newly promoted Second Division club Brentford in a swap deal for Percy Whipp.[5] He was a virtual ever-present for the Bees during the 1933–34 and 1934–35 seasons and won promotion to the First Division with the club. He fell out with manager Harry Curtis in November 1935 and dropped to the Second Division to sign for Burnley in February 1936 and then Plymouth Argyle in November 1937.[6] Fletcher transferred to Ipswich Town in November 1938 (during the club's debut league season) and remained registered at Portman Road during the Second World War.[7] After the war, Fletcher returned to the now-renamed Leyton Orient in December 1945, but at age 40, he failed to make an appearance.

Personal life

Fletcher attended Colegrave School and Stratford School in London. Prior to becoming a professional footballer, he worked as a timber grinder.[8] During the Second World War, Fletcher worked as a lorry driver and then as a foreman in a munitions factory.

Career statistics

Club! rowspan="2"
SeasonLeagueFA CupTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Brentford1933–34Second Division4110104210
1934–3542910439
1935–36First Division20500205
Total103242010524
Plymouth Argyle1937–38Second Division18510195
1938–39510051
Total23610246
Ipswich Town1938–39Third Division South299513410
Career total155398116340

Honours

Brentford

1934–35[9]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Fletcher Charlie Ipswich Town 1939 . 5 July 2019 . Vintage Footballers . en-GB.
  2. Book: Purkiss . Mike . Crystal Palace: A Complete Record 1905–1989 . Sands . Nigel . The Breedon Books Publishing Company . 1989 . 0907969542 . 324.
  3. Web site: Charlie Fletcher . 5 December 2015 . Pride of Anglia – Ipswich Town Football Club.
  4. Book: Joyce, Michael . Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939 . Tony Brown . 2012 . 978-1905891610 . Nottingham . 100.
  5. Book: Haynes . Graham . Timeless Bees: Brentford F.C. Who's Who 1920–2006 . Coumbe . Frank . Yore Publications . 2006 . 0955294916 . Harefield . 58.
  6. News: Moment in time: Sheffield United . en-gb . Brentford FC . 6 August 2017.
  7. Web site: Charlie Fletcher . 5 December 2015 . Greens on Screen Database.
  8. Web site: Kaufman . Neilson . VE Day WW2 players as at May 2020 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20200609183620/https://www.leytonorient.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/VE-DAY-WW2-players-as-at-May-2020.pdf . 9 June 2020 . 18 July 2020 . 42–43.
  9. Book: 100 Years Of Brentford . Brentford FC . 1989 . 0951526200 . White . Eric . 372–373.