| Ted Holdcroft | |
| Fullname: | Hugh Edward Holdcroft |
| Birth Date: | c. 1882 |
| Birth Place: | Stoke-upon-Trent, England |
| Death Date: | (age 69-70) |
| Death Place: | Norton le Moors, England |
| Position: | Centre half / Centre forward |
| Years1: | 1901–1903 |
| Caps1: | 16 |
| Goals1: | 1 |
| Years2: | 1903–1905 |
| Clubs2: | Stoke |
| Caps2: | 43 |
| Goals2: | 11 |
| Totalcaps: | 59 |
| Totalgoals: | 12 |
Hugh Edward Holdcroft (c. 1882 – 4 February 1952) was an English footballer who played in the Football League for Burslem Port Vale and Stoke in the early 1900s.
Holdcroft joined Burslem Port Vale in October 1901.[1] His debut came at centre-half in a goalless draw with Preston North End at the Athletic Ground on 8 September 1902.[1] He scored his first goal in the Football League on 25 October, converting a penalty in a 3–3 draw with Burnley at Turf Moor.[1] He became a first-team regular for the Second Division side from the next month until he suffered a toe injury in February 1903 and transferred to local rivals Stoke in March 1903.[1] At £500 this was a club record for Stoke.[2]
Holdcroft was converted into a centre forward at the Victoria Ground with mixed success.[3] He hit two goals in a 5–2 win over Liverpool on 17 October 1903, and opened the 1905–06 season with a goal in each of the first three First Division games. Still, other than these highlights, he proved to be far from a natural goalscorer and in three seasons, he scored 11 goals in 44 appearances.[3] After retiring due to an ankle injury and later suffering a serious illness that prevented him finding a job, Vale and Stoke held a benefit match on his behalf on 29 April 1907; the game finished 1–1.[4] This would prove to be Burslem Port Vale's final ever match, as the club were dissolved, only to re-emerge later in the year when Cobridge Church renamed themselves Port Vale F.C.
Source:
| Club | Season | Division | League | FA Cup | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||||
| Burslem Port Vale | 1902–03 | Second Division | 16 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 18 | 1 | |
| Stoke | 1902–03 | First Division | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| 1903–04 | First Division | 17 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 3 | ||
| 1904–05 | First Division | 14 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 15 | 3 | ||
| 1905–06 | First Division | 11 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 5 | ||
| Total | 43 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 44 | 11 | |||
| Career total | 59 | 12 | 3 | 0 | 62 | 12 | |||