| Walter Anderson | |
| Fullname: | Walter Anderson[1] |
| Birth Date: | 1879 |
| Birth Place: | England |
| Death Date: | 3 March 1904 (aged 25) |
| Death Place: | London, England |
| Position: | Inside forward |
| Years1: | – |
| Clubs1: | Darlington |
| Caps1: | – |
| Goals1: | – |
| Years2: | – |
| Clubs2: | Thornaby Utopians |
| Caps2: | – |
| Goals2: | – |
| Years3: | 1899–1901 |
| Clubs3: | Sheffield United |
| Caps3: | 4 |
| Goals3: | 0 |
| Years4: | 1901–1903 |
| Clubs4: | Woolwich Arsenal |
| Caps4: | 28 |
| Goals4: | 10 |
| Years5: | 1903–1904 |
| Clubs5: | Plymouth Argyle |
| Caps5: | 31 |
| Goals5: | 11 |
| Totalcaps: | 63 |
| Totalgoals: | 21 |
Walter Anderson (1879 – 3 March 1904) was an English professional footballer who played as an inside forward.
A diminutive forward,[2] Anderson began his career with Darlington before moving to Thornaby Utopians.[1] He became a professional in 1899 with Sheffield United and made four appearances in the First Division of the Football League over the next two years.[1] Anderson was transferred to Second Division side Woolwich Arsenal in December 1901.[2] He made his first team debut against Preston North End in a 0–0 draw on 11 January 1902 and scored his first goal for the club in a 3–1 win at Chesterfield Town three weeks later.[3] Having formed a partnership in the team's forward line with Bill Gooing,[2] Anderson scored five goals in 13 league games as the club finished fifth in the Second Division table.[4] The following season, he competed with Tim Coleman for a place in the team.[2] Anderson scored five league goals in 15 matches that season and one in the FA Cup, a 3–1 defeat at home to Sheffield United,[3] taking his overall tally to 11 goals in 30 appearances.[2]
Anderson was transferred to Southern League club Plymouth Argyle in the summer of 1903. Commonly known as Wattie,[5] he was signed by Frank Brettell to form part of the Devon club's first professional squad.[6] He made his debut in a 1–0 win at West Ham United on 1 September 1903 and scored his first goal in a 2–1 win at Portsmouth eight days later.[7] Having established himself as their first choice inside right,[8] he scored a hat-trick against Wellingborough on 5 December at Home Park as part of a 4–1 win.[7] Two months later, Anderson contracted pneumonia.[6] He carried on playing, ignoring doctors' advice that he should rest, and collapsed after a match against Fulham at Craven Cottage on 27 February 1904.[6] He was rushed to hospital and died four days later, at the age of 25.[2] He made 38 appearances in all competitions for Plymouth Argyle, scoring 13 goals.[7] A memorial fund was created by the club in his honour and a souvenir handbook was published, which described Anderson as "one of the greatest, cleverest and whole-hearted players a club ever commanded."[8]