Benjamin Burley (2 November 1907 – 25 January 2003) was an English professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who played as an

outside-forward Forwards (also known as attackers) are outfield positions in an association football team who play the furthest up the pitch and are therefore most responsible for scoring goals as well as assisting them. As with any attacking player, the role ...

for various clubs in the 1930s, including

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

Grimsby Town Grimsby Town Football Club is a professional football club based in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, England, that in the 2022–23 season will compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system, following the victory in ...

Norwich City Norwich City Football Club (also known as The Canaries or The Yellows) is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. The club competes in the EFL Championship following their relegation from the Premier League in the 20 ...

and

Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. The River Skerne flows through the town; it is a tributary of the River Tees. The Tees itself flows south of the town. In the 19th century, Darlington underwen ...

. He was later a

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

before becoming

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...

Chelmsford City Chelmsford City Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in Chelmsford, Essex, England. Currently members of they play at the Melbourne Stadium. History Chelmsford Chelmsford Football Club was established in 1878 by members o ...

in the 1950s.

Football career

Playing career

Burley was born in

Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...

where he was educated at

Darnall Darnall is a suburb of eastern Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. Darnall is approximately east-north-east of Sheffield city centre. History Darnall was initially a small hamlet usually included with Attercliffe. William Walker, a resident ...

School and played football as a youth for Netherhope Institute and

Woodhouse Mill Woodhouse ward—which includes the district of Woodhouse and most of Handsworth—is one of the 28 electoral wards in the City of Sheffield, England. It is located in the southeastern part of the city and covers an area of . The pop ...

United. He also played schoolboy football for the Sheffield and Yorkshire F.A.s. In November 1931, he joined

Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history of cutlery production. The team have played home games at ...

but never made any first-team appearances before a transfer to the south coast to join

of the

Football League Second Division The Football League Second Division was the second level division in the English football league system between 1892 and 1992. Following the foundation of the FA Premier League, the Football League divisions were renumbered and the third ti ...

in September 1933. Described as a "stocky and thrustful winger", he was used as cover for

Fred Tully Frederick Charles Arnold Tully (4 July 1907 – 1969) was an English footballer who played as a winger for Southampton and Clapton Orient in the 1930s. Southampton According to Holley & Chalk's ''Alphabet of the Saints'' he was "a winger of th ...

and

Bill Luckett William Luckett (6 September 1903 – 5 July 1985) was an English professional footballer who played for Southampton as a left-half in the 1920s and 1930s, making over 200 appearances. Playing career Early days Luckett was born in St Helens, La ...

and his only first-team appearances came at

outside-left Forwards (also known as attackers) are outfield positions in an association football team who play the furthest up the pitch and are therefore most responsible for scoring goals as well as assisting them. As with any attacking player, the role ...

in the last two matches of the 1933–34 season, both defeats. In the summer of 1934, he moved to

who had just been promoted to the First Division. Burley remained for a season, scoring five goals in 22 appearances as Grimsby finished fifth in

the league ''The League'' is an American sitcom that aired on FX and later FXX from October 29, 2009, to December 9, 2015, for a total of seven seasons. The series, set in Chicago, Illinois, is a semi-improvised comedy show about a fantasy football league ...

, their highest-ever league position. Burley moved on in the summer of 1935, to return to the Second Division with

. He made his debut on 7 September 1935 and played 35 league matches, scoring four goals, over a three-year period, before joining

in May 1938. In his one season at

Feethams Feethams is a cricket and former football grounds in Darlington, England. The cricket ground has hosted Durham CCC matches. The football ground was the home of Darlington F.C. for from 1883 to 2003 until the club moved into another ground, ...

, Burley rarely missed a match in the

Third Division North The Third Division North of the Football League was a tier in the English football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran in parallel with the Third Division South with clubs elected to the League or relegated from a higher division allocated to ...

, scoring seven goals from 35 league appearances. In July 1939, he dropped out of

the Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...

to join

, who had joined the Southern League a year earlier. In a season which was truncated because of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Chelmsford won the Eastern section and then drew with Lovell's Athletic in the play-offs; both teams were declared joint champions. During the war, Burley played as a guest for various clubs, including

Southend United Southend United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England. As of the 2022–23 season, the team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of English football. Southend are known as ...

Millwall Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Limehouse, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east ...

Brighton & Hove Albion Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club (), commonly referred to simply as Brighton, is an English professional football club based in the city of Brighton and Hove. They compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league ...

Queens Park Rangers Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England, which compete in the . After a nomadic early existence, they have played home matches at Loftus Ro ...

and

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building * ...

Coaching and management career

After the war, Burley obtained his F.A. coaching badge, before working as a coach in the Netherlands. In June 1951, he returned to

, initially as a coach, before replacing Billy Walsh as manager in August. In Burley's three seasons in charge at Chelmsford, the club finished in the lower half of the Southern League table and in 1954, Burley was replaced by

Frank Grice Frank Grice (13 November 1908 – 1988) was an English professional footballer who played for Linby Colliery, Notts County, Tottenham Hotspur, Glentoran and Dundalk. Football career Grice began his career at Linby Colliery before joining Nott ...

. In his time as manager, Chelmsford City played 105 matches, of which 30 were won, 21 drawn and 54 lost.

Honours

As a player

Chelmsford City * Southern League champions: 1939–40

References

External links

Career details on www.11v11.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burley, Ben 1907 births 2003 deaths Footballers from Sheffield English men's footballers Men's association football forwards Sheffield United F.C. players Southampton F.C. players Grimsby Town F.C. players Norwich City F.C. players Darlington F.C. players Chelmsford City F.C. players English Football League players Southern Football League players Southend United F.C. wartime guest players Millwall F.C. wartime guest players Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. wartime guest players Queens Park Rangers F.C. wartime guest players Crystal Palace F.C. wartime guest players English football managers Chelmsford City F.C. managers Association football coaches Chelmsford City F.C. non-playing staff