William Elson (1865 – 1937) was an English

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 lea ...

. He played 241 games and scored 15 goals for Burslem Port Vale; however, 114 of these games were friendlies.

Career

Elson most likely joined Burslem Port Vale in the summer of 1886. After a slow start, he became a regular from January 1888 and was in the side that shared the North Staffordshire Charity Challenge Cup in 1891. He played 16 Second Division games in 1892–93, in what was the club's first season in the

English Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in Association football around the world, the w ...

. He played 26 league games in the 1893–94 season. He scored his first Football League goal at the Athletic Ground on 4 December, in a 6–1 victory over

Grimsby Town Grimsby Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, England, that competes in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Nicknamed "the Mariners", the club was f ...

. Five days later, after a match at

Crewe Alexandra Crewe Alexandra Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Crewe, Cheshire, England. Its first team competes in League Two, the fourth level of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Railwaymen' ...

he was physically attacked. At that point, he challenged the crowd to "come on" one by one. On 13 January, he claimed another goal in a 5–3 defeat at Burton Swifts. He

transfer Transfer may refer to: Arts and media * ''Transfer'' (2010 film), a German science-fiction movie directed by Damir Lukacevic and starring Zana Marjanović * ''Transfer'' (1966 film), a short film * ''Transfer'' (journal), in management studies * ...

red to West Manchester in the summer of 1894.

Career statistics

Honours

Port Vale *North Staffordshire Charity Challenge Cup: 1891 (shared)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Elson, Billy Footballers from Burslem English men's footballers Men's association football midfielders Port Vale F.C. players English Football League players 1865 births 1937 deaths 19th-century English sportsmen