Richard Bond (14 December 1883 – 25 April 1955) 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 ...

who played outside right. He was capped eight times by

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

and spent the vast majority of his playing career at Bradford City where he played more than 300 games.

Club playing career

Preston North End

Born in Garstang, England, Bond started his career with the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

before he signed professional forms with Preston North End in August 1902. He was part of Preston's Division Two championship winning team in 1903–04. Two years later, he was a regular, as the club were

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, it is the oldest football league in the world, and was the top-level football league in England from ...

runners-up.

Bradford City

Bond joined Bradford City in May 1909 for a £950 fee, a record fee for Preston at the time. Bond represented City during the most successful spell in its history. But he missed out on the club's 1911 FA Cup triumph because he was suspended after using improper language at Woolwich Arsenal. He had scored two goals in three appearances earlier in the cup run. In total he played 301 league games, scoring 60 goals, all in the top flight. He also represented the club in 32

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...

games scoring 12 times. He was selected in City's team of the millennium in 1999 by former Telegraph & Argus sports reporter David Markham. He served with the Bradford Pals during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

before returning to City in 1919. He was appointed club captain in 1920. But the side were relegated in 1921–22 prompting his transfer to Blackburn Rovers.

Blackburn Rovers

Bond played for Blackburn for one season before his final move to Lancaster Town in August 1923 for one last season. He retired in 1924 but returned to play for Garstang Town two years later. His total league career brought him 96 goals in 473 league appearances. He became a publican before he died in Preston aged 71.

International career

Bond made his first international appearance for

while at Preston on 25 February 1905 against

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

. He won a total of eight caps, scoring twice, both against Ireland in 1906.

Honours

Preston North End *

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 tier ...

: 1903–04

Personal life

Bond's football career was interrupted by the

. He was serving as a

sergeant Sergeant (Sgt) is a Military rank, rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and in other units that draw their heritage f ...

in the

Prince of Wales's Own (West Yorkshire Regiment) The West Yorkshire Regiment (Prince of Wales's Own) (14th Foot) was an infantry regiment of the British Army. In 1958 it amalgamated with the East Yorkshire Regiment (15th Foot) to form the Prince of Wales's Own Regiment of Yorkshire which was, ...

when he was taken prisoner-of-war in July 1916. He was repatriated on 18 November 1918 and more than two years after it had finished, he laid a commemorative wreath at the

Cenotaph A cenotaph is an empty grave, tomb or a monument erected in honor of a person or group of people whose remains are elsewhere or have been lost. It can also be the initial tomb for a person who has since been reinterred elsewhere. Although t ...

in London before Bradford City's game with

Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...

on 1 January 1921. After his retirement from football, Bond ran a

fish and chip shop A fish and chip shop, sometimes referred to as a chip shop or chippy, is a restaurant that specialises in selling fish and chips. Usually, fish and chip shops provide takeaway service, although some have seating facilities. Fish and chip shop ...

in Garstang and later became a

pub A pub (short for public house) is in several countries a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term first appeared in England in the late 17th century, to differentiate private ho ...

lican.

References

External links

* *
Bantams Past profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bond, Dicky 1883 births 1955 deaths Preston North End F.C. players Bradford City A.F.C. players Blackburn Rovers F.C. players English Football League players English men's footballers England men's international footballers English Football League representative players Lancaster City F.C. players Men's association football outside forwards Royal Artillery soldiers British Army personnel of World War I West Yorkshire Regiment soldiers World War I prisoners of war held by Germany British World War I prisoners of war Footballers from Preston, Lancashire