Donald Ashman (9 October 1902 – 1984) 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 made 252 appearances in

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 ...

playing at

left half In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

or full back for

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ), colloquially known as Boro, is a port town in the Borough of Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England. Lying to the south of the River Tees, Middlesbrough forms part of the Teesside Built up area, built-up area and the Tees Va ...

Queens Park Rangers Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional association football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England. The team currently compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English f ...

and

Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. It lies on the River Skerne, west of Middlesbrough and south of Durham. Darlington had a population of 107,800 at the 2021 Census, making it a "large town" ...

in the 1920s and 1930s. He began his career in

non-league football Non-League football describes association football, football leagues played outside the top leagues of a country. Usually, it describes leagues which are not fully professional. The term is primarily used for football in England, where it is ...

with Cockfield.

Life and career

Ashman was born in

Staindrop Staindrop is a village and civil parish in County Durham, England. It is situated approximately north east of Barnard Castle, on the A688 road. According to the 2011 UK census the population was 1,310, this includes the hamlets of Cleatlam ...

County Durham County Durham, officially simply Durham, is a ceremonial county in North East England.UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. The county borders Northumberland and Tyne an ...

, one of numerous children of Fred Ashman, a former professional jockey whose father had kept a

livery stable A livery yard, livery stable or boarding stable, is a stable where horse owners pay a weekly or monthly fee to keep their horses. A livery or boarding yard is not usually a riding school and the horses are not normally for hire (unless on wor ...

in Paris, and his wife Lavinia. As a youngster, Ashman played football for Evenwood Juniors, and went on to work as a miner, playing

for Cockfield. In 1924,

Second Division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...

club

paid Cockfield a £10 fee and the promise of a

friendly match An exhibition game (also known as a friendly, scrimmage, demonstration, training match, pre-season game, warmup match, or preparation match, depending at least in part on the sport) is a sport, sporting event whose prize money and impact on th ...

for Ashman's services. Described on the club's website as a "composed half-back ... blessed with energy and stamina", Ashman went on to establish himself as a first-team regular as Middlesbrough won the 1926–27 Second Division title. He appeared less frequently the following season as Middlesbrough failed to maintain their

First Division 1st Division or First Division may refer to: Military Airborne divisions *1st Parachute Division (Germany) *1st Airborne Division (United Kingdom) * 1st Airmobile Division (Ukraine) * 1st Guards Airborne Division Armoured divisions *1st Armoure ...

status, and even less in 1928–29 as they again won the Second Division championship. He played regularly in 1929–30, but after two more years during which he made just 23 appearances, he moved to

for a £500 fee. He appeared intermittently during his first season with the club, but in 1933–34 was ever-present in the

left-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categ ...

position in

Third Division South The Third Division South 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 North with clubs elected to the League or relegated from Division Two allocated to on ...

matches, and played in about half of the following season's fixtures. He was transfer-listed in 1935, and was reported to be buying a newsagents in

Barnard Castle Barnard Castle (, ) is a market town on the north bank of the River Tees, in County Durham, England. The town is named after and built around a medieval castle ruin. The town's Bowes Museum has an 18th-century Silver Swan automaton exhibit ...

, County Durham. In July, he was granted a free transfer, and amid interest from

York City York City Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of York, North Yorkshire, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth level of the English football league system, as of the 2024–25 seas ...

and other clubs, signed for

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 ...

club

on a free transfer. After playing in the first 15 matches of the season, Ashman sustained an injury and was replaced at left back by Charles Allan, who kept his place to the end of the season. Ashman was released on a free transfer, and retired from football. Ashman married Alice Simpson, daughter of a local councillor, at Cockfield Church in June 1929. The

1939 Register The National Registration Act 1939 ( 2 & 3 Geo. 6. c. 91) was an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom. The initial National Registration Bill was introduced to Parliament as an emergency measure at the start of the Second World War. The ac ...

finds the family living in Horse Market, Barnard Castle: Ashman was a self-employed newsagent and member of the Police War Reserve, and Alice was an ambulance driver with the WVS. Ashman's death at the age of 81 was registered in the second quarter of 1984 in the

Lancaster Lancaster may refer to: Lands and titles *The County Palatine of Lancaster, a synonym for Lancashire *Duchy of Lancaster, one of only two British royal duchies *Duke of Lancaster *Earl of Lancaster *House of Lancaster, a British royal dynasty ...

district of

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

Statistics

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ashman, Don 1902 births 1984 deaths People from Staindrop Footballers from County Durham English men's footballers Men's association football fullbacks Men's association football wing halves Cockfield F.C. players Middlesbrough F.C. players Queens Park Rangers F.C. players Darlington F.C. players English Football League players Date of death missing 20th-century English sportsmen