Frank Broome (11 June 1915 – 10 September 1994) 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 lea ...

and

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...

. He played for

Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club (commonly referred to as simply Villa) is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club, founded in 1874, compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The team have p ...

during his professional career and won seven caps as an

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 ...

striker, scoring three times, including once against

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on his debut in 1938. Frank Broome attended Victoria School,

Berkhamsted Berkhamsted ( ) is a historic market town in Hertfordshire, England, in the River Bulbourne, Bulbourne valley, north-west of London. The town is a Civil parishes in England, civil parish with a town council within the borough of Dacorum which ...

Herts Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...

where he excelled as centre forward in the school team. He began playing for Berkhamsted Town in 1933 and soon began to attract the attention of scouts from Charlton, Chelsea,

Luton Luton () is a town and borough in Bedfordshire, England. The borough had a population of 225,262 at the 2021 census. Luton is on the River Lea, about north-west of London. The town's foundation dates to the sixth century as a Saxon settleme ...

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as simply Tottenham (, , , ) or Spurs, is a professional Association football, football club based in Tottenham, North London, England. The club itself has stated that it should always ...

and

West Ham West Ham is a district in East London, England and is in the London Borough of Newham. It is an inner-city suburb located east of Charing Cross. The area was originally an ancient parish formed to serve parts of the older Manor of Ham, a ...

. In Jan and Feb 1934, Broome scored five goals in two consecutive matches, including against Aylesbury Utd in the Bucks Senior Cup, further enhancing his profile. In October 1934 Broome was selected to play for a team representing the

Spartan League The Spartan League was a football league in England covering London and adjacent counties. Established in 1907, it merged with the South Midlands League in 1997 to form the Spartan South Midlands League. History The Spartan League was establi ...

against a Tottenham Hotspur Combination 11 at Maidenhead. He scored both goals in a 3–2 defeat. He played again for the Spartan League team a couple of weeks later against an

Isthmian League The Isthmian League () is a regional Association football, football league covering Greater London, East of England, East and South East England, featuring mostly semi-professional clubs. Founded in 1905 by amateur clubs in the London area, th ...

team at Chesham. His place in the Berkhamsted team was taken by his brother Reg. His impressive form earned him a trial for Aston Villa. He scored six goals for the Villa Colts side in a 15–0 victory over

Moor Green Moor Green is a historic home located near Brentsville, Prince William County, Virginia. It dates to the early-19th century, and is a two-story, five-bay, Federal style brick residence, with a one-room, two-story ell. It has a standing seam m ...

on 31 Oct. The performance was enough to convince for Villa to sign him up professionally in Nov 1934 and he duly scored another four goals against

Stoke City Stoke City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team competes in the , the second level of the English football league system. Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, the cl ...

. A report of the match stated that although Broome was on the "small side, he has a fine turn of speed and can trick an opponent cleverly". Broome made his Villa debut in an away match at Portsmouth in April 1935. He then scored twice on his home debut in a 4–2 defeat of Liverpool. Broome continued to excel in leading Villa's attack during the 1935–36 season including two goals in the home derby match against

Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. The team compete in the ...

but it wasn't enough to prevent the club being relegated for first time in its history. During the 1936–37 season, Villa did well for three quarters of the season but finished 9th due to a drastic post-Easter slump in form which concluded with a 2–1 defeat at

, their sixth successive loss. In their second season in Division 2, Broome sometimes operated as a winger to make way for new signing James Clayon at centre forward. He scored two at

Plymouth Argyle Plymouth Argyle Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Plymouth, Devon, England. The team currently competes in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system. The club has played ...

in October in front of 40,000 spectators. He scored another two in a 7–1 rout of

Stockport County Stockport County Football Club is a professional association football club based in Stockport, Greater Manchester, England. The team competes in EFL League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1883 as Heaton ...

in December. Goals continued for Broome in the new year including a 3–0 victory at home to Man Utd on 2 April which maintained their hopes of promotion. This was followed by another brace of goals against

Tottenham Tottenham (, , , ) is a district in north London, England, within the London Borough of Haringey. It is located in the Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Greater London. Tottenham is centred north-northeast of Charing Cross, ...

in a hard-fought 2–0 victory on 16 April. Villa duly secured promotion back to Division One on 27 April 1938 with a 2–0 win over

Bradford Bradford is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in West Yorkshire, England. It became a municipal borough in 1847, received a city charter in 1897 and, since the Local Government Act 1972, 1974 reform, the city status in the United Kingdo ...

. Broome was selected to represent

as a reserve in a game against

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

in April 1938 at

Wembley Wembley () is a large suburbIn British English, "suburb" often refers to the secondary urban centres of a city. Wembley is not a suburb in the American sense, i.e. a single-family residential area outside of the city itself. in the London Borou ...

. He then joined England for a post season Continental Tour with first match against

at the

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on 14 May 1938. The match was notable for the English team giving the Nazi salute during the opening formalities as instructed to do so by the FA. England were triumphant running out 3–6 winners in front of a crowd of 110,000 in stifling hot conditions. Bastin, Broome and

Stanley Matthews Sir Stanley Matthews (1 February 1915 – 23 February 2000) was an English Association football, footballer who played as an Forward (association football)#Outside forward, outside right. Often regarded as one of the greatest players of the Br ...

tormented the German defence and Broome scored his first international goal. Coincidentally, Villa also embarked on a post season three week tour of

. They won 2–3 against a German FA side in front of 100,000 spectators on 15 May with Broome netting two. According to Villa manager James Hogan, 'The German people think Frank Broome is really marvellous.' Broome rejoined the England touring party and was part of the team which lost to

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

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2–1 on 21 May. England concluded its tour with a 2–4 win against

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Colombes Stadium The Stade Yves-du-Manoir (officially Stade olympique Yves-du-Manoir, also known as the Stade olympique de Colombes, or simply Colombes to the locals) is a rugby, track, and association football stadium in Colombes, near Paris, France. History ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

in front of 70,000 spectators on 26 May. Broome scored again in the opening five minutes. The 1938–39 season began badly for Broome when he tore a ligament in his right ankle in a match against

Grimsby Grimsby or Great Grimsby is a port town in Lincolnshire, England with a population of 86,138 (as of 2021). It is located near the mouth on the south bank of the Humber that flows to the North Sea. Grimsby adjoins the town of Cleethorpes dir ...

. He returned in September despite not fully recovered in a 5–0 home win against

Brentford Brentford is a suburban town in West (London sub region), West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the River Thames, Thames, west of Charing Cross. Its economy has dive ...

. He was selected again for England against

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but as inside-right rather than centre forward or right wing. The game was played at Newcastle on 9 November with England winning 4–0 but Broome clearly struggled in an unfamiliar position. He was back among the goals for Villa in a 6–3 demolition of Chelsea on 19 November. He also scored in a 1–1 draw at home to

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is a port at the mouth of the River Wear on the North Sea, approximately south-east of Newcastle upon Tyne. It is the most p ...

on 27 December. His sparkling form continued in the new year bagging two goals in a 2–4 victory away at

; and another two in a 2–0 defeat of

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

at home. In March 1939, he found time to marry Elsie Williams of Handsworth at the parish church in

. The bride was given away by Frank's brother Reg.They set up home in

Handsworth Wood Handsworth Wood is a suburb of Birmingham in the West Midlands County, England. Located within the metropolitan county of the West Midlands since 1 April 1974, under the Local Government Act 1972, it was historically a part of the county of S ...

. On 13 May he represented England on the left wing in a 2–2 away draw against

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

on 13 May. Broome guested for Nottingham Forest during WW2, making 3 appearances (1 goal) in 1939–40, 1 appearance (4 goals) in 1940–41 and 10 appearances (4 goals) in 1941–42. He also guested for

Wolves The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the grey wolf or gray wolf, is a canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, including the dog and dingo, though gr ...

during wartime, playing and scoring in the 1942 War Cup Final. In 1955 Broome signed for Shelbourne, making his

League of Ireland The League of Ireland is a national association football Sports league, league consisting of professional clubs in the Republic of Ireland and Derry, Derry City in Northern Ireland. It is governed by the Football Association of Ireland. It was ...

debut on 27 February. The nearest he came to scoring was when he had a penalty saved at

Glenmalure Park Glenmalure Park, often simply known as Milltown, was a football stadium on the Southside of Dublin city in Ireland. Located in the suburb of Milltown, it was home to Shamrock Rovers from 1926 to 1987, when it was sold to property developer ...

on 27 March in the

FAI Cup The Football Association of Ireland Senior Challenge Cup (FAI Cup), known as the Sports Direct FAI Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a knock-out association football competition contested annually by teams from the Republic of Ireland (as well as D ...

. Approaching 40 years of age and coupled with the expense of weekly flights to

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

he ended up only playing 6 games for Shels. After retiring from playing, he went on to manage both

Exeter City Exeter City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Exeter, Devon, England. The team play in , the third level of the English football league system. Known as "the Grecians", the origin of their nickname is subject to ...

Southend United Southend United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England, which competes in the National League, the fifth level of English football. The team are known as "The Shrimpers", a reference ...

and in

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References

External links

*
Player profile
a

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Broome, Frank 1915 births 1994 deaths English men's footballers England men's international footballers English Football League players Berkhamsted Town F.C. players Aston Villa F.C. players Watford F.C. wartime guest players Derby County F.C. players Notts County F.C. players Brentford F.C. players Crewe Alexandra F.C. players Shelbourne F.C. players English football managers Exeter City F.C. managers Southend United F.C. managers League of Ireland players English expatriate football managers Expatriate soccer managers in Australia Parramatta FC managers English expatriate sportspeople in Australia Men's association football forwards Men's association football outside forwards Sportspeople from Berkhamsted Footballers from Hertfordshire 20th-century English sportsmen