George Hunt (27 February 1922 – 1987) 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 as a

right 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 ...

. He left school at the age of 14 and began work in the Great Western Railway Works. Hunt originally played football as an amateur for local team Ferndale Athletic, but joined the Army on the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. During the war he served in the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

and alongside the

Desert Rats The 7th Armoured Division (Desert Rats) was an armoured division of the British Army. It was formed as the Mobile Division (Egypt) on 27 September 1938, after increased tensions between Britain and the Axis powers. This was part of an effort ...

. It was during a game between armed services in Italy that he was approached by

Stan Cullis Stanley Cullis (25 October 1916 – 28 February 2001) was an English professional footballer and manager, primarily for Wolverhampton Wanderers. During his term as manager between 1948 and 1964, Wolves became one of the strongest teams in the En ...

Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club ( ), commonly referred to as Wolves, is a professional association football, football club based in Wolverhampton, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league s ...

, who offered him a trial at the club when the war finished. Hunt declined and returned to Swindon on

demob Demobilization or demobilisation (see spelling differences) is the process of standing down a nation's armed forces from combat-ready status. This may be as a result of victory in war, or because a crisis has been peacefully resolved and militar ...

Swindon Town Swindon Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. The team, known as the "Robins", currently compete in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded as Swindon A ...

offered him a series of trials with him playing in the outside right position, but an injury during a game led him to dropping back into defence and taking up the right back role. He signed for the club as a professional in 1947 and made his first senior appearance against

Exeter Exeter ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and the county town of Devon in South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter w ...

in September 1948. Over his eleven years as a professional player for the club he made 328 appearances in total including 24 Cup appearances. He retired in 1958 and as a qualified coach, assisted the club's back room staff on an intermittent basis whilst returning to work in the GWR Locomotive Works. It was here that he eventually contracted

peritoneal mesothelioma Peritoneal mesothelioma is the name given to the cancer that attacks the lining of the abdomen. This type of cancer affects the lining that protects the contents of the abdomen and provides a lubricating fluid to enable the organs to move and work ...

(also known as "The Swindon Disease") caused by exposure to

asbestos Asbestos ( ) is a group of naturally occurring, Toxicity, toxic, carcinogenic and fibrous silicate minerals. There are six types, all of which are composed of long and thin fibrous Crystal habit, crystals, each fibre (particulate with length su ...

which led to his death in 1987.

References

External links

Post War English & Scottish Football League A - Z Player's Transfer Database profile

Player Profile
- Swindon-Town-FC.co.uk {{DEFAULTSORT:Hunt, George 1922 births Footballers from Swindon English men's footballers Men's association football defenders Swindon Town F.C. players Deaths from mesothelioma 1987 deaths Deaths from cancer in England British Army personnel of World War II Ferndale Athletic F.C. players English Football League players 20th-century English sportsmen