Henry Edward Lilley (1868 – 30 August 1900) was an English international

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 ...

. Born in Staveley, he played his league football as a

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 ...

for

Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The club competes in the Championship, the second tier of English football. They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history ...

Career

Club career

Lilley started his career playing for his home-town club of Staveley before he was signed by

in the summer of 1890. He played regularly for the Blades for two seasons but once they were elected to the

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 ...

his appearances became less frequent. He remained with the club for another two seasons although became prone to knee injuries and was released in 1894. Shortly after his death in 1900 a writer in the ''Sheffield Daily Telegraph'' issue of 28 September 1900 commented on him being a "very fine and scrupulously fair back."

International career

Along with fellow United player Michael Whitham, Lilley was selected for an international trial in February 1892 and made his one and only appearance for

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 ...

the following month against

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

Personal life

He was not well during the last few months of his life, losing sight in one eye because of an accident at Christmastime 1899, and suffering from consumption, and effects of an abdominal injury suffered late in his playing career.https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000250/19000912/136/0008 ''Sheffield Daily Telegraph'' 12 September 1900 Lilley was the brother of

goalkeeper In many team sports that involve scoring goal (sport), goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie, or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or i ...

and fellow

player Will Lilley.

Honours

Football League Division Two 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 ...

**Runner-up: 1892–93

References

External links

* 1868 births 1900 deaths Footballers from Staveley, Derbyshire English men's footballers Men's association football defenders England men's international footballers English Football League players Staveley F.C. players Sheffield United F.C. players Midland Football League players Northern Football League players 19th-century deaths from tuberculosis Tuberculosis deaths in England {{England-footy-defender-1860s-stub