Edward Breaks (29 December 1919 – November 2000) was an English professional footballer who played in 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 ...

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 Halifax Town.

Life and career

Breaks was born in 1919 in Halifax, in the

West Riding of Yorkshire The West Riding of Yorkshire was one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the riding was an administrative county named County of York, West Riding. The Lord Lieutenant of the West Riding of Yorkshire, lieu ...

. He worked at John Holdsworth & Co textile mills in the town before the Second World War. He was called up in 1940, served with the 7th Queen's Own Hussars, and had a narrow escape when the

tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engine; ...

he was driving was struck by a German shell.. He played football while in the services, captained his regimental team, and after demobilisation he returned to Holdsworth's and played for the Shaw Lodge Mills works team. Breaks joined Halifax Town on amateur forms in 1947, and became a part-time professional a year later: he thought he was too old to take the risk of embarking on a full-time professional career. The team started the 1948–49 season badly, and Breaks was promoted from the reserves. He made his senior debut on 13 September 1948 against Mansfield Town in the Third Division North. Although the team continued to struggle, Breaks did not. Over the next seven seasonsfour as a first-team regularhe made 179 appearances in the Football League Third Division North, and was spoken of as a possible replacement at

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

after Alf Ramsey's move to Tottenham Hotspur. He scored once, when he injured a knee against Crewe Alexandra in 1950: unable to play in defence, he was still able to wander about the forward line. He shared a benefit match with the equally long-serving David McCormick in April 1955, in which Halifax Town lost 10–4 to a Football League Select XI which included their own player-manager, Willie Watson. Breaks became reserve-team coach in 1956, and acted as first-team trainer after Alan Ure retired in January 1962. After manager Harry Hooper also left the club, Breaks followed suit during the 1962 close season. Breaks returned to work at Holdsworth's, while continuing his involvement with football at local level with Hebden Bridge as player and coach and then as coach of St Mary's. Breaks and his wife, Maureen, had a daughter, Christine. He died in a Halifax nursing home at the age of 80 in November 2000.

Career statistics

Notes

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Breaks, Ted 1919 births 2000 deaths Footballers from Halifax, West Yorkshire English men's footballers Men's association football fullbacks Halifax Town A.F.C. players English Football League players Date of death missing 7th Queen's Own Hussars soldiers British Army personnel of World War II 20th-century English sportsmen