Buster Brown (footballer)
William Ian Brown (6 September 1910 – 15 January 1993), sometimes known as Billy Brown, was a professional footballer who played a number of positions in the Football League for Brentford, Luton Town, Leyton Orient and Huddersfield Town.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | William Ian Brown[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 6 September 1910 | ||
| Place of birth | Silvertown, England | ||
| Date of death | 15 January 1993 (aged 82)[2] | ||
| Place of death | Ealing, England | ||
| Position(s) | Utility player | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Fairbairn House | |||
| –1930 | Silvertown | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1930–1934 | Luton Town | 49 | (4) |
| 1934–1937 | Huddersfield Town | 20 | (2) |
| 1937–1947 | Brentford | 92 | (2) |
| 1947–1948 | Leyton Orient | 26 | (0) |
| Chingford Town | |||
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only | |||
Career
Brown began his career in non-league football with Fairbairn House and Silvertown, before joining Third Division South club Luton Town in 1930.[1] He made shy of 50 league appearances in four seasons at Kenilworth Road, before moving to the top flight with Huddersfield Town in 1934.[1] He was used sparingly before joining First Division rivals Brentford in March 1937 as a replacement for Dai Richards.[3][4] He quickly became a regular with the Bees, playing in both full back positions, at half back and centre forward during the two-and-a-half years before the Second World War intervened.[4] Brown remained with Brentford during the war, with his 246 appearances being the most by any Brentford player during wartime.[5] He dropped down to the Fourth Division to sign for Leyton Orient in May 1947,[2] before ending his career in the Southern League with Chingford Town the following year.[4]
Career statistics
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | Other | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Huddersfield Town | 1934–35[3] | First Division | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 1 | |
| 1935–36[3] | 19 | 1 | 2 | 0 | — | 21 | 1 | |||
| Total | 20 | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | 22 | 2 | |||
| Brentford | 1936–37[5] | First Division | 10 | 0 | — | — | 10 | 0 | ||
| 1937–38[5] | 41 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 1[lower-alpha 1] | 0 | 46 | 0 | ||
| 1938–39[5] | 33 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | 34 | 2 | |||
| 1945–46[5] | — | — | 8 | 0 | — | 8 | 0 | |||
| 1946–47[5] | First Division | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 8 | 0 | ||
| Total | 92 | 2 | 13 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 106 | 2 | ||
| Career total | 112 | 4 | 15 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 128 | 4 | ||
- Appearance in Empire Exhibition Trophy
References
- Ian Thomas, Owen Thomas, Alan Hodgson, John Ward (2007). 99 Years and Counting: Stats and Stories. Huddersfield Town A.F.C. ISBN 095572810X.CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
- Joyce, Michael (2012). Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939. Nottingham: Tony Brown. p. 43. ISBN 190589161X.
- "Buster Brown". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
- "Huddersfield Town AFC Archive - Players – Player Profile". www.htafcarchive.co.uk. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
- Haynes, Graham; Coumbe, Frank (2006). Timeless Bees: Brentford F.C. Who's Who 1920–2006. Harefield: Yore Publications. p. 29. ISBN 0955294916.
- White, Eric, ed. (1989). 100 Years Of Brentford. Brentford FC. pp. 374–379. ISBN 0951526200.