Walter Spratt

Walter Spratt (14 April 1889 – 22 January 1945) was an English professional footballer who played as a full-back in The Football League for Manchester United and Brentford. Born in Birmingham, he began his career with Rotherham Town and made guest appearances for Clapton Orient during the First World War. After leaving Brentford in 1921, he played for Sittingbourne for a year before ending his career with Elsecar Main.

Walter Spratt
Spratt in 1920.
Personal information
Full name Walter Spratt[1]
Date of birth (1889-04-14)14 April 1889[2]
Place of birth Birmingham, England[2]
Date of death 22 January 1945(1945-01-22) (aged 55)[3]
Place of death Southwark, England[3]
Height 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Position(s) Full back
Youth career
Meadow Hall
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1910–1911 Rotherham Town
1911–1915 Brentford 106 (1)
1915–1920 Manchester United 13 (0)
→ Clapton Orient (guest)
1920–1921 Brentford 4 (0)
1921–1922 Sittingbourne
1922–? Elsecar Main
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Career

Early career
Spratt while with Brentford in 1911.

Born in Birmingham, Spratt began his career at Midland League club Rotherham Town in 1910,[4] joining from local club Meadow Hall.[1] A year later, he signed for Southern League First Division club Brentford and made more than 100 appearances for the club before departing Griffin Park in early 1915.[4]

Manchester United

In February 1915, Spratt joined Football League First Division club Manchester United.[5] He initially joined on a one-month trial after being released by Brentford (along with all their other professional players).[6] Despite this, Brentford demanded Manchester United pay a fee to sign Spratt; United initially refused, but an Inter-League Board inquiry later ruled that they pay a fee of £175.[6] He made his Football League debut on 6 February, playing at right-back in a 1–0 defeat to Sunderland.[7] He made a total of 12 appearances during the 1914–15 season.[8]

Due to the ongoing First World War, Spratt did not make another competitive appearance for the Red Devils again until the 1919–20 season.[8] During the war, he played for Manchester United in the wartime leagues, as well as making guest appearances for Clapton Orient.[6] He was injured while playing for Clapton Orient and was not discharged from hospital until September 1919.[6] He made his comeback from injury in a Manchester United reserve team game in January 1920, before making final appearance for the club a month later in a 1–0 defeat at home to Arsenal on 28 February.[8]

Return to Brentford

Spratt returned to Brentford in May 1920,[9] for the club's first season in the Third Division South.[4] He made just four appearances, with his final game coming in a 2–0 defeat to West London rivals Queens Park Rangers on Christmas Day 1920.[10] Spratt departed Brentford at the end of the 1920–21 season, having made 123 appearances and scored one goal during his two spells with Brentford.[4]

Sittingbourne

At the end of the 1920–21 season, Spratt moved to non-league club Sittingbourne and moved back to Yorkshire in 1922 to end his career with Elsecar Main.[4][6]

Personal life

In 1906, Spratt served in the Royal Navy aboard HMS Boscawen III.[2] After the outbreak of the First World War, he joined the Royal Naval Reserve in February 1915 and served on communications bases at Crystal Palace and on the Isle of Grain.[2] While working as a despatcher for Mosers,[2] Spratt was one of 35 people killed in a V-2 rocket attack on Southwark, London, on 22 January 1945.[3]

Career statistics
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League FA Cup Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Brentford 1911–12[10] Southern League First Division 31 0 5 0 36 0
1912–13[10] 30 1 2 0 32 1
1913–14[10] Southern League Second Division 30 0 3 0 33 0
1914–15[10] 15 0 3 0 18 0
Total 106 1 13 0 119 1
Manchester United 1914–15[8] First Division 12 0 — 12 0
1919–20[8] 1 0 0 0 1 0
Total 13 0 0 0 13 0
Brentford 1920–21[10] Third Division 4 0 0 0 4 0
Brentford total 110 1 13 0 123 1
Career total 123 1 13 0 136 1

References
  1. Joyce, Michael (2012). Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939. Nottingham: Tony Brown. p. 274. ISBN 190589161X.
  2. Bees Review: Brentford Official Matchday Programme vs Hull City. Milton Keynes: Regal Sports Press. 3 November 2015. p. 65.
  3. Davies, Paul. "Newton Heath and Manchester United players who died at war". ManUtd.com. Retrieved 31 July 2019.
  4. Haynes, Graham; Coumbe, Frank (2006). Timeless Bees: Brentford F.C. Who's Who 1920–2006. Yore Publications. p. 153. ISBN 978-0955294914.
  5. "Spratt Walter Brentford 1911". Vintage Footballers. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  6. Dykes, Garth (1994). The United Alphabet: A Complete Who's Who of Manchester United F.C. Leicester: ACL & Polar Publishing (UK). p. 355. ISBN 0-9514862-6-8.
  7. "Walter Spratt". StretfordEnd.co.uk. Retrieved 13 January 2015.
  8. "Walter Spratt – Manchester United Player Profile & Stats". mufcinfo.com. Retrieved 14 June 2015.
  9. "The Football Association – Season 1920–21 – Summary Of Professional Registrations". Sky is Blue – The Chesterfield FC history resource. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
  10. White, Eric, ed. (1989). 100 Years Of Brentford. Brentford FC. pp. 361–366. ISBN 0951526200.
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