William Foulke: Sheffield’s ‘Giant of the Game’ born this day in 1874
William Henry Foulke is probably Sheffield’s most famous footballer of all time but is probably unrecognisable to the average reader without his ubiquitous nickname of ‘Fatty’. In the same way that everyone Googles ‘Gazza’ rather than ‘Paul Gascoigne’, poor old Fatty Foulkes is doomed to be forever associated with his nickname rather than his amazing football prowess. I would like to remedy that in this article, starting with this fantastic image of William, aged just 21, from the 1895 book ‘Famous Footballers’ .
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In the description it says he is better known as ‘Foulkes’
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New book- A History of Sheffield Football 1857-1889: Speed, Science and Bottom http://bit.ly/2qYw0r0
William Foulke was discovered by scouts playing in goal for a village side, Blackwell Pit, in a Derbyshire Cup tie at Ilkeston. He was immediately signed to Sheffield United and made his debut against West Bromwich Albion on September 1st, 1894 and helped the team to reach three F.A. Cup finals, two of which they won, and a League championship. Only Ernest Needham won more honours with Sheffield United than William Foulke.
411 League and Cup Appearances for Sheffield United, Chelsea and Bradford City
First ever captain of Chelsea in their debut season in the Football League
1 cap for England in 1897 v Wales
1 League Championship medal (1897-98)
2 F.A. Cup winners medals (1898-1899 & 1901-02)
1 F.A. Cup losers medal (1900-01)
He was born this day (12th April) in 1874 in Dawley, Shropshire and died at the tragically young age of just 42 of cirrhosis of the liver and is buried in Burngreave cemetery. He died on May 1st, 1916.
In his obituary a better and more accurate nickname than the derogatory ‘Fatty’ is used for William Foulke;
‘The Giant of the Game. ’He could stop a football with one hand in the same way a fielder in the slips stops a ball at cricket. He could throw it as far as some men could kick it and United enthusiasts called him ‘Little Willie’.
He was the most important part of one of the greatest defences ever known in that era with only 93 goals conceded over the three seasons of his stewardship in the United goal. Yet his legendary status between the sticks only earned him one England cap in 1897 against Wales.
Here is a very rare video of Foulkes in action for Sheffield United against Bury FC in 1902. He features at the end of the Mitchell and Kenyon film taking a goal kick:
‘A football wonder is Willie. Perhaps the most talked of player in the world. A leviathan (22 stone) with the agility of a bantam. Abnormal yet normal. The cheeriest of companions; brims ever with good humour; at repartee is as difficult to score against as when between the posts. His ponderous girth no inconvenience and the manner he gets down to low shots explodes any idea that a superfluity of flesh is a handicap. Scorns to pick up with both hands. By simply spreading out one hand over the ball Foulke does all that is necessary. Association Football : The men who made it
Interested in Sheffield Football History? Then download the new walking app https://bit.ly/2ILUKLg
New book- A History of Sheffield Football 1857-1889: Speed, Science and Bottom http://bit.ly/2qYw0r0
In the book ‘The Outsider’, the writer and journalist Jonathan Wilson records Foulkes weight gain ; William weighed 84 kilos when he first arrived in Sheffield, 90 in 1896, 124 in 1899, 145 in 1902 and close to 160 in 1905, when he moved from Sheffield United to Chelsea. Following retirement from professional football he moved to the seaside town of Blackpool and for a while earned money defending penalties taken by holiday makers in a tent on the beach, later he moved back to Sheffield where he managed a bar, the Duke Inn.
A lot of myths grew up around Foulkes and in in 1913 he spoke in his own words to correct the stories.
