English footballer (1883?1939)
Charles Roberts
(6 April 1883 ? 7 August 1939) was an English professional
footballer
who played as a
centre-half
in the
Football League
for
Grimsby Town
,
Manchester United
and
Oldham Athletic
. He spent nine years at United, where he was
captain
, helping the club to two
First Division
titles and an
FA Cup
. He won three
caps
for
England
in 1905.
Playing career
[
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]
Born in
Darlington
, Roberts started his football career with
Bishop Auckland
, but soon moved to
Grimsby Town
.
In 1904, he was transferred to
Manchester United
for £600.
[3]
The United manager at the time was
Ernest Mangnall
who had embarked on a spending spree which would later see
Manchester City
players
Billy Meredith
and
Sandy Turnbull
arrive at
Bank Street
, United's ground at the time. Roberts arrival at United was extremely important to the development of the club; a strong, skilful, fast centre half and a rebel to boot. He flouted
FA
rules by wearing his shorts above the knee
[4]
and was politically minded in favour of the unionisation of professional footballers.
Playing as
centre-half
he helped Manchester United win the 1908 and 1911 league titles as well as the 1909
FA Cup
. Not until
1983
, when a United side captained by
Bryan Robson
lifted the FA Cup for the fifth time, did another Englishman captain the club to FA Cup glory, as United's captains of their second and third triumphs were both Irish and their fourth FA Cup winning side was captained by a
Scotsman
.
[5]
He left the club in August 1913 for a then record fee of £1,500 to
Oldham Athletic
, who he also went on to manage, after appearing in 299 matches and scoring 23 goals for United.
Roberts was
capped
three times for
England
in 1905, Manchester United's first England international.
[4]
Players' Union
[
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]
On 2 December 1907, Roberts and Meredith were instrumental in setting up the
Players' Union
. The organisation was not recognised by the FA but it did attract considerable support from fellow League clubs. In August 1909, the FA threatened to suspend any player who admitted to being a member of the Union, following which Roberts and his Manchester United's teammates were summoned to a meeting with the club's management. The players refused to relinquish their Union membership, forcing the club to contact their first opponents of the new season,
Bradford City
to cancel the fixture, as it could not field a team.
[6]
The FA's threat had seen the membership of the Union fall so that the only members were the Manchester United players, who called themselves "The Outcasts". It was only after
Tim Coleman
of Everton renewed his support by siding with The Outcasts that the FA relented and Roberts' Union was saved.
Coaching career
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In 1928, together with former colleague
Billy Meredith
, he became a coach for the ambitious
Manchester Central
. Roberts' son, Charlie Jr., was a player for Central's first season.
[7]
He died, aged 56, at
Manchester Royal Infirmary
in August 1939 following a cranial operation after suffering extended "dizzy spells".
Personal life
[
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]
Roberts' cousin,
Harry Hooper
, played at
full-back
for
Southampton
,
Leicester City
and
Queens Park Rangers
.
[8]
His nephews,
Danny
,
Bill
,
Mark
and
Carl Hooper
, were all professional footballers, and his nieces, Sarah and Bessie Hooper, played for Darlington Quaker Ladies.
[9]
[10]
His great-great-granddaughter,
Lucy Roberts
, played for
Manchester United W.F.C.
in their inaugural season.
[11]
Honours
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Club
[
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]
Manchester United
Individual
[
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]
References
[
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]
Notes
Bibliography
- Holley, Duncan; Chalk, Gary (1992),
The Alphabet of the Saints
, ACL & Polar Publishing,
ISBN
0-9514862-3-3
- James, Gary (2008),
Manchester ? A Football History
, Halifax: James Ward
- Joyce, Michael (2012) [2002],
Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939
, Nottingham: SoccerData,
ISBN
978-1-905891-61-0
- Tyrrell, Tom; Meek, David (1992) [1988],
Manchester United: The Official History
(2 ed.), Hamlyn,
ISBN
0-600-57692-2
External links
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