Harry Anstiss
Henry Augustus Anstiss (22 August 1899 – 9 March 1964) was a much travelled English footballer who played as an inside-forward for Hammersmith Athletic, Brentford, Millwall, Watford, Rochdale, Sheffield Wednesday, Port Vale, Swansea Town, Crewe Alexandra, Gillingham, Tunbridge Wells Rangers and Cray Wanderers in the 1920s and 1930s. His most significant spell was with Port Vale, with whom he won the Third Division North title in 1929–30.
| Anstiss with Millwall in 1922. | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Henry Augustus Anstiss[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 22 August 1899[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Hampstead, London[2] | ||
| Date of death | 9 March 1964 (aged 64)[2] | ||
| Place of death | Isleworth, London[2] | ||
| Height | 5 ft 9+1⁄2 in (1.77 m)[3] | ||
| Position(s) | Inside forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1919–1920 | Hammersmith Athletic | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1920–1922 | Brentford | 42 | (19) |
| 1922–1923 | Millwall | 19 | (3) |
| 1923–1924 | Watford | 18 | (5) |
| 1924–1925 | Rochdale | 72 | (39) |
| 1926–1927 | Sheffield Wednesday | 12 | (5) |
| 1927–1931 | Port Vale | 109 | (36) |
| 1931–1932 | Swansea Town | 28 | (6) |
| 1932–1934 | Crewe Alexandra | 30 | (7) |
| 1934–1935 | Gillingham | 33 | (6) |
| 1935–1936 | Tunbridge Wells Rangers | ||
| 1936–1937 | Cray Wanderers | ||
| Total | 363+ | (126+) | |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Career edit
Anstiss played for Hammersmith Athletic,[4] before joining Brentford, Millwall, Watford, Rochdale and Sheffield Wednesday, before joining Port Vale in February 1927, along with 'a substantial financial consideration' in exchange for Alfred Strange.[2] Strange went on to become an England international, but Anstiss did not head in the same direction.[2] He had a great start to his Vale career though, scoring on his debut at The Old Recreation Ground in a 6–2 win over Notts County on 26 February.[2] He went on to score a hat-trick in a 7–1 home win over Fulham on 2 April, and claimed 11 goals in 15 Second Division games in the 1926–27 campaign.[2] This was the end of his purple patch, as he scored five goals in 32 games in the 1927–28 season.[2] Injury brought him down in November 1928, and limited him to three goals in 17 matches in the 1928–29 relegation season.[2] He scored 15 goals in 37 appearances in the 1929–30 season, as the "Valiants" were crowned champions of the Third Division North.[2] He fell from favour in October 1930 and was limited to six goals in 17 games in the 1930–31 season.[2] He was transferred to Swansea Town in May 1931.[2] Later he played for Crewe Alexandra, Gillingham, Tunbridge Wells Rangers and Cray Wanderers.[4]
Personal life edit
Anstiss served as a Boy 1st Class in the Royal Navy during the First World War.[1] Aged just 16, he saw action at the Battle of Jutland in 1916 and served on HMS Royal Oak.[1][5] He joined the crew of HMS Powerful the following year.[6]
Career statistics edit
| Club | Season | Division | League | FA Cup | Other | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Brentford | 1920–21[7] | Third Division | 19 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 4 |
| 1921–22[7] | Third Division South | 23 | 15 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 15 | |
| Total | 42 | 19 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 44 | 19 | ||
| Millwall | 1922–23[8] | Third Division South | 19 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 3 |
| Watford | 1923–24[9] | Third Division South | 18 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 5 |
| Rochdale | 1924–25[10] | Third Division North | 42 | 23 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 45 | 23 |
| 1925–26[10] | Third Division North | 30 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 16 | |
| Total | 72 | 39 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 74 | 39 | ||
| The Wednesday | 1926–27[11] | First Division | 12 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 5 |
| Port Vale | 1926–27[2] | Second Division | 15 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 11 |
| 1927–28[2] | Second Division | 29 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 5 | |
| 1928–29[2] | Second Division | 17 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 3 | |
| 1929–30[2] | Third Division North | 33 | 13 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 15 | |
| 1930–31[2] | Second Division | 15 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 6 | |
| Total | 109 | 36 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 117 | 40 | ||
| Swansea Town | 1931–32[2] | Second Division | 22 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 6 |
| 1932–33[10] | Second Division | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | |
| Total | 28 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29 | 6 | ||
| Crewe Alexandra | 1933–34[10] | Third Division North | 30 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 31 | 7 |
| Gillingham | 1934–35[12] | Third Division South | 33 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 34 | 6 |
| Career total | 363 | 126 | 18 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 372 | 130 | ||
Honours edit
- Port Vale
References edit
- ^ a b c Harry Anstiss on Lives of the First World War
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s Kent, Jeff (1996). Port Vale Personalities. Witan Books. p. 8. ISBN 0-9529152-0-0.
- ^ "League clubs and their players for the coming season. Rochdale". Athletic News. Manchester. 4 August 1924. p. 3.
- ^ a b "Anstiss Harry Millwall 1922". Vintage Footballers. Retrieved 23 December 2018.
- ^ "Profile" (PDF). watfordfcarchive.com. Retrieved 26 August 2015.
- ^ Fielding, Rob (9 June 2021). "The promotion winning Port Vale player who fought in WW1's major sea battle". onevalefan.co.uk. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
- ^ a b White, Eric, ed. (1989). 100 Years Of Brentford. Brentford FC. p. 366. ISBN 0951526200.
- ^ "Millwall Season 22/23 Stats". www.millwall-history.org.uk. Retrieved 19 April 2018.
- ^ "Watford Football Club archive 1881–2017 – 1920/21 to 1929/30" (PDF). Retrieved 19 April 2018.
- ^ a b c d Harry Anstiss at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
- ^ "H Anstiss". www.adrianbullock.com. Retrieved 19 April 2018.
- ^ "Gillingham FC Career Details". Retrieved 19 April 2018.
- ^ Kent, Jeff (1990). "From Glory to Despair (1929–1939)". The Valiants' Years: The Story Of Port Vale. Witan Books. pp. 124–150. ISBN 0-9508981-4-7.