) | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Victor Martin Watson | ||
| Date of birth | 10 November 1897 | ||
| Place of birth | Girton, Cambridgeshire, England | ||
| Date of death | 3 August 1988 (aged 90) | ||
| Place of death | Girton, Cambridgeshire, England | ||
| Height | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)[1] | ||
| Position(s) | Centre forward | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 19??–1920 | Wellingborough Town | ||
| 1920–1935 | West Ham United[2] | 462 | (298) |
| 1935–1936 | Southampton | 36 | (14) |
| National team | |||
| 1923–1930 | England | 5 | (4) |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only | |||
Victor Martin Watson (10 November 1897 – 3 August 1988) was an English professional footballer who played most of his club football for West Ham United.
Playing career
Watson, a centre forward, played 505 times for West Ham between 1920 and 1936. The club paid just £50 for Vic from Wellingborough, bringing him in to provide cover for Syd Puddefoot.[3]
Watson is the club's record goalscorer with 326 goals: 298 in the League and 28 in the FA Cup. 203 of his league goals were from 295 top flight appearances.[2] He once scored six, in an 8–2 home win against Leeds on 9 February 1929, scored four goals on three occasions, and managed 13 hat-tricks while at West Ham.[4]
Watson gained two international caps with England in 1923 and a further three caps in 1930, scoring four goals in total, including two against Scotland in the 1930 British Home Championship.
He spent one season (1935–36) with Southampton before retiring and he was the club's top scorer with 14 goals in 36 league appearances.
Upon retiring, he became a market gardener in Girton, Cambridgeshire. He died in August 1988 at the age of 90.
In June 2010 a plaque honouring Watson was unveiled in Girton.[5]
Honours
West Ham United
- Division Two Runners Up: 1922–23
- FA Cup finalist: 1923
England
References
- ^ "Football's advent. West Ham". Athletic News. Manchester. 15 August 1921. p. 6.
- ^ a b "Vic Watson: West Ham Statistics".
- ^ Hogg, Tony (2005). Who's Who of West Ham United. Profile Sports Media. p. 211. ISBN 1-903135-50-8.
- ^ "As Wayne Rooney breaks Sir Bobby Charlton's Man Utd haul, who is your Premier League club's all-time leading goalscorer?". The Telegraph. 23 January 2017. Retrieved 26 January 2017.
- ^ Grove, Jack (13 November 2009). "Residents' campaign for a tribute to local footie hero". www.cambridge-news.co.uk. Archived from the original on 20 April 2013. Retrieved 19 June 2012.
External links
- Victor Watson profile at englandfc.com
- Vic Watson photos
- West Ham statistics