Harry Stapley


Henry Stapley was an English amateur footballer who played for West Ham United and Glossop. Internationally, he played for the England amateur team and competed for Great Britain at the 1908 Summer Olympics, where he scored six goals.

Club career

Stapley played for Manor Park Albion, Bromley and Norwich CEYMS before joining Reading, where he played for the reserve and amateur teams. He then played for Woodford Town, where he was made captain, before signing for West Ham United, then of the Southern League, on 28 September 1905. He continued to play for Woodford Town after signing.
Stapley made his West Ham debut against Portsmouth on 23 December 1905 and scored the only goal of the game. He spent three seasons at Upton Park and was the Irons' top scorer in all three, even though his job as a schoolteacher prevented him from traveling to certain midweek away games. In total, he scored 41 goals in 75 appearances.
He joined Second Division club Glossop in 1908 and continued his scoring record, ending as the club's top-scorer for seven consecutive seasons. He played 188 League games for Glossop, scoring 93 goals.

International career

Stapley made 14 appearances for the England amateur team, netting 28 goals, thus averaging two goals a game. Only Vivian Woodward has scored more goals for the amateur side than him with 44. Stapley's tally includes a 5-goal haul against the Netherlands in 1907, a 4-goal haul against the same opponents in 1908, and three hat-tricks against Belgium and Sweden for a total of five trebles. Again, only Woodward has scored more hat-tricks for the amateur side than him, with six. Stapley scored a further six goals in unofficial matches, which came in the form of two hat-tricks against Ireland to help his side with 6–1 and 5–1 wins, thus bringing his goal tally to 34 goals and his hat-trick tally to a record-breaking seven, since Woodward never scored one in an unofficial match.
In 1908, he was a member of the English amateur team that represented Great Britain at the 1908 Summer Olympics, winning the gold medal in the football tournament. He scored two goals in the first-round match, a 12–1 drubbing of Sweden, and scored all four in the semi-final against the Netherlands. He also appeared in the final against Denmark, helping his side with a 2—0 win. With these 6 goals, he is the second 'Highest British goal scorer within the Olympics' only behind Harold Walden who scored 9 in the 1912 Summer Olympics.

Outside football

Stapley tutored the sons of Glossop chairman Samuel Hill-Wood in football and cricket and saw three of his students attain blues in cricket at Oxford and Cambridge. He was later private secretary to Hill-Wood after his election as Member of Parliament for High Peak.
His brother, William Stapley, also played League football for Glossop.

International goals

No.CapDateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition
1121 December 1907Feethams, Darlington, England2–012–2Friendly
2121 December 1907Feethams, Darlington, England3–012–2Friendly
3121 December 1907Feethams, Darlington, England6–112–2Friendly
4121 December 1907Feethams, Darlington, England7–112–2Friendly
5121 December 1907Feethams, Darlington, England8–112–2Friendly
6218 April 1908Sukkelweg, Bruxelles, Belgium2–08–2Friendly
7218 April 1908Sukkelweg, Bruxelles, Belgium3–08–2Friendly
8218 April 1908Sukkelweg, Bruxelles, Belgium8–28–2Friendly
9320 April 1908Viktoria field, Berlin-Mariendorf, Germany1–05–1Friendly
10320 April 1908Viktoria field, Berlin-Mariendorf, Germany4–15–1Friendly
11420 October 1908White City, London, England?12–11908 Summer Olympics First round
12420 October 1908White City, London, England?12–11908 Summer Olympics First round
13522 October 1908White City, London, England1–04–01908 Summer Olympics Semi finals
14522 October 1908White City, London, England2–04–01908 Summer Olympics Semi finals
15522 October 1908White City, London, England3–04–01908 Summer Olympics Semi finals
16522 October 1908White City, London, England4–04–01908 Summer Olympics Semi finals
17612 April 1909Oud Rosenburg, Amsterdam, Netherlands4–07–0Friendly
18717 April 1909White Hart Lane, London, England?11–2Friendly
19717 April 1909White Hart Lane, London, England?11–2Friendly
20717 April 1909White Hart Lane, London, England?11–2Friendly-
21820 May 1909Landhof, Basel, Switzerland?9–0Friendly
22922 May 1909Stade de FGSPF, Gentilly, France?5–1Friendly
23922 May 1909Stade de FGSPF, Gentilly, France?5–1Friendly
24106 November 1909Anlaby Road, Hull, England2–07–0Friendly
25106 November 1909Anlaby Road, Hull, England4–07–0Friendly
26106 November 1909Anlaby Road, Hull, England5–07–0Friendly
271111 December 1909Stamford Bridge, Fullham, England1-09–1Friendly
281111 December 1909Stamford Bridge, Fullham, England8-19–1Friendly
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