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 6 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 his 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 travelling 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 11 appearances for the England amateur team and averaged two goals a game.
In 1908, he was a member of the Great Britain team which won 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.

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.