Shaw Joe Image 2 Arsenal 1921

Description

Bury, Lancashire born left back Joe Shaw played for hometown club Bury Athenaeum in 1905 and then signed for Accrington Stanley in 1906, making his senior match (non Lancashire League) debut in an FA Cup tie at Crewe Alexandra in January 1907, before heading south to sign for Arsenal (then Woolwich Arsenal) later in 1907. He made his Football League debut against Preston North End on 28th September 1907, and soon became a regular in the Arsenal side; he was first-choice left back for the next seven seasons.

His career was interrupted by World War One but he continued to play during unofficial wartime matches, and by the time competitive football had resumed, he had made the switch to right back. In 1919 he was made Arsenal captain, succeeding the recently departed Percy Sands.

In total he played until aged 38, making 326 appearances for The Gunners, and he was the third player in Arsenal history to reach the 300 game milestone after Sands and Roddy McEachrane. He stayed at Highbury as a coach/trainer after his retirement from playing. After the sudden death of Herbert Chapman in January 1934 and ahead of the appointment of George Allison, he was caretaker manager of Arsenal for 3 months. In total he served the Gunners an incredible 49 years, with only a brief spell as a coach at Chelsea from 1945 to 1947, returning as assistant manager to Tom Whittaker, in between.

His brother-in-law was Billy Hibbert, the Bury, Newcastle and England centre forward.