Hall Bert Image 4 Aston Villa 1908

Description

Kingswinford, Stourbridge born outside left Albert “Bert” Hall played junior football for Brierley Hill Wanderers, Wall Heath, and Stourbridge from 1900 before joining First Division Aston Villa in July 1903, making his Football League debut at Nottingham Forest that December, scoring in a 7-3 victory. He was part of Aston Villa’s triumphant 1905 FA Cup Final winning team, when they beat Newcastle United 2-0 at The Crystal Palace with a brace from Harry Hampton, and having scored a career best 15 goals when Villa finished League runners up in 1907-08, he won the League Championship with them in 1910, playing 25 times in the League during their successful 1909-10 campaign. But after the Championship season he became increasingly a fringe player, making only 24 more first team appearances over the next four  seasons.

He won his only England cap in a 1-1 draw with Ireland at The Solitude, Belfast in February 1910. He also made two appearances for The Football League, playing in a 0-0 draw with The Scottish League at Ibrox in March 1907 and in a 2-0 win over The Scottish League at Villa Park in February 1908.

In December 1913 Hall left Villa to join Southern League Millwall Athletic after 62 goals in 215 appearances, and he retired from football in 1916. He was badly gassed during the First World War, during which he served with the 5th South Staffordshire Regiment.