Roe Archie Image 1 Lincoln City 1924

Description

Hull, Yorkshire born centre forward Archie Roe began his football career with Blackwell Colliery and joined Sheffield Wednesday prior to the First World War spending 1914-15 at Hillsborough without making their first eleven that season, but after the onset of the War forced the suspension of peacetime football in May 1915, Roe played for Sheffield Wednesday in wartime league football as late as 1918-19, if not earlier.

After the War he joined Second Division South Shields in June 1919, making his Football League debut at Fulham that August, scoring his first goal two days later in a 1-0 win over Birmingham, who promptly signed him in November! He then played 3 times for Birmingham in November and December but couldn’t get into the first team at St Andrew’s on a regular basis, and he then joined Gillingham in August 1920.

Roe played in Gillingham’s inaugural League fixture against Southampton and scored twice in 17 appearances for The Gills in a single season at Priestfield, before joining Midland League club Castleford Town in 1921. He was then transferred to First Division club Arsenal from Castleford Town in June 1922, making his senior debut at Newcastle United in October 1922, scoring a week later in a home defeat in the return fixture. Roe made only two more appearances for The Gunners in the home and away matches with Everton in early November and spent a year in Arsenal’s reserves before he was transferred to Lincoln City for £1,000 in November 1923. At Sincil Bank, described as “hard as nails despite only being of moderate height”, he top scored in 1923-24 with a dozen goals, and had made 30 appearances by the time he joined Rotherham County in December 1924.

He scored on his debut for The Millers at Nelson but only played 7 matches, scoring three goals, before a move to North Eastern League club Workington in 1925, his final recorded club before his eventual retirement.