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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Robert William Benson | ||
| Date of birth | (1883-02-09)9 February 1883 | ||
| Place of birth | Whitehaven,Cumberland, England | ||
| Date of death | 19 February 1916(1916-02-19) (aged 33) | ||
| Place of death | Highbury, London, England | ||
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)[1] | ||
| Position | Full back | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Dunston Villa | |||
| Shankhouse | |||
| Swalwell | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1902–1904 | Newcastle United | 1 | (0) |
| 1904–1905 | Southampton | 19 | (0) |
| 1905–1913 | Sheffield United | 273 | (20) |
| 1913–1916 | Woolwich Arsenal | 52 | (7) |
| Total | 345 | (27) | |
| International career | |||
| 1913 | England | 1 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Robert William Benson (9 February 1883 – 19 February 1916) was an English professionalfootballer, who played as afull back. Born inWhitehaven, Cumberland, he spent the majority of his professional career withSheffield United but also had spells withSouthampton andWoolwich Arsenal. He gained a solitaryEngland cap in 1913 as well as representingThe Football League and undertaking anFA tour of South Africa but died as a result of playing a football match in 1916.
Benson had worked as a coal-miner whilst playing for various local clubs in and aroundWhitehaven where he was born, including Swalwell, where he was spotted byNewcastle United and signed as a professional in December 1902.[2] Competition for places restricted him to just a single appearance for the club, on 7 March 1903.[3][4]
Soon after the start of the1904–05 season, theSouthampton directors were trying to recruit aright-back following the departure ofTom Robertson in the summer.Joe Hoare had been tried but was now past his prime, so the directors sent a club official tothe north east to hunt for a player. The official's quest took him to Newcastle, where he interviewed Benson and, after agreeing afee of £150 with the Magpies, the official returned "triumphantly" tothe south coast with his "catch".[5]
Benson made his Southampton debut on 1 October 1904, in a 1–1 draw at home toBrighton & Hove Albion.[6] Benson's form was immediately impressive; described as "big and bold", he was a terror to opposition forwards, "snuffing out their moves with his sense of anticipation".[5] Benson also developed an unorthodox method of taking penalties – by running the full length of the pitch from his full-back position before kicking the ball.[7] However, this method of penalty-taking was not a success, never actually converting any of the penalties he took in his year with the "Saints".[5]
During his one season atThe Dell, Benson missed several long periods through injury, when he was replaced by the veteranSamuel Meston, and made 19Southern League appearances, plus three in theFA Cup,[6] before a summer 1905 transfer took him back to theFootball League First Division for a fee of £150,[5] when he joinedSheffield United.
Benson had arrived atBramall Lane relatively cheaply, withSouthampton mistakenly believing thatNewcastle had retained his registration and thus were due an additional fee from the Blades.[8] He spent eight seasons atBramall Lane, cementing himself in the defence where he developed into a strong tackler and was commanding in the air.[8] He became the team's regularpenalty taker, perfecting a routine whereby he would jog slowly up from his normal defensive position before breaking into a run and shooting after a teammate had placed the ball on the spot[8] – all but one of his 21 goals scored for United coming from the penalty spot.[2]
Benson took over the captaincy fromBernard Wilkinson but soon relinquished it toJack English when he lost his place in the first team through injury, following which he requested a transfer.[8] During his time with Sheffield United, the club generally finished in mid-table, with their highest finish being fourth in1906–07. He played 283 matches for Sheffield United in all competitions, scoring 21 goals, including 20 penalties.
In April 1913 Benson joinedWoolwich Arsenal, soon after they had made their move toHighbury. He made his debut againstBristol City on 29 November 1913, and over two seasons he made 53 appearances for the Gunners, mostly at full-back although he was later moved tocentre forward, and eventually scored seven goals for the club as they tried for promotion back into theFirst Division; Arsenal would eventually win re-election based on their position of fifth in1914–15 after the end ofWorld War I.
Due to the war, in 1915 first-class football was suspended. Benson quit the game to work at theRoyal Arsenal,Woolwich, munitions factory.[9] He kept in touch with his old club and on 19 February 1916 attended aLondon Combination match at Highbury againstReading. With his former teammateJoe Shaw unable to make the game, Benson volunteered to take his place, which ultimately had fatal consequences. Having not played a game for nearly a year, Benson was not match-fit. He collapsed on the pitch in the second half and had to be taken off; soon afterwards he died in the Highbury changing rooms, in the arms of team trainerGeorge Hardy.[10]
It was later determined he had died of a burstblood vessel, from a long-standing medical condition.[11][12] Benson was buried wearing his Arsenal shirt. Three months later, Arsenal held atestimonial match in his honour, against a Rest of London XI, with the proceeds going to his widow; over 5,000 attended to pay their respects.[10][13]
His form atSheffield United brought him to the notice ofthe Football Association and in 1910 he was a member of the FA touring party to South Africa,[14] as well as representing theFootball League on one occasion. He received his solitary cap forEngland on 15 February 1913 when he played at left-back againstIreland, when England lost 2–1, with both Irish goals coming from Benson's Sheffield United teammateBilly Gillespie.[15]
