 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Enoch James West | ||
| Date of birth | (1886-03-31)31 March 1886 | ||
| Place of birth | Hucknall Torkard, England | ||
| Date of death | 1965 (aged 78–79) | ||
| Height | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)[1] | ||
| Position(s) | Centre-forward | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1903–1905 | Sheffield United | 0 | (0) |
| 1905–1910 | Nottingham Forest | 168 | (94) |
| 1910–1915 | Manchester United | 166 | (72) |
| Total | 334 | (166) | |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Enoch James West (31 March 1886 – September 1965), nicknamed Knocker, was an Englishfootballer who played as acentre forward forNottingham Forest andManchester United before being banned due to his part in the1915 British football match-fixing scandal.
West was born inHucknall Torkard inNottinghamshire. He started his career forSheffield United but failed to break into the first team.
He transferred in 1905 for a fee of£5 to Nottingham Forest and made his debut on 16 September 1905 in the 3–2 victory at home toBury.[2]
West scored 14 league goals in his first season (1905/06) as Forest were relegated to the Second Division on goal difference.[2] In his second season (1906/07) Forest finished top of the Second Division partly due to West's 14 league goals.[2]
He top scored in 1907/08 (29 league goals) and 1908/09 (22 league goals) outscoringGrenville Morris.[2][3]
In the 1907/08 season he scored four First Divisionhat-tricks including all four goals in the game againstSunderland on 9 November 1907. The other hat-tricks were againstChelsea,Blackburn Rovers andEverton.[2]
On 13 March 1909 West became the first ever player to be sent off for Nottingham Forest while playing against Derby County in the FA Cup 4th Round by referee T. Kirkham.[2]
He scored a hat-trick againstLeicester Fosse on 21 April 1909 in Forest's record league win, a 12–0 victory (Alf Spouncer and Hooper also scored three whilst Grenville Morris scored two).[2]
West's last game for Nottingham Forest was on 30 April 1910 away to Bristol City.[2]
In 1910, he transferred to Manchester United. He helped the club win the 1911 league medal. He scored 80 goals in his Manchester United career, his most successful season being the1911–12 season when he scored a total of 23 goals; 17 in the league and six in theFA Cup, although United failed to win either of these competitions.[4]
In 1915, he was banned for life bythe Football Association, along with three other United players and fourLiverpool players after being found guilty ofmatch fixing. West protested his innocence, but his ban was not lifted until 1945. His suspension, which lasted 30 years, was the longest inFootball League history. As he was 59 by the time his ban was lifted, he was never involved in football again.[5]
West died in 1965, at the age of 79.
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Sheffield United | 1903–04 | First Division | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1904–05 | First Division | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Nottingham Forest[2][6] | 1905–06 | First Division | 35 | 14 | 4 | 3 | 39 | 17 |
| 1906–07 | Second Division | 33 | 14 | 2 | 0 | 35 | 14 | |
| 1907–08 | First Division | 36 | 29 | 1 | 0 | 37 | 29 | |
| 1908–09 | First Division | 33 | 22 | 4 | 3 | 37 | 25 | |
| 1909–10 | First Division | 31 | 16 | 4 | 2 | 35 | 18 | |
| Total | 168 | 94 | 15 | 8 | 183 | 102 | ||
| Manchester United.[7] | 1910–11 | First Division | 35 | 19 | 3 | 1 | 38 | 20 |
| 1911–12 | First Division | 32 | 17 | 6 | 6 | 38 | 23 | |
| 1913–13 | First Division | 36 | 21 | 4 | 1 | 40 | 22 | |
| 1913–14 | First Division | 30 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 31 | 6 | |
| 1914–15 | First Division | 33 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 34 | 9 | |
| Total | 166 | 72 | 15 | 8 | 181 | 80 | ||
| Career total | 334 | 166 | 30 | 16 | 364 | 182 | ||