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Sam Hardy
One of the safest pair of hands in the history of English football, Liverpool goalkeeper Sam Hardy was capped 21 times for England in a fourteen year international career. Sam Hardy was born at Back Lane, Newbold, in Derbyshire, on 26 August 1882, the youngest son of Thomas Hardy, a coalminer, and his wife, Hannah Fidler. He went to the Newbold church school and became an enthusiastic footballer, so much so that he left his first job in a Chesterfield drapery store because it did not allow him Saturday afternoons off. He played centre forward at first and only went into goal when the first-choice goalkeeper failed to turn up. While playing for Newbold White Star he caught the attention of Chesterfield of the second division, who signed him in April 1903 at a wage of 5s. a week. When Liverpool won the second division title in 1904–5 they scored six goals against Chesterfield but were so impressed by Hardy that they paid £500 for his transfer. He made thirty appearances in the side as Liverpool won the First Division title the following year.
Hardy's international career began in 1907 and, although it was interrupted by
the war, included twenty-one appearances for England between 1907 and 1920; he
also played in the three ‘victory’ internationals in 1919–20. With Bob
Crompton and J. Pennington he formed a celebrated defence, and in 1908–9
England defeated Ireland, Scotland, and Wales without conceding a goal, with
Hardy saving a penalty against the Scots. This feat had not been accomplished
before and was not repeated until 1982. |
