IT IS 100 YEARS SINCE EDGAR KAIL SCORED TWICE FOR ENGLAND AMATEURS AGAINST IRELAND AT MAIDSTONE...

This month marks the one hundredth anniversary of one of the many notable matches in Edgar Kail’s legendary career. On November 7th 1925 Kail scored two goals whilst representing the England Amateur team against Ireland. Played at London Road, Maidstone, the match was watched by around 7,000 spectators. It’s a match that still has plenty of tales to tell.

Edgar was just one of three Dulwich Hamlet men representing England that day, Bill Caesar and Walter Bellamy were the other two. The latter would soon sign for Tottenham Hotspur. But despite scoring twice in a 6-3 England win, Kail's achievements were overshadowed by two of the other England forwards that day.

Corinthian player Claude Ashton – who could play goalkeeper or centre forward but preferred wing-half – scored the other four England goals! Claude was one of four brothers who all played first class cricket. When three of the Ashton Bros. represented Cambridge University at football in 1920, the team were widely referred to as 'Ashton Villa'. Claude also represented Beckenham at hockey and even had an England trial at that sport. Tragically, he was killed in a mid-air collision in 1942 whilst serving in the Royal Air Force.

However, Claude in turn was overshadowed by Ireland's international debutant, the Linfield centre-forward Harry McCracken. He scored a hat-trick for the visitors early in the second-half... in just three minutes! Although this was to prove Harry's only appearance for the Irish national side, the feat secured

a move to Cardiff City. The switch didn’t work out, though he did later appear once in the Football League for south London club Charlton Athletic.

Kingstonian’s Frank Mancey also played that day. He would become well known to Dulwich Hamlet. A serving soldier for 15 years, he had spent most of World War One in captivity and would later captain Kingstonian’s famous 1933 FA Amateur Cup winning side. The first match against Stockton on the 8th April 1933 was here at Champion Hill and drew 22,000 spectators – a record attendance at the ground – and ended in a 1-1 draw. K's won the replay a fortnight later up in Darlington 4-1.

The England goalkeeper was Benjamin Howard Baker. Then associated with Chelsea and Corinthian, he had been British high jump champion or joint champion from 1910 until 1921 and had competed in the jump events at both the 1912 and 1920 Olympic Games. His Corinthian and, very occasional, Chelsea colleague Alfred ‘Baishe’ Bower was the England captain. In all he won five full England caps and is believed to be the only man to play top-flight football whilst being a member of the London Stock Exchange.

Another member of the Corinthian club was Kenneth ‘Jackie’ Hegan. A professional soldier, having attended Sandhurst, he featured for England on the wing and would win a total of four full international caps. He subsequently won the OBE for his services during the Second World War and retired as a Lieutenant Colonel.

Clapton’s Billy Bryant, was also playing for England. He won one full cap and spent time at the then Millwall Athletic having been born in Ghent, Belgium.

This article originally appeared in the Dulwich Hamlet Match Day Programme

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