Jack Leslie

Jack Leslie already had a reputation when he signed for Plymouth Argyle in 1921 from Barking Town (now Barking FC) where he had been a prolific goal scorer who also represented Essex at county level and travelled with them to play in Paris. 

Argyle’s free-scoring play attracted national press attention and Jack’s record combined with the confidence and recommendation of Bob Jack, an Argyle playing and managing legend himself, was enough to get Jack Leslie the call-up for England. 

Jack’s selection for England began on the afternoon of Monday 5th October 1925 at White Hart Lane where, amongst the crowd were the 14 FA Committee members who had the task of selecting the FA Amateur team to play the RAF and the full England team to take on Ireland later that month.

The announcement made several papers. Publications including The Birmingham Gazette, The Northern Whig, The Western Daily Press and The Liverpool Echo who all listed an identical team with Leslie named as a travelling reserve, one of only 13 players selected for the England team. So, Jack Leslie was named in the England team, and the news attracted some comments, in the Western Daily Press.

Yet when the squad travelled to the Slieve Donard Hotel in Newcastle, County Down on Wednesday 21st October Jack was not with them. His place as travelling reserve had been taken by Stan Earle of West Ham United.

Jack was not injured or suspended. Indeed he played at Home Park on the day of the international, scoring twice as Plymouth hammered Bournemouth 7-2, while England laboured to a goalless draw in Belfast. The only logical conclusion was that Jack had been dropped because it had been discovered he was black.

The Herald took the matter up with the FA who denied that Jack had ever been chosen! The Herald then consulted the Press Association, who, if the FA was telling the truth, had misreported Jack’s  selection. The Press Association was adamant the FA had indeed announced Jack as a travelling reserve.

Jack was never named in an England squad again and he retired from professional football in 1935.  It was not until 1978 that Viv Anderson became the first black player to appear in an England shirt.

He later worked as a member of the backroom staff of his local club, West Ham United, as the boot-boy. He was offered the job by   West Ham manager, Ron Greenwood who recognised Leslie as a great player. During his time at West   Ham Leslie cleaned the boots of World Cup winners, Bobby Moore, Geoff Hurst and Martin Peters and of   England international Trevor Brooking and Clyde Best who at the time was one of only a very small number of black players in the top flight of English football.

Jack and his wife Lavinia lived their later years in Gravesend where Lavinia died on 10th April 1988 followed seven months later on 25th November by Jack at the age of 88.   Jack’s death certificate shows him not as an ex-professional footballer but rather a retired boilermaker. He   was a modest, unassuming man right up to the very end.