Harold Brittan

Harold Pemberton Brittan (11 November 1894 – 9 April 1964) was an American-English

The creation of the ASL led to the brief disestablishment of the Bethlehem Steel team. Edgar and W. Luther Lewis, owners of Bethlehem Steel, decided to move the team to Philadelphia where it would compete under the name Philadelphia Field Club. The reasons for this move remain unknown but some suspect the two brothers wanted to capitalize on the greater population of Philadelphia to provide a financial base for their team.^[5] As a result, Brittan played the 1921-1922 ASL season with Philadelphia. Using the core of the old Bethlehem Steel team, Philadelphia easily won the league title. Brittan also won the league scoring title with 24 (some reports say 27) goals in 17 games. This was despite sitting out seven games over a two-month period after injuring his leg in December 1921. The Lewis brothers' ploy to increase revenue by relocating their team to Philadelphia failed and they were forced to sell several players to cover the team's debts.

Fall River F.C.

In September 1922, Brittan signed with the

New Bedford Whalers

In August 1926, Fall River surprisingly released Brittan.

In the spring of 1927, Brittan decided to return to the field, this time back with Fall River F.C. While the 'Marksmen' finished third in the league, they won the 1927 National Challenge Cup, defeating Detroit Holley Carburetor F.C. by a score of 7–0. Brittan scored one goal in that victory.^[11] Brittan then played one last complete season with the 'Marksmen', scoring 16 goals in 28 games, giving him his team record 135 goals in 168 league games during two stints in Fall River.

Team owner

Brittan permanently retired after the 1927–28 season and devoted himself to his business interests. By 1931, the twin depredations of the

After retiring from soccer, Brittan was treasurer of the Fall River Motor Car Company. In January 1932, his employer reported him missing to the Fall River Police.[13] Following his disappearance, the company discovered it was in debt and declared bankruptcy.^[14] Brittan was later accused of stealing three cars from a Brookline, Massachusetts automobile firm and was a fugitive until his arrest in New York City on May 1, 1934.^[15] He made full restitution and on May 15, 1934, the charges against him were dismissed.^[16]

Honors

Brittan was inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 1951.^[17]

References

External links

• 1913-1914 Chelsea stats
• 1914-1915 Chelsea stats
• 1919-1920 Chelsea stats* "Bethlehem Steel profile". Archived from the original on 26 October 2009. Retrieved 11 October 2010.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
• "Photo". Archived from the original on 21 October 2009. Retrieved 11 October 2010.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
• National Soccer Hall of Fame profile