Page 148 - Mind, Body & Spirit Number 104 2020/21

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Jimmy Hagan APTC, Sheffield United and England
courses at the Army School of Physical Training, affectionately known as the ‘Muscle Factory.’ Embarrassingly, and against Army Regulations, the over eager Rous had promised PT recruits would be given the rank of Sergeant Instructor. Joe Mercer was one player encouraged to enlist with the promise that the rank of Sergeant Instructor would be bestowed immediately. He was in the first batch of instructors and when it was discovered that three stripes would not be automatic Mercer stated that they all mutinied and refused to obey orders. After an urgent message to Stanley Rous at the FA, a swift compromise was reached by awarding successful physical training instructors the rank of Temporary Sergeant with the FA paying for the privilege.
With the required standard being so high not all candidates were able to pass the course. The APTS programme featured strict medical examination from six doctors and routine began at 6.30am with marching, drill, gym exercises, boxing, wrestling and swimming, all carried out at the double, ending at 5.30pm with lectures and written work to follow. Many footballers quickly established themselves as the backbone of physical training in the Armed Forces. Some of the household football names in these intakes were Joe Mercer; Matt Busby; Don Welsh; Tommy Lawton; Cliff Britton; Billy Wright; Billy Cook; Archie Macauley; Wilf Copping; Arthur Cunliffe; Frank Westlake; Bert Sproston; Eric Stephenson; Andy Beattie; Jimmy Hagan; Maurice Edelston; Gil Merrick; Frank Swift; Dennis Compton; George Smith; Tom Holley; Walley Barnes and George Wardle; all who became Army Physical Training Instructors at Aldershot.
Matt Busby played a total of 351 games for Liverpool and Manchester United but the war brought an end to his playing career. He transferred from the Kings Regiment to the Army Physical Training Corp where he was team coach to the APTC and Army teams. He also played as a guest for several clubs during the war and represented Scotland in numerous unofficial wartime games. After the war he used the coaching expertise he gained
Bert Sproston APTC and Leeds United
in the APTC to ultimately become the highly successful manager of Manchester United. Like many others, Joe Mercer missed out on many international caps during the war years, managing just 5 England appearances. However he played in 27 wartime internationals, many of them as captain and reached the rank of Sergeant Major in the APTC. Whilst serving in the APTC during the war, Don Welsh guested for both Charlton Athletic scoring 100 goals in 119 games and for Liverpool scoring 43 goals in 40 games. He also led Charlton to two War Cup Finals, losing 7-1 to Arsenal in 1943 and then beating Chelsea 3-1 in 1944 in front of 85,000 fans. He also represented England 9 times in the unofficial wartime games, scoring 12 goals.
Manchester City goalkeeper Frank Swift had initially joined the police reserve unit but after causing absolute chaos whilst on traffic control duty one day, realised that he was much better suited to physical training instruction with the APTC. Billy Wright joined the Army and became a Physical Training Instructor but did not see any action during the war. He continued to play for his club Wolves in the War League making over 100 appearances in wartime football. Tommy Lawton was a prolific goalscorer and continued to play for Everton and England during the war and his status as an England international saw him recruited directly into the APTC where he also played for the Army and Command teams. On Christmas Day 1940, Lawton played for Everton against Liverpool in the morning losing 3-1 and again the same afternoon scoring both goals for Tranmere in a 2-2 draw with Crewe. Maurice Edelston played for Fulham, Brentford and Reading and in addition to winning 5 wartime caps for England he also represented Great Britain at football in the 1936 Olympic Games. Sheffield United’s Jimmy Hagan, exhibited magical ball skills and was often described as the complete footballer. Amazingly he won only one official England cap, though he was picked for England in 16 wartime internationals. His early playing years were interrupted by the war where he enlisted into the APTC in Aldershot and went on to guest in a ludicrously strong Aldershot FC side containing