Football's Pioneers: Charles Burgess Fry
In 1976 Lawrie McMenemy’s Southampton won the FA Cup, memorably defeating Manchester United 1-0. It is the Saints only victory in the competition and was their first showpiece appearance since 1902, when they lost after a replay to Sheffield United.
In that Southampton team was Charles Burgess (C.B.) Fry (1872-1956), arguably England’s greatest-ever sporting all-rounder.
A member of the amateur elite, Fry initially developed his athletic talents at Repton School. In 1891, he went to Oxford University, where he won blues for cricket, football and athletics. Two years later, he equalled the world long jump record with a leap of 23 feet and 6½ inches (7.18 metres).
Fry was primarily an outstanding batsman for Sussex in cricket’s County Championship. Between 1892 and 1922, he scored over 30,000 first-class runs at an average of 50.22. He played 26 times for England and even captained the team in 1912, but surprisingly he suffered from nerves during tests.
Fry’s footballing prowess earned him an invitation to play for elite amateur side, the Corinthians, and he represented England twice; first, in 1891 against Canada and then against Ireland in 1901. At 5ft 10in, Fry was relatively tall for his time and played at full-back.
He had reputation for firm tackling, and he made good use of his natural speed.
Despite an aversion to professionalism, in 1900 he agreed to play for Southampton as an amateur. Southampton was then a Southern League powerhouse, winning the championship on six occasions between 1897 and 1904.
The Dell was the nearest ground to his home and Fry had also been keen to improve his game in order to play for England again. In particular, he wanted to improve his heading ability, which was a common criticism of amateur players.
He won a Southern League championship medal in 1901 but, in reality, rarely played league games; only 16 between 1900 and 1902. However, he was a regular during the Saints’ exciting cup run the following season, which saw them first knock-out holders Spurs and reigning Football League champions, Liverpool.
In the quarter-final, Southampton – luckily – avenged their 1900 4-0 cup final defeat against Bury before disposing of Nottingham Forest 3-1 in the semi-final with Fry one of the game’s outstanding players.
After defeat in the final, Fry’s footballing career came to an abrupt end. In 1903, he briefly played for Portsmouth before an injury forced his early retirement. He continued to live a full and varied life. Initially, Fry mainly concentrated on cricket and sports journalism, a field in which he was a pioneer.
He also gained a reputation as an eccentric. Fry was also politically active and, on three occasions, he unsuccessfully stood for Parliament as a Liberal.