Would you buy quack medicine off this Rams legend? Yes, please!
No More Heroes: Steve Bloomer
When the footballing enclave of Derby Cricket Club quit their Racecourse home for the Baseball ground in 1895, their greatest player was already in residence: not only was Steve Bloomer a goalscoring legend for Derby, Middlesbrough and England, he also played second base in the Derby baseball team that won the National Association Challenge Cup three times.
‘The Destroying Angel’ was football’s first superstar, endorsing 'Bloomer's Lucky Striker' boots and the deadly sounding 'Phosferine Tonic'. This postcard dates back to 1905, and is captioned ‘Steve Bloomer England's Greatest International Football Player & Record Cap Holder’. If you thought the inside-right’s 394 League and Cup goals in 655 games were nifty, how about 28 goals in 23 international matches…
Bloomer went to Germany to coach in 1914 and was interned throughout WWI (setting up a league starring the five football internationals among the 4,500 inmates), going on prove a visionary influence on Spanish football before ending up as Rams assistant groundsman!
The County anthem 'Steve Bloomer's Watching' is played before every home game to this day.
Steve Bloomer’s watching / Helping them fight / Guiding our heroes / In the black and the white…
With thanks to Andy Ellis for sending in the suspiciously uplifting Tonic. What a smashing stocking filler his 'Relics of the Rams' book would make for any discerning Derby fan...
Blog Tags: Pre-WWI, Derby, England, Middlesbrough, Cards, Your Submissions
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