# Billy Fairhurst

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{{short description|English footballer (1902–1979)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2016}}
{{Use British English|date=June 2016}}
{{Infobox football biography
| name = Billy Fairhurst
| image = Billy Fairhurst with Middlesbrough FC.jpg
| caption = Billy in Middlesbrough kit c.1926-28
| fullname = William Shaw Fairhurst
| birth_date = {{birth date|1902|10|1|df=y}}
| birth_place = [Blyth](/source/Blyth%2C_Northumberland), England
| death_date = {{death date and age|1979|2|27|1902|10|1|df=y}}
| death_place = [Middlesbrough](/source/Middlesbrough), England
| height = {{height|ft=5|in=8+1/2}}
| position = [Left back](/source/Left_back)
| years1 = 1924–1925 | clubs1 = [Blyth Spartans](/source/Blyth_Spartans_A.F.C.) | caps1 = ? | goals1 = ?
| years2 = 1925–1928 | clubs2 = [Middlesbrough](/source/Middlesbrough_F.C.) | caps2 = 0 | goals2 = 0
| years3 = 1928–1929 | clubs3 = [Southport](/source/Southport_F.C.) | caps3 = 18 | goals3 = 0
| years4 = 1929–1932 | clubs4 = [Nelson](/source/Nelson_F.C.) | caps4 = 76 | goals4 = 0
| years5 = 1932–1933 | clubs5 = [Northampton Town](/source/Northampton_Town_F.C.) | caps5 = 13 | goals5 = 0
| years6 = 1933–1935 | clubs6 = [Hartlepools United](/source/Hartlepool_United_F.C.) | caps6 = 58 | goals6 = 0
| years7 = 1935–1936 | clubs7 = [Tranmere Rovers](/source/Tranmere_Rovers_F.C.) | caps7 = 0 | goals7 = 0
| totalcaps = 165 | totalgoals = 0
}}
'''William Shaw Fairhurst''' (1 October 1902 – 27 February 1979) was an English professional [footballer](/source/association_football) who played as a [left back](/source/left_back). He played over 150 matches in [the Football League](/source/the_Football_League). His brother, [David](/source/David_Fairhurst), played for [England](/source/England_national_football_team) and [Newcastle United](/source/Newcastle_United_F.C.).

==Playing career==
One of ten children of a former Blyth Spartans footballer (also William Shaw Fairhurst), William Shaw "Billy" Fairhurst was a sturdy left-back. He played in the [North Eastern League](/source/North_Eastern_League) during his three seasons with [Middlesbrough](/source/Middlesbrough_F.C.), before moving to [Southport](/source/Southport_F.C.), making his full league debut in 1928.

In 1929, he moved from Southport to play for [Nelson](/source/Nelson_F.C.). When Nelson dropped out of the League, he stayed on for a season in the [Lancashire Combination](/source/Lancashire_Combination) whilst working as a local dairyman. Nelson's manager, English, who signed him for Nelson, also signed him for [Northampton Town](/source/Northampton_Town_F.C.). His football career ended after a spell with [Hartlepools United](/source/Hartlepool_United_F.C.) owing to an ulcerated leg.

==Life after football==
Billy served in the [Durham Light Infantry](/source/Durham_Light_Infantry) during the war and was one of the first (liberators) into [Bergen-Belsen Concentration Camp](/source/Bergen-Belsen_concentration_camp).

After the war he settled with his wife, Mary (née Windross), in Middlesbrough. They had two children; Dorothy Mary and Eric William. Billy worked for many years at ICI (Billingham). He died of a heart attack, aged 76.

==References==
* {{cite book|first=Garth|last=Dykes|title=Nelson FC in the Football League|year=2009|page=34|publisher=SoccerData|location=Nottingham|isbn=978-1-905891-29-0}}
* {{cite book|first=Michael|last=Joyce|title=Football League Players' Records 1888–1939|year=2004|page=86|publisher=SoccerData|location=Nottingham|isbn=1-899468-67-6}}
*{{cite book | last=Wilde | first=Geoff | last2=Braham | first2=Michael | title=Sandgrounders : the complete league history of Southport Football Club. | publisher=Carnegie | date=1995 | isbn=1-874181-14-4 | oclc=650188009}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fairhurst, Bill}}
Category:1902 births
Category:1979 deaths
Category:Footballers from Blyth, Northumberland
Category:English men's footballers
Category:Men's association football defenders
Category:Blyth Spartans A.F.C. players
Category:Middlesbrough F.C. players
Category:Southport F.C. players
Category:Nelson F.C. players
Category:Northampton Town F.C. players
Category:Hartlepool United F.C. players
Category:Tranmere Rovers F.C. players
Category:English Football League players
Category:20th-century English sportsmen

{{England-footy-defender-1900s-stub}}

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Billy Fairhurst](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billy_Fairhurst) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billy_Fairhurst?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.