When Horace Colclough stepped out for his England debut in 1914, he could not know that war was just months away. Marking the pinnacle of his career with every footballer’s dream, he also couldn’t know that he’d never play again due to the following years.
The name Horace Colclough may not be a household one, but for Crystal Palace Football Club, it is historic.
Colclough, a full-back, played for just five years, however in that time became Palace’s first England international and made club history.
Beginning his career in 1910, Colclough’s international bow came on March 16th, 1914, a little over four months from the start of the First World War.