Guest post by Nigel Kahn
This weekend we remember those that gave their lives during service to their country and with the 100th anniversary of the start of World War 1 the country is looking to remember those the fell in that horrific War. I visited the Poppy display at the tower of London last weekend and the scale of Death that this country suffered is laid bare, like a river of blood of those that died the display winds it way the whole the way round the tower, over 800,000 poppies, one for every soldier that died. Here today I would like to highlight the plight of seven men, all in a way associated with West Ham either by playing for the club or by being born in the area, we all owe these and the others a great debt for the life they gave.
Frederick Costello (Known as Frank)
Born in 1884 in the city of Birmingham, he is listed as playing for West Bromwich and Halesowen before joining Southampton in 1907. He joined the Hammers in 1909 and didn’t stay long, in just 12 games in which he scored 3 goals. His listing in West Ham Who’s who starts with “a poor mans Ian Rush” he quickly moved on to Bolton. In 1914 he was living back in Southampton but joined his hometowns regiment the Royal Warwickshire. A member of the 2nd Battalion they were one of the 1st regiments to see action in Northern France at the Battles of Le Cateau. Moving south and east towards Belgium they also partook in the Battles of Marne and Aisne and for Frank finally to Messines, not far from Ypres in Belgium. Sometime on the 19/12/1914, 30 year old Frank was killed, he sadly has no grave but is remembered on the Ploegstreet memorial, in Hainaut Belgium, between Lille and Ypres to its North. Just to give you the scale of the memorial, it lists 11,386 men who have no grave.
Sydney Hammond
Born in Woolwich in 1883, Joined the club as an amateur in 1904 but in 4 years only managed 32 appearances for the club. Worked as a commercial Clerk and lived in Twickenham road Leytonstone he enlisted into the Royal field Artillery in Romford. When he died he was listed as being in C battery 242nd brigade who at the time were fighting in the Pashendale region. Sydney has a grave and is buried in La Clytte cemetery Belgium.
Edward Arthur James Stallard
Born Sept 1892 in Hackney yet in 1901 he was living with his family At 526 Barking Road E13, which is now a chemist heading towards Canning Town just past the old Castle pub at the junction of the Greengate. He joined West Ham from Chatham In 1913, He played for the Hammers right up until the end of the 1916/17 season playing in the War competition he played 37 games scoring 25 goals with his last appearance being a 2-0 loss to Millwall in April 1917. Then 1917 he was in the London Regiment (London Scottish) 14th Battalion. During the battle of Cambrai (North East France) which was an assault that lasted 17 Days, (20/11-7/12) The British made early gains but the Germans launched an offensive on the 28/11, on the 30th the Germans are believed to have exploded 16,000 shells over allied lines. And it was on that day that Edward Stallard is listed as dying. He has no Grave but is listed on the Cambrai memorial.
William Kennedy
Born in Grays in 1890 was a schoolteacher who played for West Ham between 1910-1912. Living in Cromwell st in Gray sat the time he played for the club. It is listed that he retired in 1912 but can find no reason.His parents were Scottish and so it was he joined the London regiment and also in the London Scottish 14th Brigade, he though was to die on the 13/10/1915.Like many others he has no Grave but is listed on the Loos memorial.That memorial commemorates over 20,000 dead that have no grave and on the panel that names William, above his is the name of his brother as well, John aged 29.
Frederick John Griffiths
Born 1876 in Presteigne in the county of Powys mid Wales, a welsh international keeper he played 52 times for us in just 2 seasons 1902-04. Not only West Ham but he also played for Millwall and for Spurs before joining us New Brompton the forerunner of Gillingham in 1904. Working as a coal miner in the midlands he enlisted in the Notts and Derbyshire (Sherwood forest) Regiment. His battalion found themselves just across the Belgium Border south and East of Dunkirk; a diary entry from the 30th of October reads “30: 4am. Very heavy artillery fire on ground immediately behind our front line. 6am Our snipers hit several enemy seen running about in the wood east of
Marechal House. Our casualties today 1 officer and 4 or killed, 1 officer and 14 or wounded.One of those killed was Fred Griffiths. He is buried in Dozingham Cemetery in Belgium
Frank Cannon
Born this very day in Hitchin in Hertfordshire in 1886, Frank was signed in 1909 from QPR after scoring a hatrick against us in 1908. He only played 4 games for us scoring 1 goal against Norwich City in a 5-2 win. Leaving the hammers he joined Gillingham but moved on from there to finish at Halifax.He rose to be a Colour sergeant major in the 11th Essex Regiment he fought mainly around Ypres and the battlefields of Passhendale. He died on the 15/2/1917 of shrapnel wounds. After his death this appeared in his local newspaper written by QM Sergeant L.P Martin, “The 13th Essex had been in the trenches for sixteen days and were just about to be relieved, ‘He was just ready to leave the trench when several shrapnel shells burst over him, wounding him and several others. Although his wound was rather serious – he was wounded in the back – it was quite thought he would get to England and recover, but I am sorry to say he died on his way to the dressing station about an hour after he was hit.’ On the day of his death the Germans fired over 16,000 shells The 13th Essex was the West Ham Pals, remembered with a plaque at the ground.
Lastly but no way least
Frederick Anderson
born in West Ham in 1896, living just off the Hermit Road, in Canning Town, near the site of where the Thames Ironworks once played. Its not known when or where he joined up but in 1917 he too was to be found in the Royal field artillery in A Battery 159th Brigade a Howitzer Division. Fighting around Ypres he was wounded and not long after on the 3/11/1917 he died of his Wounds and is buried with 299 of his comrades in Solferino Cemetery. Married for only 2 years on hearing the news of his death his widow collapsed and then lost the child she was carrying. An unlisted victim of the not so Great War. His widow re-married and one of her grandchildren was my mother in law who entrusted Fredericks Medals to my wife’s safe keeping and we have them framed with a picture of him. We have our legends and Heroes’ at West Ham but I hope in this article I have given you an insight into 3 real heroes, all linked to West Ham and all gave their ultimate Sacrifice so we can be here today.
Forever in a foreign field, there will always be a part of West Ham.