Player Profile

An inside-forward, Chapman played for Swindon in the Southern League around the turn of the century -his moderate career was notable only for the flamboyant yellow boots he wore. He biggest achievement as a player came in the 1905/1906 season, when he was Tottenham's top scorer in the Southern League with eleven goals.

As a manager, Chapman was one of the first visionaries of the game. He returned to Northampton as player-manager in 1907, and led them to the Southern League championship the following year. His main achievements were to follow after the war - leading Hudderfield to two consecutive league titles in 1924 and 1925, before leaving for Arsenal.

In 1924/1925, Arsenal had narrowly avoided relegation. After Chapman took over, they finished as runners-up the following year - to Huddersfield. This was the year the offside law was changed - the number of opponents necessary to keep a player onside was reduced from three to two, and Chapman changed his tactics accordingly, from the usual 2-3-5 formation, to a 3-3-4.

This was just one of many innovative moves made by Chapman - he tried to interest the League in playing floodlit matches, twenty years before the first floodlit games was played in England. He experimented with numbered shirts, years before they were introduced in 1939, and he advocated the use of white balls and all-weather pitches.

Chapman led Arsenal to FA Cup success in 1930, and league championships in 1931 and 1933. he died suddenly in January 1934 - having insisted, against doctor's advice, that he watch Arsenal's third team in a chilling wind at Guildford. Pneumonia set in, and he died three days later. Chapman's Arsenal team went on to greater success, winning the championship that season, and the season after.

Playing Record

Senior

Career details

Club	Details
Kiveton Park Kiveton Park	May 1896
Ashton North End Ashton North End	August 1896
Stalybridge Rovers Stalybridge Rovers	July 1897
Rochdale Rochdale	October 1897
Grimsby Town Grimsby Town	May 1898
Swindon Town Swindon	May 2nd, 1899
Sheppey United Sheppey United	November 18th, 1899
Worksop Town Worksop Town	October 1900
Northampton Town Northampton Town	July 1901
Sheffield United Sheffield United	May 1902 ; transferred out (May 1903)
Notts County Notts County	May 1903 (transferred in , £300 )
Northampton Town Northampton Town	May 1904
Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham	March 1905 (transferred in , £70 )
Northampton Town Northampton Town	April 1907 (appointed player-manager); resigned (June 1st, 1912)
Leeds City Leeds City	June 1st, 1912 (appointed manager); resigned (December 1918)
Huddersfield Town Huddersfield Town	rptd February 1st, 1921 (appointed assistant manager) March 31st, 1921 (appointed secretary-manager); resigned (June 10th, 1925)
Arsenal Arsenal	June 11th, 1925 (appointed manager); deceased (January 6th, 1934)