Alfred John "Alf" Bishop (13 August 1884 – 14 November 1938) was an English footballer who spent fourteen out of eighteen seasons of his professional career at Wolverhampton Wanderers. Bishop was known to be quite the brutal footballer, never shirking a tackle or a contest for the ball, which caught up to him later in his career as he began to struggle with injuries. He never played above the Second Division and therefore never received international recognition in his senior career.
Bishop began playing competitive football at Stourbridge Standard, which is now known as Stourbridge F.C., before moving to Halesowen Town with the hopes of getting more game time. Securing a place in the starting eleven immediately, he began at right half-back. He only played two games in this position before being switched to the opposite side at left half-back where he played every game of the 1903-04 campaign. At the end of that season in April 1904, Bishop, at 19 years, was called up to play for Birmingham and District Juniors in an international game against Scotland Juniors. It was in this game where Alf was noticed by scouts from First Division side Aston Villa and signed for them later that same month.
Bishop struggled for game time at Aston Villa and was loaned back to Halesowen in 1905 for a brief period. After his loan spell, he returned to Aston Villa but did not appear in any games.
In 1906, Bishop joined Wolverhampton Wanderers and became a regular first-team player. In his second season at the club, he was part of the 1908 FA Cup winning side that beat First Division side Newcastle United. In doing so, he suffered a broken jaw however continued to play the entire game. Bishop became captain in 1911 after the retirement of Billy Wooldridge and continued to hold this position and continue it after World War I, making 382 appearances for the Wolves in total.
Bishop left Wolves in 1920 and joined Welsh side Wrexham for a brief period before returning to his boyhood club Stourbridge to play out the rest of his career. He retired from football in 1921.
Early life
Bishop was born to Alfred Bishop, father, and Minnie Bishop, mother, on 13 August 1884 in Stourbridge, England. He attended Wollaston Church of England School and begin playing football at a school level before, in his early teenage years, playing for his local side Stourbridge Standard.
Club career
Stourbridge F.C. and Halesowen Town
Bishop started his career for Stourbridge F.C. who, at the time, were playing in the Birmingham and District Football League. At 18 years of age, he struggled for game time in a side that was battling for promotion season after season. In the hopes of getting more game time, he decided to move to Halesowen Town who were also playing in the Birmingham and District Football League however were much lower down the table. Bishop made an immediate impact on the Yeltz and was given a starting position at the club at right half-back. He made his debut for Halesowen against Small Heath Reserves where they lost 2-1. Bishop only played one more game at right half-back before he was moved to left half-back for the remainder of the 1903-04 season. He made 27 appearances for the Yeltz in his first stint at the club. Bishop returned to Halesowen in 1905 on loan from Aston Villa and played 11 more games.
Aston Villa
Bishop's time at Aston Villa would be extremely forgettable in his career. He joined in 1904 but did not make many appearances for the club as it was going through one of its most successful eras under George Ramsay. Bishop was loaned back to his previous club Halesowen Town to receive more game time.