Dicky Bond

Richard Bond (14 December 1883 – 25 April 1955) was an English footballer who played outside right. He was capped eight times by England and spent the vast majority of his playing career at Bradford City where he played more than 300 games.

Club playing career

Preston North End Born in Garstang, England, Bond started his career with the Royal Artillery before he signed professional forms with Preston North End in August 1902. He was part of Preston's Division Two championship winning team in 1903–04. Two years later, he was a regular, as the club were The Football League runners-up. Bond represented City during the most successful spell in its history. But he missed out on the club's 1911 FA Cup triumph because he was suspended after using improper language at Woolwich Arsenal. He had scored two goals in three appearances earlier in the cup run.

In total he played 301 league games, scoring 60 goals, all in the top flight. He served with the Bradford Pals during the First World War before returning to City in 1919. He won a total of eight caps, scoring twice, both against Ireland in 1906.

Honours Preston North End

Football League Second Division: 1903–04

Personal life Bond's football career was interrupted by the First World War. He was serving as a sergeant in the Prince of Wales's Own (West Yorkshire Regiment) when he was taken prisoner-of-war in July 1916. He was repatriated on 18 November 1918 and more than two years after it had finished, he laid a commemorative wreath at the Cenotaph in London before Bradford City's game with Arsenal on 1 January 1921. After his retirement from football, Bond ran a fish and chip shop in Garstang and later became a publican.