Oh, Brothers!
It’s not unknown for three brothers to play in the same team but we believe a unique event in English football occurred recently when three Holsgrove brothers all scored in Windsor & Eton’s 3-3 draw with Heybridge Swifts in a Ryman League Premier Division game on Saturday 8 January.It’s not unknown for three brothers to play in the same team but we believe a unique event in English football occurred recently when three Holsgrove brothers all scored in Windsor & Eton’s 3-3 draw with Heybridge Swifts in a Ryman League Premier Division game on Saturday 8 January.
Big brother Paul - the 35 year-old former Reading centre-back who is currently assisting manager Dave Carroll - levelled an early Swifts goal after 8 minutes. An exciting start continued with the visitors soon regaining the lead at Stag Meadow before youngest brother Peter - a 22 year-old former Wycombe Wanderers midfielder - made it 2-2 after only 44 minutes.
In only his second appearance for the Royalists, 25 year-old Lee - another ex-Wycombe midfield man - put W&E ahead after 66 minutes but the boys’ perfect afternoon was dashed by a late Heybridge equaliser.
It’s not the first time the three lads have lined up together as they were all at Hayes last season. They come from a true footballing family as their father - John Holsgrove - will be remembered by many as a fine centre-half at Wolverhampton Wanderers and Sheffield Wednesday.
We are aware that examples of three brothers in the same team date back as far as November 1878 when Notts County’s Harold, Ernest and Richard Greenhalgh faced Nottingham Forest in a FA Cup tie. Others since then include Andy, George and Tom ‘Boy’ Browell (at Hull City in 1910-11), Sam, James and Jack Tonner (at Clapton Orient in 1919-20) and, more recently, Danny, Rodney and Ray Wallace (at Southampton in 1988-89). But have three brothers scored in the same game before?
The Slough Express’ Windsor & Eton reporter Ian Lucas believes it’s extremely rare, but is it unique?
If you think it has happened before, we’d be delighted and grateful to hear from you. Please forward the details to mark@11v11.com