Alf Bishop

Who was Alf Bishop?

Alfred Ernest "Alf" Bishop was an English footballer who played as an inside-forward in the 1920s and 1930s.

Bishop joined the RAF as a 16 year old cadet in 1919. He was originally spotted by scouts from Southampton in 1923 while playing representative football for the Royal Air Force and was given a trial, although he was not then offered a contract because of his RAF service commitments. After spending a year with St Albans City of the Isthmian League, he left the RAF and signed for Southampton in August 1926.

In the summer of 1926, the "Saints" manager Arthur Chadwick had signed several new players, including Dick Rowley and Sammy Taylor, both of whom could play in either of the inside-forward positions. After trying first Rowley and then Bishop at inside-left, Chadwick recalled Frank Matthews for three games in September, moving Bishop over to the right for a further three games, before Rowley returned at inside-right. The form of Rowley and Taylor prevented Bishop regaining his place in the first-team, and he spent the remainder of his Saints' career in the reserves, where he made 23 appearances before his contract was cancelled in January 1927.