Biography
Centre half Danny Bew joined the Tigers in August 1922 and was thrust straight into the City first team – although 26 years of age, Bew’s City debut was the first senior appearance of his career due to the timing of World War One. As the season wore on Bew vied with Geordie Bob Scorer and Scotsman Jock McGee for the centre half position, managing three spells of first team action – four games at the start of the season, four games in late October and early November, four games around the turn of the year. When manager Percy Lewis resigned from his post in January 1923 and former Newcastle United back Bill McCracken took over the reins a month later, Bew was consigned to the Reserves and left the Tigers in the 1923 close season.
Daniel Crombie Bew was born and raised in the Hendon district of Sunderland (the same area that later gave football, and Hull City, Raich Carter) and was a prominent footballer in his early teens, playing for the Sunderland Boys team in 1910 that won the English Schoolboys Shield. He was also a member of the local Boys’ Life Brigade, rising to Lieutenant by 1912, while working as a telegraph messenger. In 1915 he joined the war effort, signing up for the Royal Engineers and serving as a Sapper in Egypt. When he returned to England on demobilisation in 1919 he began playing for Wearside League side Lambton Star and two years later he signed for Sunderland, initially as an amateur then in September 1921 as a professional. He was unable to progress any further than the Sunderland Reserves team and left the club in the 1922 close season.
In June 1923 Bew was transferred from Hull City to Swindon Town, a move that was to define his footballing career. He made his Robins’ debut in August 1923 and immediately became the Division Three South side’s first choice centre half. The first of Bew’s six goals for Swindon came in an April 1924 3-0 win over Southend United and for four seasons he missed only a handful of matches as the Robins consistently finished in the top six but were unable to push on a achieve promotion to Division Two. Swindon’s players were all semi-professional and Danny worked as a coal merchant as well as a footballer. After missing a large chunk of the 1927/28 season due to injury Bew’s presence in the first team waned and his other profession came to prominence – Bew retired from footbal in the 1930 close season having made 223 senior appearances for Swindon Town and focussed on his work as a coal merchant, alongside his charity work for Roman Catholic mens’ organisation the Knights of St Columba.
Bew remained living in Swindon for the rest of his life, dying at the age of 55 in October 1951.
Details
Nationality: England
Date/Place of Birth: 22 March 1896, Sunderland
Hull City First Game: 26 August 1922, Bury A (Division Two), 26 years, 157 days old
Hull City Final Game: 27 January 1923, Bradford City H (Division Two), 26 years, 311 days old
Clubs
Lambton Star (1919-1921), Sunderland (1921-1922), Hull City (1922-1923), Swindon Town (1923-1930)
Hull City Record
Career: 12 apps, 0 goals
Danny Bew| Season | LGE App | LGE Gls | FAC App | FAC Gls | FLC App | FLC Gls | EUR App | EUR Gls | OTH App | OTH Gls |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1922/23 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | - |