[Ska'dForLife-WBA]

In memory of Sergeant Frederick William Fisher, RAF 166 Squadron, service number 1896156, forward for Barnsley, Chesterfield and Millwall.  A Barnsley lad, Sergeant Fisher was a stalwart for his hometown club during the mid-1930s, netting 16 times for them.  A move to Chesterfield in 1938 wasn't so successful, and he transferred to Millwall early in the 1938-39 season, regaining a little form thereafter.  Capped once by England's wartime national team for the 4-1 victory over Wales at the City Ground in April 1941, he spent most of the war as an air gunner in the RAF.  At 9.25pm on 25th July 1944, Fisher's Lancaster bomber took off from RAF Kirmington in Lincolnshire with a fleet of 550 planes for a bombing raid on Stuttgart.  German early warning radars followed the incoming bombers from the moment they entered France, and Luftwaffe fighters based at Paris intercepted the first Lancasters over Orleans.  At 12.41am on 26th July, Sergeant Fisher's bomber was shot down by a Junkers Ju-88 commanded by Oberleutnant Herbert Schulte zur Surlage, who was then hit by return fire from Fisher's plane and forced to bale out.  The Lancaster crashed near Taingy, killing the seven-man crew.  Fisher was 34, and is buried at Taingy Communal Cemetery.

In memory of Sergeant Alan Fowler, 4th Battalion Dorsetshire Regiment, service number 5733161, striker for Leeds United and Swindon Town.  A tricky dribbler and clinical finisher, "Foxie" Fowler was an England Schoolboy international who grew frustrated with a lack of opportunities at Leeds and moved to Swindon in 1934, scoring on his debut in a 3-1 win over QPR.  It was a sign of things to come: amongst his 102 goals for the Robins, he managed four in a cup match against Luton in September 1935, including a hat-trick in the first six minutes (a record that still stands as the fastest in Swindon's history), and scored their last two goals before the war in a 2-2 draw against Aldershot in September 1939.  Joining the Dorsetshires when hostilities commenced, he quickly proved himself as a PT instructor for frontline troops, and was awarded an official commendation in 1941 for saving the lives of three men after an accident in priming grenades.  After D-Day, the Wessex Division were thrust into the carnage of Normandy, arriving on 24th June 1944 as Operation Jupiter - the battle to liberate Caen - reached its fiercest phase.  At dawn on 10th July, the 4th Battalion Dorset were ordered to attack Hill 112; a stronghold southwest of the city that held the key to all of Caen and the surrounding countryside.  The assault was preceded by an artillery barrage and a bombing run by RAF Typhoons.  Tragically, four Typhoons that passed over the Dorsets that morning dropped two bombs in the middle of B Company, and Alan Fowler was among those killed by this friendly fire incident before the battle had even begun.  He remains the twelfth highest scorer in Swindon history, and there is a plaque dedicated to him in the North Stand at the County Ground.

In memory of Lieutenant Henry Goslin MC, 53rd Field Regiment Royal Artillery, service number 166334, centre-half for Bolton Wanderers.  Captain of Bolton when war broke out, "Harry" Goslin had spent his entire professional career at Burnden Park, after being signed as an amateur from Boots Athletic for £25 in 1930.  A 7-2 defeat against Liverpool was the first of 306 appearances Goslin for the Whites over the decade that followed, but there was never any doubt about the skipper's determination to fight in the impending war, as he stood in front of a microphone in the centre-circle at Burnden in 1939 and declared to the crowd that after the full-time whistle, he was taking the entire team down to the Territorial Army hall to sign up.  As good as their word, the whole Bolton Wanderers team were posted to the 53rd Field Regt of the Royal Artillery, and after intensive training in Northumberland, set sail for France to join the BEF in March 1940.  Goslin, now a sergeant, was with the regiment on the 10th of May when the first reports came through radios in the cafes and estaminets that Fort Eben-Emael had fallen and the blitzkrieg had begun.  Two months later the regiment was at Dunkirk, and Goslin was promoted to lieutenant for his conduct during the withdrawal and evacuation.  He was capped several times for England's wartime side upon returning to Britain, and after the North Africa campaign - in which the regiment fought at the defence of Alam-el-Halfa - he featured in a British Army side that triumphed 4-2 over the Polish Army.  On 14th December 1943, during the invasion of Italy, Lieutenant Goslin was killed by a German mortar at an observation point above the Sangro River crossing.  He was 34, and was posthumously awarded the Military Cross for his service.  The rest of the Bolton Wanderers team survived the war and continued to play football at its conclusion.

In memory of Sapper Sidney Frederick Gueran, 1 Parachute Squadron Royal Engineers, service number 1989425, inside-right for Arsenal, Margate and Southampton.  Mostly used as a reserve during his professional career, Sid Gueran had effectively retired from the game by the outbreak of war.  Enlisting in the Royal Engineers as a sapper, he served in North Africa and Italy before participating in Operation Market Garden.  On the second day of the Battle of Arnhem, while defending a school near the road bridge over the Rhine - the infamous "bridge too far" - Gueran's commanding officer ordered him to cover a vital area to the west, but found on turning round that Gueran had been shot through the mouth by a stray bullet, aged 27.  He is commemorated on the Groesbeek Memorial.

In memory of Private George Jordan, 7th Battalion Black Watch, service number 2759374, right-back for Partick Thistle, Kilbirnie Ladeside and Cowdenbeath.  Regarded as one of the finest fullbacks the latter club ever had, Jordan was renowned as a two-footed, ball-playing defender, and in summer 1938 attracted an offer of £8,000 from Arsenal which he rejected out of loyalty to Cowdenbeath, instead staying to guide the club to the Second Division title in 1938-39.  Joining the Black Watch during the war, he was killed on 8th July 1944 during the battle for northern Caen, aged 27; the same campaign that would claim the life of Alan Fowler two days later.