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ABE ROSENTHAL
Born: 12 October 1921
Came from: Went to:
First game: 10 February 1940 Last game: 10 February 1940
Appearances: 1 (1/0) Goals: 0
On Sunday 3rd September 1939, Britain declared war on Germany. Restrictions on travel and a ban on the assembly of crowds were immediately imposed, forcing the Football League to bring the 1939-40 season to an end. A few weeks later, seven regional competitions were introduced, including the South West Regional League. It was a time of great uncertainty for the players, with their wages reduced to a standard flat-rate allowance of 30 shillings a week (equivalent to £75 in 2011), and many found themselves unable to provide for their families. They were forced to find work elsewhere, and because employers were not always prepared to release them, League clubs across the country found it difficult to find a starting eleven for each match. As a result, clubs were permitted to use guest players, often amateurs in local leagues and sometimes professionals who, by then, had joined one of the Armed Services and were stationed in the area.
Rosenthal was one of six players who made no conventional Football League appearances for Argyle, but he did play one game for the first team in the South West Regional League, having had previous Football League experience. Born in Liverpool, the inside-left started his career as an amateur at Anfield but he did not break into the first team. In 1938 he moved to neighbours Tranmere Rovers, scoring nine goals in 30 games before the outbreak of war. He resumed his career when hostilities were over, signing for Bradford City in 1946, where he made 44 appearances and scored 11 goals. In 1948 he had a trial with Oldham Athletic but made no appearances. A year later he rejoined Tranmere Rovers, scoring a further 24 goals in 69 appearances, and in 1952 he re-signed for Bradford City for another second spell, this time playing 63 times and scoring 32 goals. In 1954 he began a third spell with Tranmere Rovers, adding another 21 appearances, before completing the symmetry with a third spell at Bradford City in 1955, where he played just one more game, the last of his League career.
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APPEARANCE DETAILS [reselect competitions]
The details below reflect appearances in all first-team competitions.
I'm very grateful to many who have helped write GoS-DB's player pen-pictures, and to Dave Rowntree, the PAFC Media Team and Colin Parsons for their help with photos. Thanks also to staff at the National Football Museum, the Scottish Football Museum and ScotlandsPeople for their valuable assistance.
The following publications have been particularly valuable in the research of pen-pictures: Plymouth Argyle, A Complete Record 1903-1989 (Brian Knight, ISBN 0-907969-40-2); Plymouth Argyle, 101 Golden Greats (Andy Riddle, ISBN 1-874287-47-3); Football League Players' Records 1888-1939 (Michael Joyce, ISBN 1-899468-67-6); Football League Players' Records 1946-1988 (Barry Hugman, ISBN 1-85443-020-3) and Plymouth Argyle Football Club Handbooks.
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