Mills: Frederick (Fred)

1934-1939 (Player Details)

Wing Half

Born: Hanley: 17-08-1911

Debut: v Middlesbrough (h): 25-08-1934

5’8 1/2” 11st 4lb (1938)

Mills learnt his soccer at East Woodvale School in Hanley. He began work at a local pottery firm and played for Middleport, before joining Port Vale in the summer of 1932. He soon established himself in the first team and moved to Leeds in June 1934. With Vale he began as an Inside Right but was later converted to a Wing-half. He made seventy-three League appearances for Port Vale and scored twice. He also scored once in two F.A. Cup ties. Mills made a two goal League debut with Leeds as a Centre Forward, but was generally at Wing-half, with the occasional appearance at Right Back. Due to an injury crisisin the first game of the 1934-35 season Mills was forced into the role of centre-forward and he scored twice, but in the second game Leeds were routed 8-1 at Stoke City and Mills dropped back to replace Willis Edwards at right-half for the ensuing game against Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park in a 1-1 draw. He broke his leg playing for Leeds at Leicester City on 24th November 1934 and missed the balance of the 1934-35 and the entire 1935-36 season. He made a come-back at home to Everton in a 3-0 win on 17th October 1936 and after thirty-one League appearances in the rest of the 1936-37 season, he was in and out of the first team up to World War Two, when he retired. He served as a Gunner in the 6th Battalion of the King's Shropshire Light Infantry which was converted into the181st Regiment of the Royal Artillery in 1942. Known to his comrades as "Paddy" and was always a strong influence within the regimental football team. On 5th December 1944, after the fighting for Blerick in the Netherlands, the regiment was in convoy and halted in a taped route through a minefield. He lost his life when he jumped out of the lorry, and into the minefield. It was not clear whether he stepped on a mine, or the box he picked up was booby-trapped, but he was killed instantly. He was buried in Venray War Cemetery.