Stanley Charles Machent (23 March 1921 – 17 December 2012) was an English professional footballer who played as an inside forward in the Football League for Sheffield United and Chesterfield and in non-League football for Buxton and Hereford United.[2][3][4][5][6]

Stan Machent
Personal information
Full name Stanley Charles Machent[1]
Date of birth (1921-03-23)23 March 1921[1]
Place of birth Chesterfield, England
Date of death 17 December 2012(2012-12-17) (aged 91)[2]
Place of death Brimington, England
Position(s) Inside Forward
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
0000–1938 Chesterfield Ramblers
1938–1947 Sheffield United 22 (2)
1939Buxton (loan)
1947–1949 Chesterfield 21 (7)
1949–1951 Buxton
1951 Hereford United
1951–1954 Buxton
Total 43 (9)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Career

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Born in Chesterfield, Derbyshire, Machent left school at the age of fourteen, and was an apprentice builder before he started his career with local side Chesterfield Ramblers.[4] His form for the club alerted Chesterfield and Sheffield United, with Chesterfield offering him professional terms in 1938.[4] However, Sheffield United later offered him a better offer and he signed for the Blades.[4] In October 1939 he was loaned to Buxton, making his debut against Ashton National in a 4–3 win.[7] His early career at the club was cut short due to World War II and he played as a guest player for Chesterfield during the war.[4] He remained with United for nine years, making 22 appearances and scoring twice.[6] In November 1947 he joined Football League Second Division side Chesterfield for £6,000 plus Dick Culshaw.[4] Injury restricted him to just 17 games in his first season for the club, as he twice suffered a broken arm.[4] In the fourth game of the 1948–49 season he suffered a knee injury which kept him out for the rest of the campaign.[4] He was transfer-listed in 1949 and later dropped into non-league football re-joining Cheshire League side Buxton.[4] Whilst at Buxton he was part of the side that reached the third round of the FA Cup in 1951–52, beating Aldershot in the process.[4] In his second season for Buxton he scored an impressive 26 goals in 19 league games.[3] In July 1951 he signed for ambitious Southern League club Hereford United.[3] He struggled to compete for a place in the first team, only making two appearances and he mainly featured for the reserves.[3] He spent three months with the Bulls but left in October 1951 due to travel commitments.[3] He later returned to Buxton where he spent another three seasons.[3] From 1954 he served as player-coach to Chesterfield's 'A' side that competed in the Yorkshire League, before the team disbanded at the end of the 1954–55 campaign.[4]

Personal life

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His older brother, Arthur Machent, also played for Chesterfield in the 1930s.[4] During World War II he served in the Royal Air Force as a radio and radar operator with RAF Coastal Command, later becoming a warrant officer with No. 120 Squadron RAF, serving in Canada, Northern Ireland and The Bahamas.[2] After retiring from football he ran a shop in Chesterfield with his wife Vera, and later worked for the National Coal Board, and also as a maintenance joiner for the Derbyshire Health Authority.[2] He died on 17 December 2012 in Brimington, Derbyshire at the age of 91.[2]

References

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  1. ^ a b Hugman, Barry J., ed. (2005). The PFA Premier & Football League Players' Records 1946–2005. Harpenden: Queen Anne Press. ISBN 978-1-85291-665-7.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Mr Stanley Machent : Obituary". Chesterfield Today. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
  3. ^ a b c d e f "Bulls News - profile". Bulls News. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Sky is Blue - Stan Machent". Sky is Blue. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
  5. ^ "CHESTERFIELD : 1946/47 - 2013/14". Neil Brown. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
  6. ^ a b "SHEFFIELD UNITED : 1946/47 - 2013/14". Neil Brown. Retrieved 21 January 2015.
  7. ^ "Tribute to one of Buxton's FA Cup heroes". Derbyshire Times. 27 December 2012. Retrieved 22 January 2015.