Bastin, Clifford "Boy"

Late-deafened. Began playing soccer while in school, quickly becoming a champion player and being signed up at age 17 for the Arsenal team in 1929 at an annual salary of ú2000. He helped his team to many local and regional championships, being named one of the most brilliant footballers of modern times. He set a club record of 178 first team goals that stood for 50 years, finally being broken only in 1997. Deafness appeared around age 19 or 20, and he and a close colleague on the team devised a homemade sign language for use on the field. Pro football (soccer) was suspended during World War II and he was exempted from military service because of his deafness. Postwar, at age 34, he returned to league play for 6 games before a leg injury forced his retirement from soccer in 1947. He then ran the Horse and Groom pub at Exeter for 20 years before retiring entirely.