As communities across the UK fall silent today, to remember those that fell at the Battle of the Somme 100 years on, we look back at some of those brave soldiers who represented Sunderland AFC, as well as their King and country.
Roker Park favourites such as Charlie Buchan, Leigh Roose, Harry Low, Thomas Rowlandson, Bob Young, Albert Milton, and Bert Hobson all served in the Great War, along with many more.
Tragically, like so many soldiers, some of the Roker Park heroes never returned.
Albert Milton made 123 appearances for the Lads as a left back before enlisting in the British Army.
Albert, who had struggled with injury during the title-winning 1912-13 season, represented Sunderland for six years between 1908 and 1914. He joined the Royal Field Artillery as a bombardier, before being killed in action at Passchendaele on October 11, 1917.
Goalkeeper Leigh Richmond Roose was known for his antics both on and off the pitch because of his style and finesse. He was a trained doctor, and highly recognisable due to his Savile Row suits.
First-choice keeper for the Lads between 1908-1910, Roose became a renowned grenade thrower in the Royal Fusiliers as a private. He won a Military Medal for bravery while fighting at the Battle of the Somme, the first time he had seen action having been a medic prior.
On October 7, 1916, Roose was last seen in a bomb crater having run at the Germans with rifle in hand “at great speed” out of the trenches. His body was never found.
Fellow goalkeeper Thomas Rowlandson made 12 appearances for Sunderland during the 1905-06 season. Having given up his home to the Red Cross to act as an Auxiliary Home Hospital, Tom joined the Yorkshire Regiment, being made Temporary Captain in October 1915.
Sadly, Tom lost his life leading his men over a parapet of a trench, struck by a bomb. He was awarded the Military Cross for gallantry.
All-time top goalscorer Charlie Buchan returned from the Somme as Acting Lieutenant, and was awarded a Military Medal alongside teammate Bob Young for his bravery in Belgium.
Bob was sadly wounded, while Buchan returned to play for the club. Many of the reserves with so much promise were too stifled by sacrifices made to war.
Sammy Hartnell, a promising centre forward at the time, lost his life in August 1918, serving in the Royal Garrison Artillery. Jimmy Seed, who signed up to the Cyclist Corps with teammates Tony Thompson and Tom Wilson, came back to play for the club, albeit in vain.
Gassed in the last month of the war, he played just one more game for the club.
Winger Harry Low is a member of Sunderland’s elusive 200 club, making 203 league appearances in total. Having survived the war as an able seaman, he was wounded in action and retired from football in May 1919.
He then became a popular landlord in the area the following year but tragically died in May 1920, aged 38, having contracted pneumonia watching his beloved Sunderland at Roker Park.
All of us here at Sunderland AFC would like to take a moment to remember those that fell in World War I, and thank them for their wonderful service to our football club, and our nation.