Albert Icks

Henry Irving

Thanks to a lead given to us by @kentred2 the museum have been researching another of our pre football league heroes.

Born on this day in 1898 Albert Icks was from Belgium.

He was a refugee from the 1914 invasion of his country by Germany and like thousands of his countrymen, Albert was housed in Abbey Wood which was called "Little Brussels" as a result. The area retains many reminders of this immigration to this day.

Icks was a goalkeeper and soon found a place in the Charlton side that had already seen many players leave for the Army, the Navy or long hours in munitions factories.

Fans loved his flamboyant goalkeeping style, dribbling the ball out of defence for example and his presence put 100s in the gate as locals and fellow refugees came to see him play. In the 1930s Sam Bartram was initially called "the new Icks"

But the committee, no manager then, resented his "fancy foreign ways" and demands for mayonnaise on his haddock and chips and dropped him.

This caused fan protests and chants of "Add Icks, Add Icks" which lead to our unique nickname.

We continue to research Albert's time after Charlton of which little is known.

Happy birthday Bert

DaveMehmet

Looks like a young @SE7toSG3 to me.

Lordflashheart

April 1st

BartramBlitz

Nice one Ben

Blackheathen

A derivation of Addicks which I haven’t heard before (happy to be taken in) 😀

blackpool72

Had me fooled for a minute. 
Very good.

Henry Irving

DaveMehmet said:

Looks like a young @SE7toSG3 to me.

Maybe Albert was sowing his wild oats.

And @SE7toSG3 does spend a lot of time in Belgium

Henry Irving

https://twitter.com/CliveHA23719823/status/1377523000686354435?s=19

thai malaysia addick

I am sure that my father told me he was known as "Icks between the sticks". After his untimely death, he was known as "the ghost between the posts". The ghost would regularly appear at the Covered End during games until it ceased to appear after 21 December 1957. Curiously, this was the date of the game 200,000 people attended between Charlton and Huddersfield Town which ended 7-6. Many believed there was some connection. The ghost has only appeared once since that date at The Covered End. This was as Nicky Bailey was running up to take a penalty in a play-off semi final.

Addick Addict

thai malaysia addick said:

I am sure that my father told me he was known as "Icks between the sticks". After his untimely death, he was known as "the ghost between the posts". The ghost would regularly appear at the Covered End during games until it ceased to appear after 21 December 1957. Curiously, this was the date of the game 200,000 people attended between Charlton and Huddersfield Town which ended 7-6. Many believed there was some connection. The ghost has only appeared once since that date at The Covered End. This was as Nicky Bailey was running up to take a penalty in a play-off semi final.

That's "Sick"!

SantaClaus

You spun that one very well sir. 

kentred2

Glad to see Icks is finally getting his recognition!!  I wrote a letter about him to the votv many years ago which they printed. 

soapy_jones

Roland Dutchelets illegitimate love child as well,  not a lot of people know that!

Dave Rudd

There's something not quite right here.

Isn't the Belgian spelling 'Ickx'?

Henry Irving

https://twitter.com/CHATHMuseum/status/1377612622665818121?s=20

Algarveaddick

Dave Rudd said:

There's something not quite right here.

Isn't the Belgian spelling 'Ickx'?

He spoke very little Englished when he arrived, so the immigration official just spelled it as he heard it. Albert just stuck with it as he found explaining the spelling all the time a bit tiresome.     

Dave Rudd

Algarveaddick said:

Dave Rudd said:

There's something not quite right here.

Isn't the Belgian spelling 'Ickx'?

He spoke very little Englished when he arrived, so the immigration official just spelled it as he heard it. Albert just stuck with it as he found explaining the spelling all the time a bit tiresome.     

Ah, yes.  Fair enough.

I can't believe that I didn't think of that.

I think the same applied to Albert Uytenbogaardt in the 1940s.  His real name was actually 'Smith', of course.