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Ebenezer Cobb Morley

Ebenezer Cobb Morley (16 August 1831 – 20 November

1924) was an English sportsman and is regarded as the

father of the Football Association and modern football.

Morley was born at 10 Garden Square, Princess Street in

Hull and lived in the city until he was 22. He moved to

Barnes in 1858 forming the Barnes Club, a founding

member of the FA, in 1862. In 1863, as captain of the

Mortlake-based club, he wrote to Bell's Life newspaper

proposing a governing body for the sport. This led to the

first meeting at the Freemasons' Tavern,that created the

FA. He was the FA's first secretary (1863–1866) and its

second president (1867–1874) and drafted the first Laws

of the Game at his home in Barnes. As a player, he

played in the first ever match under FA rules, against

Richmond in 1863, and scored in the first representative

match, between the clubs of London and Sheffield on 31

March 1866.

A solicitor by profession, Morley was a keen oarsman,

founding the Barnes and Mortlake Regatta for which he

was also secretary .He served on Surrey County Council

for Barnes and was a Justice of the Peace. Morley is

buried in Barnes Cemetery, a now abandoned graveyard

on Barnes Common, Barnes.

(SOURCE: WIKIPEDIA)

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