Bill Harper William " Bill " Harper ( 19 January 1897 – 12 April 1989 ) was a Scottish goalkeeper who played for , among others , Hibernian , Arsenal , Fall River Marksmen and Plymouth Argyle . He also represented Scotland in 11 full internationals . Early years . Harper was the son of William Harper Sr . , a blacksmith , and Christina Brown . Differing sources claim he was born in either Tarbrax , Lanarkshire or Winchburgh , West Lothian . He initially followed his father into the blacksmith trade while also playing football for several junior teams . During the First World War he enlisted in the British Army and served with the 5th Brigade of the Scots Guards on the Western Front . Harper , an all - round sportsman , was brigade heavyweight boxing champion and captain of the Guards rugby union team when they won a brigade championship . Club career . Hibernian . Harper made his Scottish Football League debut for Hibernian against Airdrie on 1 September 1920 . He spent five years at Easter Road , making over 200 appearances . He also played in two consecutive Scottish Cup Final s , in 1923 and 1924 , but finished on the losing side on both occasions . While with Hibs he also won nine of his 11 Scotland caps and represented the Scottish League XI on two occasions . Arsenal . In November 1925 Harper became one of Arsenal manager Herbert Chapman ' s first signings , joining the club for £4 , 000 , then a record fee for a goalkeeper . He made his Arsenal debut against Bury on 14 November 1925 , which Arsenal won 6 - 1 . Harper became Arsenal ' s first - choice keeper straight away , displacing Jock Robson and young Welshman Dan Lewis . Harper finished 1925 - 26 and started 1926 - 27 as Arsenal ' s first choice keeper , but Chapman blamed Harper for a 4 - 2 defeat in a North London derby against Tottenham Hotspur on 18 December 1926 and ruthlessly dropped him in favour of Dan Lewis . After three years playing in the American Soccer League , Harper rejoined Arsenal . Dan Lewis had by now left the club , and Harper became first choice over Charlie Preedy and Gerard Keizer . In his first season back at Arsenal , Harper won an English First Division winners ' medal , as the club won their first ever league title in 1931 . However during the 1931 - 32 season Harper was dropped once again . He made his final senior league appearance for Arsenal away to Blackburn Rovers on 31 August 1931 . During his two spells with Arsenal , Harper made 63 league appearances and 10 further appearances in the FA Cup . American Soccer League . In between his two spells with Arsenal , Harper played in the American Soccer League . Between 1927 and 1929 he made 79 league appearances for Fall River Marksmen . He also played a further 3 games in the National Challenge Cup and 6 in the Lewis Cup and helped the Marksmen win the league title during the 1928 - 29 season . Harper ’ s time in the ASL coincided with both the Great Depression and the " Soccer Wars " , a power struggle between the ASL and the US Football Association . During this era many clubs relocated , merged or folded . Towards the end of the 1928 - 29 season Sam Mark , owner of the Marksmen , took over the struggling Boston Soccer Club and Harper then switched from the Marksmen to the Boston team . By the time the Fall 1929 season started they had become the Boston Bears . When the " Soccer Wars " were resolved , new league rules forbid the ownership of two or more clubs and Mark ’ s decided to sell Boston . However unable to find a buyer , he was forced to dissolve the team after just 4 games of the Spring 1930 season . Harper then joined New Bedford Whalers for the remainder of the season , making 31 league appearances . He also made a further 4 cup appearances , two in the National Challenge Cup and two in the Lewis Cup . During the summer of 1930 Harper rejoined Fall River Marksmen and played in friendlies against Rangers and Kilmarnock and was a member of the Marksmen squad that toured Central Europe . Plymouth Argyle . In December 1931 Harper signed for Plymouth Argyle and went onto make 82 appearances in all competitions between then and 1939 . During the Second World War he worked in the dockyards in Rosyth , Scotland . After the war he returned to Argyle where he served as a trainer , groundsman and even laundryman . Such was his contribution to the club that he was awarded a testimonial match against Arsenal in October 1972 . Plymouth ' s training ground , Harper ' s Park , is also named after him . Scottish international . Between 1923 and 1926 Harper made 11 appearances for Scotland . He won his first nine caps while playing for Hibernian and his last two while with Arsenal . Harper made his international debut on 3 March 1923 in a 1 - 0 win against Ireland at Windsor Park . He subsequently played in all three games of the 1923 , 1924 and 1925 British Home Championship s and played in two of the three games in the 1926 competition . He made four appearances against Ireland , four against England and three against Wales . His record with Scotland included eight wins , two draws and just one defeat . With Harper in goal , Scotland also won the British Home Championship in 1923 , 1925 and 1926 and finished as runners up in 1924 . He made his last international appearance on 17 April 1926 in 1 - 0 win against England at Old Trafford . Honours . Scotland Hibernian Arsenal Fall River Marksmen