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Nicked from the offish
All at West Ham United were saddened to hear of the passing of former Hammer Derrick Parker at the age of 83 following a short illness.
Parker - whose name is spelled 'Derek' in the official record books - was signed by Ted Fenton from Grays Athletic at the age of 18 in October 1944. Originally an inside forward, he later moved to half-back.
Born in Wivenhoe, Parker was one of the many youngsters brought to the club by Fenton, who believed 'the only way to build the club was youth' and later signed the likes of John Bond, Ken Brown and Malcolm Allison.
Parker played alongside Allison in the 1950s and was, as such, part of the side that saw West Ham become known universally as 'The Academy of Football', putting into practice a new way of thinking on and off the pitch.
Son Neil expressed the Parker family's thanks for the kindness shown to his father over the years by both the club and fans alike.
"We are very proud to say that, despite it being 50 years since he played for the club, West Ham United was Derrick's lifelong passion and forever in his heart," said Neil.
Former Hammer Alan Stephenson had recently visited him and spoke of "how pleased and proud" Parker was to share stories of his playing days at the club.
Two years after signing for the club, Parker made his first-team debut against south Londoners Millwall in a 3-1 victory in September 1946 and went on to make more than 200 league and cup appearances, scoring nine goals.
In 1951, he was chosen to tour Australia and America as part of an FA XI, where the side won every one of their 21 fixtures and netted an astounding 157 goals in the process.
Parker was signed by Colchester United in March 1957, ironically by the brother of the man that had signed him for the Hammers, Ben Fenton. He played 130 league fixtures for the U's before joining non-league Stowmarket Town as player-manager.
All at West Ham United were saddened to hear of the passing of former Hammer Derrick Parker at the age of 83 following a short illness.
Parker - whose name is spelled 'Derek' in the official record books - was signed by Ted Fenton from Grays Athletic at the age of 18 in October 1944. Originally an inside forward, he later moved to half-back.
Born in Wivenhoe, Parker was one of the many youngsters brought to the club by Fenton, who believed 'the only way to build the club was youth' and later signed the likes of John Bond, Ken Brown and Malcolm Allison.
Parker played alongside Allison in the 1950s and was, as such, part of the side that saw West Ham become known universally as 'The Academy of Football', putting into practice a new way of thinking on and off the pitch.
Son Neil expressed the Parker family's thanks for the kindness shown to his father over the years by both the club and fans alike.
"We are very proud to say that, despite it being 50 years since he played for the club, West Ham United was Derrick's lifelong passion and forever in his heart," said Neil.
Former Hammer Alan Stephenson had recently visited him and spoke of "how pleased and proud" Parker was to share stories of his playing days at the club.
Two years after signing for the club, Parker made his first-team debut against south Londoners Millwall in a 3-1 victory in September 1946 and went on to make more than 200 league and cup appearances, scoring nine goals.
In 1951, he was chosen to tour Australia and America as part of an FA XI, where the side won every one of their 21 fixtures and netted an astounding 157 goals in the process.
Parker was signed by Colchester United in March 1957, ironically by the brother of the man that had signed him for the Hammers, Ben Fenton. He played 130 league fixtures for the U's before joining non-league Stowmarket Town as player-manager.
