Tommy Ball - Personal Life and Death

Personal Life and Death

In May 1922, Ball married Beatrice Richards, the daughter of a local pork butcher and pie maker. In October, the couple moved into Somerville Cottages, on Brick Kiln Lane, Perry Barr which they rented from George Stagg, who occupied the adjoining cottage. Stagg was a former-policeman who had been injured during the First World War; after the war, he had taken various factory jobs before purchasing the Brick Kiln Lane properties in 1921. The relationship between Stagg and Ball was strained, with Stagg objecting to Ball's chickens straying into his garden; Stagg had threatened to poison the chickens and had made attempts to have Ball evicted from the cottage.

On the evening of Sunday 11 November, the day after the match at Nottingham, Ball and his wife had visited the Church Tavern where Ball drunk 3½ pints of ale. They returned home late in the evening and, shortly after 10 pm Ball had gone into his garden to fetch his dog. Mrs. Ball heard an argument in the garden followed by a gunshot. She ran out into the garden where she saw her husband "in a very distressed state, reeling towards her". Mrs. Ball claimed that Stagg shot again with the bullet passing over her shoulder. Ball died shortly afterwards from the gunshot wounds. Stagg made no attempt to flee and was arrested by the police at the scene.

His funeral was held on 19 November, and has been described as "a grand occasion". The funeral cortege set off from the butcher's shop of Beatrice Ball's father, William Richards, in High Street, Aston; seven coaches and several cars made their way through the crowds lining the streets to the packed St. John's Church, Perry Barr where the coffin was carried by Ball's former team-mates. There were floral tributes from local football clubs, as well as from Middlesbrough, close to his birthplace. A collection among the crowd at Aston Villa's home match on the Saturday before the funeral raised over a hundred pounds for Ball's widow.

Ball was buried in St. John's churchyard in an ornate grave decorated with footballs. The grave bears the inscription: "To T.E. Ball – A token of esteem from his fellow players of Aston Villa F.C." Over the years, the grave became rather neglected but has now been restored by Villa supporters led by Jeff Hilliar.

The following poem was written shortly after Ball's murder:

Twas on a Sabbath evening in drear November days
Two friends were heard creating, in Perry Barry's byways
High words just fed the anger, now this young man's life is fled.
A shot and then another! And Thomas Ball lies dead.