1. Louis "Abraham" Bookman was an Irish sportsman of Lithuanian Jewish origin who represented Ireland in both football and cricket.
13 Facts About Louis Bookman
1. 2.
Louis Bookman returned to the Football League of England to sign for Luton Town in 1919 and played over 100 games for the club before joining Port Vale in September 1923.
3.
Louis Bookman helped the Irish to claim victory in the 1914 edition of the British Home Championship.
4.
Louis Bookman was one of nine children born into an Orthodox Jewish Yiddish-speaking family in Zagare in the Russian Empire.
5.
Louis Bookman joined the Jewish Athletic Association, and started playing football for the Dublin Jewish team, Adelaide.
6.
Louis Bookman began his senior football career in the Irish League with Belfast Celtic, who he joined as an amateur.
7.
Louis Bookman joined English side Bradford City in 1911, with City having to pay the transfer fee to Adelaide, who had signed Bookman on as a professional after hearing of interest in him from Bradford.
8.
Louis Bookman was nicknamed 'Abraham' or 'Abe' by his teammates, but failed to establish himself as a first-team regular for the "Bantams", making just 32 league appearances in three seasons.
9.
In 1911, while playing for Belfast Celtic, Louis Bookman gained an Irish amateur cap.
10.
In 1914, together with Val Harris, Patrick O'Connell, Billy Gillespie and Bill Lacey, Louis Bookman was a member of the Ireland team that won the British Home Championship.
11.
Louis Bookman played cricket for the Railway Union Cricket Club, the Leinster Cricket Club and Bedfordshire.
12.
Louis Bookman played in eight more first-class matches, including one against the West Indies.
13.
Louis Bookman married Rebecca Sirota, whose family originated from Russia; her family disapproved of his sporting career and only allowed him to marry Rebecca after he stopped playing.