Charles ‘Chas’ Challinor was born in Staffordshire, England, in about 1893. He arrived at the port of Fremantle in May 1912 and soon settled in Geraldton where he found work as a dairyman.
With the formation of the Geraldton British Football Association in 1913, Chas joined the Geraldton Town club where he played in the middle of the park alongside Joe Deasington. During his three seasons with Town, the club were declared joint winners in the inaugural league season, an honour shared with Civil Service, and in 1915 won the knock-out Hansen Cup.
At the age of 23, Chas enlisted in the war effort. Initially assigned to Howitzer Brigade 118, he transferred to the 3rd Divisional Ammunition Column in the capacity of Driver prior to proceeding to France in early 1917. He served on the Western Front for a little over two years and saw out the final six months of the war in London on leave.
Chas returned to Geraldton in late 1919 and soon after was back on the football field with Town, where he played through to the 1924 season. In 1920 he represented England in the local international series against Australia and, two years later, was selected in the Geraldton side which travelled to Perth for the inaugural, four-team Country Week.
Living on Marine Terrace in central Geraldton, Chas put the skills he learnt in Europe to good use a proprietor of the Victoria Garage, an establishment which offered all manner of motor vehicle services, from washing and greasing to car hire and drivers.
It is not known when Charles Challinor passed away.