of 11 First Division goals he scored that season. He missed a fixture for the first and what would remain only time in a six-year professional career with Small Heath, on 11 February 1895, when his sister died on the morning of a match. Having finished 12th of 16 in 1894–95, they came 15th in 1895–96 and faced the top two Second Division teams home and away in a test match mini-league. Defeats to Manchester City and Liverpool and a draw with the latter confirmed Small Heath's relegation, but in the final match, they beat Manchester City 8–0 with hat-tricks from Wheldon and Jack Jones. It was his final contribution to a tally of 113 goals from 175 matches. He refused to re-sign for Small Heath on his current terms, and the directors of what would be a Second Division club did not feel able to increase his wages. Aston Villa On 4 June 1896, Wheldon signed for League champions Aston Villa, reportedly the only club to meet Small Heath's valuation. The fee was initially undisclosed at the buyers' request, but was confirmed by Small Heath's chairman at the club's annual general meeting as £100 up front, £250 from the takings at a match to be played between the two clubs, and half of any excess taken over that figure. The £350 was believed to be a transfer record, and Wheldon would receive wages "considerably in advance" of the £150 a year he earned at Small Heath. In his first season at Villa Park, Wheldon's 22 goals (18 in the First Division, 4 in the FA Cup) not only made him the team's top scorer but helped them achieve the League and Cup double. Villa beat Everton 3–2 in the 1897 FA Cup Final at the Crystal Palace, and Wheldon made the score 2–2 before Jimmy Crabtree secured a 3–2 victory. He himself kept a notebook detailing his appearances and goals, in which he recorded two goals in that final. According to the English National Football Archive (ENFA), reports of the goalscorers did vary: "Wheldon's goal is also credited to Cowan and Campbell, and Crabtree's to Wheldon or Devey." His 1897–98 season opened with two successive hat-tricks, against Sheffield Wednesday and West Bromwich Albion. He finished as the league's top scorer with 21 goals. Wheldon, a professional cricketer with Worcestershire during the summer months, failed to report for training ahead