Background
Monk was born in Salisbury, Wiltshire and was educated at Queens Road School, Wimbledon and Street Marks College, Chelsea where he trained to be a teacher.
Monk was born in Salisbury, Wiltshire and was educated at Queens Road School, Wimbledon and Street Marks College, Chelsea where he trained to be a teacher.
He joined Southampton of the Southern League on amateur terms in the summer of 1910. His teaching commitments prevented him from playing regularly for the "Saints" and he made his debut after seven games of the 1910-1911 season, when he took the place of Sam Jepp at centre-half against Crystal Palace on 22 October 1910. When he played, "he used his athleticism to good effect" and was a sure tackler.
He managed 19 league appearances, with either Jepp or Billy Beaumont taking his place when he was unavailable.
On 11 February 1911, he played as an emergency centre-forward at Swindon Town. In September 1911, Monk made two appearances for Glossop in the Football League Second Division, followed by brief spells with Fulham and one match back at The Dell (a 2–1 defeat against West Ham United on 6 January 1912).
In the summer of 1912, his teaching career took him away from Southampton, which brought his brief excursion into professional football to an education