Darby was a Leicester-born goalkeeper who played locally at amateur level but who often featured for Fosse's reserve side. He had to wait for his go at first-team football, however, and featured four times for the Foxes as a veteran between the sticks at the end of the 1909-10 season.
Fosse goalkeepers Jonty Starbuck and Horace Bailey were both absent at the tail-end of the season as the club's push for promotion came to a poor end with a nine-game run without success. Darby wasn't to blame however, and he got some praise from the local media for his four performances.
He'd announced his retirement in 1911 following a couple of amateur tours abroad and took up a business venture. Darby was also a keen cricketer, playing for over 30 years with Clarendon Park CC.