Billy Wright (footballer, born 1962)

Billy Wright (born 4 November 1962) is a former footballer who played as a striker. His senior career included stints with Burnley F.C. (England), Dundalk (Ireland) as well as National Soccer League clubs Blacktown City Demons, West Adelaide and Morwell Falcons.[1] Born in England, he represented the New Zealand national team at international level.

Billy Wright
Personal information
Full name William Hardy Rogers Wright
Date of birth (1962-11-04) 4 November 1962
Place of birth Corbridge, England
Position(s) Striker
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1980–1983 Burnley 0 (0)
1982 → Crewe Alexandra (loan) 3 (1)
1983–1984 Apollon Limassol
1984–1985 Dundalk ? (8)
1985–1988 Mount Wellington
1989 Blacktown City Demons 2 (0)
1989 Morwell Falcons 23 (8)
1989–1990 West Adelaide 11 (3)
1990–1992 Miramar Rangers
1992–1994 Morwell Falcons 25 (9)
1994–1996 South Dandenong 75 (80)
1996–1998 Gippsland Falcons 13 (0)
1998–1999 South Dandenong 19 (8)
2000–2001 Cranbourne Comets 13 (10)
2002 Berwick City 22 (30)
2003 Noble Park 16 (15)
International career
1988–1993 New Zealand 15 (9)
Managerial career
1998 South Dandenong
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Wright was perhaps best known for his three separate stints with the Morwell Falcons - first joining the club in 1989, where he played a pivotal role in a dynamic partnership with Croatian striker Darko Basara. The pair combined for 19 league goals as the Falcons broke through for their second Victorian state championship in six years. He also hit a memorable hat-trick in just 24 minutes against Maribyrnong Polonia in the second round of the Dockerty Cup.

He then signed for West Adelaide - the very club who defeated Morwell for promotion to the National Soccer League in 1989. He would rejoin Morwell in 1992 for their debut in the National Soccer League and played a pivotal role as the Falcons went within a point of making the finals in just their season season in the top flight. He would come back to the Latrobe Valley in 1996 for a final two-year spell, although by then he was in his mid-30s and spent much of his time mentoring future Socceroos international Archie Thompson.

Wright would finish his career in the lower divisions of Victorian football and still remained particularly prolific into his late 30's.

Wright made his full debut for New Zealand in a 2–0 win over Saudi Arabia on 21 June 1988[2] and ended his international playing career having played 26 times for the All Whites, including 15 A-internationals in which he scored 9 goals,[3][4] his final official cap being in a 1–0 loss to Australia on 30 May 1993. Wright has since moved to coaching where he has found his calling combining his talent and love of the game with his tough play style.[2]

References
  1. "Australian Player Database". OzFootball. Retrieved 18 April 2009.
  2. "A-International Lineups". The Ultimate New Zealand Soccer Website. Retrieved 12 February 2009.
  3. "A-International Appearances - Overall". The Ultimate New Zealand Soccer Website. Archived from the original on 1 May 2009. Retrieved 12 February 2009.
  4. "A-International Scorers - Overall". The Ultimate New Zealand Soccer Website. Archived from the original on 16 June 2009. Retrieved 12 February 2009.


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.