Willie Davies (footballer)

William Davies (10 March 1900 – 1953) was a Welsh professional footballer who made over 300 appearances in the Football League during spells with Swansea Town, Cardiff City, Notts County and Tottenham Hotspur. He also made 17 appearances for Wales, scoring six times.

Willie Davies
Personal information
Full name William Davies
Date of birth (1900-03-10)10 March 1900
Place of birth Troedyrhiw, Wales
Date of death 1953 (aged 52–53)
Height 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)[1]
Position(s) Outside-right
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1921–1924 Swansea Town 43 (4)
1924–1928 Cardiff City 87 (17)
1928–1930 Notts County 71 (9)
1930–1933 Tottenham Hotspur 109 (19)
1933–1936 Swansea Town 86 (18)
International career
1924–1930 Wales 17 (6)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Early life

Davies was born in Troedyrhiw to Thomas and Mary Davies, growing up in Harriet Town.[1]

Career

Davies began his career playing for local amateur sides, joining Rhymney where he once scored 61 goals in a single season.[2] He was signed by Swansea Town in 1921, playing in every forward position for the club before settling at outside-right. He made his Wales debut while playing for Swansea but, in 1924 with the club going through financial trouble, he moved to Cardiff City for a fee of £25. In his first season at the club, he was part of the side that reached the FA Cup Final, including scoring a goal direct from a corner-kick in the quarter-final victory over Leicester City.[1]

He contracted a serious chest illness soon after and missed more than a year for the club, including missing the teams FA Cup victory in 1927.[3] He briefly returned to the side at the start of the 1927–28 season but was sold to Notts County soon after, where he spent two years before moving on to Tottenham Hotspur. He later returned to Wales to finish his league career at Swansea.

International career

During his career, Davies won a total of 17 caps for Wales, making a goalscoring debut in a 2–0 victory over Scotland on 16 February 1924 in the 1924 British Home Championship.[4] Davies played in the remaining two matches of the championship, scoring his second international goal in a 2–1 victory over England,[5] as Wales won the tournament for the third time. He later also helped Wales win the British Home Championship for a second time in four years in 1928. His last goal for Wales came on 27 October 1928, when he scored twice in a 4–2 defeat to Scotland,[6] before winning his last cap on 1 February 1930 when he played in a 7–0 defeat to Ireland.[7]

Career statistics

International
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Wales 192432
192540
192631
192833
1929 3 0
1930 1 0
Total176

Wales score listed first, score column indicates score after each Davies goal

List of international goals scored by Willie Davies
No. Date Venue Cap Opponent Score Result Competition Ref.
116 February 1924Ninian Park, Cardiff, Wales1 Scotland1–02–01923–24 British Home Championship[8]
23 March 1924Ewood Park, Blackburn, England2 England1–12–1[9]
31 March 1926Selhurst Park, London, England9 England2–13–11925–26 British Home Championship[10]
44 February 1926Windsor Park, Belfast, Northern Ireland11 Northern Ireland1–02–11927–28 British Home Championship[11]
527 October 1928Ibrox Stadium, Glasgow, Scotland12 Scotland1–02–41928–29 British Home Championship[12]
62–4

Honours

Cardiff City

Wales

References
  1. "Tottenham Hotspur 1920s". penmon.org. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
  2. Hayes, Dean (2006). The Who's Who of Cardiff City. Derby: Breedon Books. p. 48. ISBN 1-85983-462-0.
  3. Connor Pearce (23 April 2017). "90 Years - 'He's One Of Our Own'". Cardiff City F.C. Retrieved 13 May 2017.
  4. "Wales 2–0 Scotland". Welsh Football Data Archive. Retrieved 21 December 2009.
  5. "England 1–2 Wales". Welsh Football Data Archive. Retrieved 21 December 2009.
  6. "Scotland 42– Wales". Welsh Football Data Archive. Retrieved 21 December 2009.
  7. "Ireland 7–0 Wales". Welsh Football Data Archive. Retrieved 21 December 2009.
  8. "Wales vs. Scotland 2–0: Summary". EU-Football.info. Retrieved 18 January 2023.
  9. "England vs. Wales 1–2: Summary". EU-Football.info. Retrieved 18 January 2023.
  10. "England vs. Wales 1–3: Summary". EU-Football.info. Retrieved 18 January 2023.
  11. "Northern Ireland vs. Wales 1–2: Summary". EU-Football.info. Retrieved 18 January 2023.
  12. "Scotland vs. Wales 4–2: Summary". EU-Football.info. Retrieved 18 January 2023.
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