Bert Frederick WilliamsMBE (31 January 1920 – 19 January 2014) was an English internationalfootball goalkeeper. Nicknamed The Cat, he spent the majority of his playing career at Wolverhampton Wanderers where he won the League Championship and FA Cup. At the time of his death Williams was the oldest living England international.[1]
Williams started playing competitive football as a young man when he was a member of the 19th Wolverhampton Company of The Boys' Brigade (Bradley Methodist Church). He was then offered the chance to play for Walsall's reserves, whilst playing for Thompson's FC, the works team of the local factory he was employed at. He was taken on permanently and turned professional in April 1937.[2]
The outbreak of World War II halted his progress, after two seasons of playing, as he joined the RAF, serving as a Physical Training instructor. He found time in between his duties to turn out as a guest for both Nottingham Forest and Chelsea in friendlies.[3]
Wolves and EnglandEdit
With the conflict over, Williams resumed his career by signing for First DivisionWolverhampton Wanderers in September 1945 for £3,500. He immediately became first choice at the Molineux club, making his official debut when league football resumed on 31 August 1946 in a 6–1 win over Arsenal, a game that was also the Wolves début of Johnny Hancocks.[4]
He gained his first honour in 1949 as the team lifted the FA Cup after defeating Leicester City. His part in winning this prize saw him rewarded with an England call-up later that month, as he made his international debut on 22 May 1949 in a 3–1 friendly win in France. He held onto the goalkeeper's jersey through the 1950 FIFA World Cup, and at that tournament played in England's surprise defeat by the USA.[5]
He won the league title with Wolves in 1953–54. In total, he made 420 appearances for Wolves.[6]
After footballEdit
After ending his football career, he ran a sports shop in Bilston, a sporting centre and lived near Shifnal in Shropshire.[7]
bert, williams, footballer, born, 1920, bert, frederick, williams, january, 1920, january, 2014, english, international, football, goalkeeper, nicknamed, spent, majority, playing, career, wolverhampton, wanderers, where, league, championship, time, death, will. Bert Frederick Williams MBE 31 January 1920 19 January 2014 was an English international football goalkeeper Nicknamed The Cat he spent the majority of his playing career at Wolverhampton Wanderers where he won the League Championship and FA Cup At the time of his death Williams was the oldest living England international 1 Bert WilliamsMBEPersonal informationFull nameBert Frederick WilliamsDate of birth 1920 01 31 31 January 1920Place of birthBradley EnglandDate of death19 January 2014 2014 01 19 aged 93 Place of deathWolverhampton EnglandHeight5 ft 9 in 1 75 m Position s GoalkeeperYouth careerBilstonThompson s FCSenior career YearsTeamApps Gls 1937 1945Walsall25 0 1945 1959Wolverhampton Wanderers381 0 Total406 0 International career1949England B1 0 1949 1955England24 0 Club domestic league appearances and goals Contents 1 Early career 2 Wolves and England 3 After football 4 Honours 5 References 6 External linksEarly career EditWilliams started playing competitive football as a young man when he was a member of the 19th Wolverhampton Company of The Boys Brigade Bradley Methodist Church He was then offered the chance to play for Walsall s reserves whilst playing for Thompson s FC the works team of the local factory he was employed at He was taken on permanently and turned professional in April 1937 2 The outbreak of World War II halted his progress after two seasons of playing as he joined the RAF serving as a Physical Training instructor He found time in between his duties to turn out as a guest for both Nottingham Forest and Chelsea in friendlies 3 Wolves and England EditWith the conflict over Williams resumed his career by signing for First Division Wolverhampton Wanderers in September 1945 for 3 500 He immediately became first choice at the Molineux club making his official debut when league football resumed on 31 August 1946 in a 6 1 win over Arsenal a game that was also the Wolves debut of Johnny Hancocks 4 He gained his first honour in 1949 as the team lifted the FA Cup after defeating Leicester City His part in winning this prize saw him rewarded with an England call up later that month as he made his international debut on 22 May 1949 in a 3 1 friendly win in France He held onto the goalkeeper s jersey through the 1950 FIFA World Cup and at that tournament played in England s surprise defeat by the USA 5 He won the league title with Wolves in 1953 54 In total he made 420 appearances for Wolves 6 After football EditAfter ending his football career he ran a sports shop in Bilston a sporting centre and lived near Shifnal in Shropshire 7 Williams was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire MBE in the 2010 Birthday Honours for services to football and to charity 8 Honours EditFootball League First Division 1953 54 FA Cup 1949References Edit Birthday joy for Wolves legend Bert Williams February 2013 Matthews Tony 2001 The Wolves Who s Who West Midlands Britespot p 222 ISBN 1 904103 01 4 Lowe Simon 2005 Match of My Life Wolves Warwickshire Know The Score Books ISBN 1 905449 56 9 Matthews Tony 2008 Wolverhampton Wanderers The Complete Record Derby Breedon Books ISBN 978 1 85983 632 3 Defeat by US still hurts says England old boy Williams BBC 8 June 2010 Retrieved 29 April 2011 Bert Williams Wolves Official Website Archived from the original on 3 January 2013 Retrieved 12 November 2012 Bert Williams Golden oldies Wolves Official Site 8 March 2011 Archived from the original on 7 August 2011 Retrieved 21 October 2011 No 59446 The London Gazette Supplement 12 June 2010 p 23 External links EditEngland Profile Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Bert Williams footballer born 1920 amp oldid 1179982648, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
