Billy Walker
Encyclopedia
William Henry "Billy" Walker (29 October 1897 – 28 November 1964) was a prominent English footballer of the 1920s and 1930s. He is considered by many to be the greatest footballer to ever play for Aston Villa Football Club
true legends, Walker was born in Wednesbury
, Staffordshire. He joined Villa in 1914 and stayed at Villa Park for the rest of his playing career, retiring in 1934.
He made 531 appearances for Villa between 1914 and 1934, scoring 244 goals, of which 214 came in 478 league matches. He remains Aston Villa FC's all-time top goalscorer to this day. He was an FA Cup
Winner with Villa in 1920.
Walker played for England
18 times, scoring 9 goals.
He also successfully managed Sheffield Wednesday
leading them to the FA Cup in 1935, and Nottingham Forest
from 1939 to 1960, bringing promotion to the First Division in 1956–57 and an FA Cup final triumph two years later (Beating Villa in the semis), becoming the only manager to win the trophy both before and after the second World War. He was also the first Englishman to score at Wembley, when he scored against Scotland on 12 April 1924.
He died in November 1964, four years after retiring as Nottingham Forest manager.
In March 2003, nearly 40 years after his death, he was named by BBC Sport
as the former player Aston Villa needed in their modern day team – who were struggling for goals that season
and narrowly avoided relegation from the FA Premier League
(top flight of English football).
FA Cup
Football League Second Division
Football League Third Division (North)
FA Charity Shield
Biography
One of Aston Villa'sAston Villa F.C.
Aston Villa Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Witton, Birmingham. The club was founded in 1874 and have played at their current home ground, Villa Park, since 1897. Aston Villa were founder members of The Football League in 1888. They were also founder...
true legends, Walker was born in Wednesbury
Wednesbury
Wednesbury is a market town in England's Black Country, part of the Sandwell metropolitan borough in West Midlands, near the source of the River Tame. Similarly to the word Wednesday, it is pronounced .-Pre-Medieval and Medieval times:...
, Staffordshire. He joined Villa in 1914 and stayed at Villa Park for the rest of his playing career, retiring in 1934.
He made 531 appearances for Villa between 1914 and 1934, scoring 244 goals, of which 214 came in 478 league matches. He remains Aston Villa FC's all-time top goalscorer to this day. He was an FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
Winner with Villa in 1920.
Walker played for England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
18 times, scoring 9 goals.
He also successfully managed Sheffield Wednesday
Sheffield Wednesday F.C.
Sheffield Wednesday Football Club are a football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, who are currently competing in the Football League One in the 2011-12 season, in England. Sheffield Wednesday are one of the oldest professional clubs in the world and the fourth oldest in the...
leading them to the FA Cup in 1935, and Nottingham Forest
Nottingham Forest F.C.
Nottingham Forest Football Club is an English Association Football club based in West Bridgford, Nottingham, that plays in the Football League Championship...
from 1939 to 1960, bringing promotion to the First Division in 1956–57 and an FA Cup final triumph two years later (Beating Villa in the semis), becoming the only manager to win the trophy both before and after the second World War. He was also the first Englishman to score at Wembley, when he scored against Scotland on 12 April 1924.
He died in November 1964, four years after retiring as Nottingham Forest manager.
In March 2003, nearly 40 years after his death, he was named by BBC Sport
BBC Sport
BBC Sport is the sports division of the BBC. It became a fully dedicated division of the BBC in 2000. It incorporates programmes such as Match of the Day, Grandstand , Test Match Special, Ski Sunday, Rugby Special and coverage of Formula One motor racing, MotoGP and the Wimbledon Tennis...
as the former player Aston Villa needed in their modern day team – who were struggling for goals that season
2002-03 in English football
The 2002-03 season was the 123rd season of competitive football in England.-Most Memorable rise:*Wigan Athletic marked their 25th season of Football League membership by winning the Division Two championship and reaching the league's second tier for the very first time.-Most Memorable...
and narrowly avoided relegation from the FA Premier League
FA Premier League
The Premier League is an English professional league for association football clubs. At the top of the English football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with The Football League. The Premier...
(top flight of English football).
Aston Villa
Football League First DivisionFootball League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
- Runners-up: 1931, 1933
FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
- Winner: 19201920 FA Cup FinalThe 1920 FA Cup Final, the first since the end of the First World War, was contested by Aston Villa and Huddersfield at Stamford Bridge. Aston Villa won 1–0, with the goal coming in extra time from Billy Kirton, to clinch the trophy for a record sixth time....
- Runners-up: 19241924 FA Cup FinalThe 1924 FA Cup Final was contested by Newcastle United and Aston Villa at Wembley. Newcastle won 2–0, the goals scored by Neil Harris and Stan Seymour.The match has become commonly known as the "Rainy Day " final due to the weather that day,a consequence of which has led to there being very...
Nottingham Forest
FA CupFA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
- Winner: 19591959 FA Cup FinalThe 1959 FA Cup Final was contested by Nottingham Forest and Luton Town at Wembley. Forest won 2–1, with goals from Roy Dwight and Tommy Wilson just four minutes apart...
Football League Second Division
Football League Second Division
From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
- Runners-up: 1957
Football League Third Division (North)
Football League Third Division North
The Third Division North of The Football League was a tier in the English association football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran parallel to Third Division South with clubs elected to the League or relegated from a higher division allocated to one or the other according to geographical position...
- Champions: 1951
FA Charity Shield
FA Community Shield
The Football Association Community Shield is English football's annual match contested between the champions of the previous Premier League season and the holders of the FA Cup at Wembley Stadium. If the Premier League champions also won the FA Cup then the league runners-up provide the opposition...
- Runners-up: 19591959 FA Charity ShieldThe 1959 FA Charity Shield was the 37th FA Charity Shield, a football match between the winners of the previous season's First Division and FA Cup titles. This year's match was contested by league champions Wolverhampton Wanderers and FA Cup winners Nottingham Forest.The match was held at the...