Ray Daniel (Welsh footballer)

William Raymond "Ray" Daniel (2 November 1928[2] – 6 November 1997) was a Welsh football player and manager.

Not to be confused with Ray Daniel (English footballer).

Ray Daniel
Personal information
Full name William Raymond Daniel[1]
Date of birth (1928-11-02)2 November 1928
Place of birth Swansea, Wales
Date of death 6 November 1997(1997-11-06) (aged 69)
Position(s) Centre half
Youth career
1944–1946 Swansea Town
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1949–1953 Arsenal 87 (5)
1953–1957 Sunderland 136 (6)
1957–1958 Cardiff City 6 (0)
1958–1960 Swansea Town 45 (7)
1960–1967 Hereford United
National team
1951–1957 Wales 21 (0)
Teams managed
1962–1963 Hereford United
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Career

Daniel was born in Swansea and started his career at his local club Swansea Town as an amateur,[3] making his debut for the club as a full-back in a wartime fixture at the age of 15.[4] In October 1946, he was signed by Arsenal,[5] whom his elder brother Bobby had played for before he had been killed in the Second World War,[4] aged 18. Due to compulsory National Service duty between 1947 and 1949, he did not make his debut for Arsenal until 7 May 1949 against Charlton Athletic, on the final day of the 1948–49 season; Arsenal won 2–0.[5]

Daniel played at centre half[2] but spent much of his early career at Arsenal as a reserve, as understudy to Leslie Compton,[5] playing only 13 league matches in his first three seasons as a first-team player. Whilst still a reserve player at Arsenal, Daniel gained three caps for Wales,[4] making his debut in a 1–1 draw against England at Roker Park on 20 October 1951. He went on to win twenty-one caps for his country.[2]

When Compton retired in 1951, Daniel became Arsenal's regular at centre-half and played in the Gunners' FA Cup final loss at the hands of Newcastle United in 1952, despite the fact he was still recovering from a broken arm. He made up the disappointment the following season, missing only one match in Arsenal's 1952–53 First Division-winning campaign. Daniel left Arsenal for Sunderland in 1953 for £27,500, then a record fee for a defender.[4]

Daniel spent four seasons at Sunderland, and eventually became club captain. He played 136 League games for the Rokerites,[2] before leaving for Cardiff City in October 1957. He managed only six League games before returning to his first club Swansea, where he played 45 League games and scored seven goals.[2]

He left for Hereford United in 1960 and was later the club's player-manager for a brief period between 1962 and 1963, before resigning to allow Bob Dennison to take over. After that, he left the game completely, and later ran a post office.[3][5] He died aged 69 in 1997.

Honours

References
  1. "Ray Daniel". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 9 November 2017.
  2. "Ray Daniel". Post War English & Scottish Football League A–Z Player's Database. Neil Brown. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
  3. "Past Players A – D". Swansea City A.F.C. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
  4. Ivan Ponting (10 November 1997). "Obituary: Ray Daniel". The Independent. Retrieved 14 August 2010.
  5. "Ray Daniel". Arsenal F.C. Retrieved 23 December 2016.
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