William Roberts (footballer, born 1859)

William Roberts (born 1859) was a Welsh footballer who played as a forward in the 1870s and 1880s and made six appearances for Wales, scoring twice.

William Roberts
Personal information
Full name William Roberts
Date of birth 1859
Place of birth Llangollen, Wales
Date of death Not known
Position(s) Forward
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1878–1880 Llangollen
1880 Crewe Alexandra
1880–1881 Northwich Victoria
1881–1882 Berwyn Rangers
1884–18?? Llangollen
National team
1879–1883 Wales 6 (2)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Football career

Roberts was born in Llangollen in north-east Wales and started his football career at his local club.[1]

His international debut came when he was selected in place of his Llangollen colleague, Jack Roberts, for the first international match between Wales and England on 18 January 1879.[1] Roberts was one of only two of the Welsh team who were not associated with the Oswestry club, the other being John Price.[1] The match was played at the Kennington Oval and was shortened to two halves of only 30 minutes each because of the heavy snowfall.[2] Roberts, playing at outside-left, "scored" against England, but the goal was ruled out for an earlier infringement; England won the match 2–1.[3]

Roberts became a regular in the Welsh side, missing only one match over the next two years. In the match against Scotland on 27 March 1880, Roberts scored a late consolation goal in a 5–1 defeat. Roberts was described in the match report as "conspicuous throughout for his clever play" and received "loud applause" for his goal. This was the first Welsh goal scored in an international against Scotland.[4]

He had a brief foray into professional football, playing for English clubs Crewe Alexandra and Northwich Victoria in 1880 and 1881, before returning to his hometown with Berwyn Rangers.[1]

International appearances

Roberts made six appearances for Wales in official international matches, as follows:[5]

DateVenueOpponentResult[6]GoalsCompetition
18 January 1879Kennington Oval, London England1–20Friendly
7 April 1879Racecourse Ground, Wrexham Scotland0–30Friendly
15 March 1880Racecourse Ground, Wrexham England2–31Friendly
27 March 1880Hampden Park, Glasgow Scotland1–51Friendly
14 March 1881Racecourse Ground, Wrexham Scotland1–50Friendly
12 March 1883Racecourse Ground, Wrexham Scotland0–30Friendly
Win Draw Loss

References
  1. Davies, Gareth; Garland, Ian (1991). Who's Who of Welsh International Soccer Players. Bridge Books. p. 181. ISBN 1-872424-11-2.
  2. "England 2 Wales 1". www.englandstats.com. 18 January 1879. Retrieved 7 November 2011.
  3. "England 2 Wales 1". Welsh Football Data Archive. 18 January 1879. Retrieved 7 November 2011.
  4. "Scotland 5 Wales 1". www.londonhearts.com. 27 March 1880. p. 4. Retrieved 7 November 2011.
  5. Samuel, Bill (2009). The Complete Wales FC 1876-2008. Soccer Books. pp. 5–7. ISBN 1-86223-176-1.
  6. Wales score first
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