William Charles Gorman (13 July 1911 – December 1978) was an Irish

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who played for, among others,

Bury Bury may refer to: *The burial of human remains *-bury, a suffix in English placenames Places England * Bury, Cambridgeshire, a village * Bury, Greater Manchester, a town, historically in Lancashire ** Bury (UK Parliament constituency) (1832–19 ...

and

Brentford Brentford is a suburban town in West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the Thames, west of Charing Cross. Its economy has diverse company headquarters buildings whi ...

. Gorman was a dual internationalist who also played for both Ireland teams – the FAI XI and the IFA XI. In September 1946 Gorman, along with

Johnny Carey John Joseph Carey (23 February 1919 – 22 August 1995) was an Irish professional footballer and manager. As a player, Carey spent most of his career at Manchester United, where he was team captain from 1946 until he retired as a player in 1953 ...

, actually played for both teams against

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

within three days of each other. The 11 international caps Gorman won while playing for Bury remain a club record.

Club career

Although born in

County Sligo County Sligo ( , gle, Contae Shligigh) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the Border Region and is part of the province of Connacht. Sligo is the administrative capital and largest town in the county. Sligo County Council is the local ...

, Gorman was raised in Scotland and spoke with a Scottish accent. He began his footballing career with junior club

Shettleston Shettleston ( sco, Shuttlestoun, gd, Baile Nighean Sheadna) is a district in the east end of Glasgow in Scotland. Toponymy The origin of the name 'Shettleston' is not clear and, like many place-names of possibly medieval origin, has had a multi ...

. An engineer by trade, he went completely bald by the time he was 19 and subsequently became known as ''Old Naked Brains''. In 1936, at the age of 25, Gorman moved south to the English League and joined

. Early in the 1938–39 season, Gorman made a £7,000 move to

where he is still talked of as one of the club's greatest ever defenders. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Gorman continued to play for Brentford in regional leagues. However, he also spent time in

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...

where he had two spells guesting regularly for Bury. He spent the 1943–44 season guesting at

Bolton Wanderers Bolton Wanderers Football Club () is a professional football club based in Horwich, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in . The club played at Burnden Park for 102 years from 1895 after moving from their original home at Pike's ...

where his teammates included a young

Nat Lofthouse Nathaniel Lofthouse (27 August 1925 – 15 January 2011) was an English professional footballer who played as a forward for Bolton Wanderers for his entire career. He won 33 caps for England between 1950 and 1958, scoring 30 goals, with o ...

. The war also gave Gorman the chance to guest with both

Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...

and

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

. In October 1950 he was appointed player-manager of Deal Town of the semi-professional Kent League. He eventually retired as a player in 1952, but as a manager guided Deal to the league title in 1954.

Irish international

When Gorman began his international career in 1936 there were, in effect, two Ireland teams, chosen by two rival associations. Both associations, the Northern Ireland – based

IFA IFA or Ifa may refer to: Organisations Economics * Independent financial adviser, a type of financial services professional in the UK * Index Fund Advisors * Institute and Faculty of Actuaries, representing actuaries in the UK * Institute of Ac ...

and the

Irish Free State The Irish Free State ( ga, Saorstát Éireann, , ; 6 December 192229 December 1937) was a state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-year Irish War of Independence between th ...

– based FAI claimed jurisdiction over the whole of

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

and selected players from the whole island. As a result, several notable Irish players from this era, including Gorman, played for both teams.

FAI XI

Between 1936 and 1947 Gorman made 13 appearances for the FAI XI. He made his international debut on 17 March 1936 in a 1–0 win against

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

Dalymount Park Dalymount Park (Irish: ''Páirc Cnocán Uí Dhálaigh'') is a football stadium in Phibsborough on the Northside of Dublin, Ireland. It is the home of Bohemian F.C., who have played there since the early 20th century. Affectionately known as D ...

. Among the highlights of his international career were helping the FAI XI beat

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

5–2 in a friendly on 17 October 1936. On 7 November 1937 he also played for the FAI XI in a World Cup qualifier against

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. The game finished as a 3–3 draw. On 30 September 1946 he was a member of the first ever FAI XI to play against

. Despite a credible performance, the FAI XI lost 1–0. Two days earlier Gorman had made his debut for the IFA XI against the same opponents. He made his last appearance for the FAI XI on 4 May 1947 in 2–0 defeat against

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

IFA XI

Between 1946 and 1948 Gorman also made four appearances for the IFA XI. He made his debut for the IFA XI on 28 September 1946 in a 7–2 defeat against

. On 27 November 1946, together with

Con Martin Cornelius Joseph Martin (20 March 1923 – 24 February 2013) was an Irish footballer. Martin initially played Gaelic football for the Dublin county team before switching codes and embarking on a successful soccer career, playing for, among othe ...

, Peter Farrell,

Tommy Eglington Thomas Joseph Eglington (15 January 1923 – 18 February 2004) was an Irish footballer who played as an outside-left for, among others, Shamrock Rovers, Everton and Tranmere Rovers. Eglington was also a dual internationalist and played for bot ...

Alex Stevenson Alexander Ernest Stevenson (9 August 1912 – 2 September 1985) was an Irish footballer who played for Rangers and Everton, amongst other teams. As an international, Stevenson also played for both Ireland teams – the FAI XI and the IFA XI. ...

and

Davy Walsh David Joseph Walsh (28 April 1923 – 14 March 2016), commonly referred to as Davy Walsh or Dave Walsh, was an Irish footballer who played as a centre forward for, among others, Linfield, West Bromwich Albion and Aston Villa. Walsh was a dual ...

, he was one of seven players born in the

to line up for the IFA XI against

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

Hampden Park Hampden Park (Scottish Gaelic: ''Pàirc Hampden''), often referred to as Hampden, is a football stadium in the Mount Florida area of Glasgow, Scotland. The -capacity venue serves as the national stadium of football in Scotland. It is the no ...

. The 0–0 draw helped the IFA XI finish as runners-up in the

1947 British Home Championship It was the first year of the Cold War, which would last until 1991, ending with the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Events January * January–February – Winter of 1946–47 in the United Kingdom: The worst snowfall in the country in ...

. He also helped the IFA XI gain a 2–1 victory over

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

on 16 April 1947. His fourth and final appearance for the IFA XI was a 2–0 defeat to Wales on 10 March 1948.

Later years

In February 1955 Gorman returned to Bury to work as an engineering inspector. He remained a regular spectator at

Bury F.C. Bury Football Club is an English association football club based in Bury, Greater Manchester, whose team last played in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of English football, in the 2018–19 season. The team are known as "The Shakers", and ...

matches, and also carried out some scouting work for

Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...

while his friend

George Poyser George Henry Poyser (6 February 1910 – 30 January 1995) was an English football player and manager. A defender, he enjoyed a lengthy playing career, the tail end of which was interrupted by World War II. He played for Wolverhampton Wandere ...

was manager. He took early retirement from his job in March 1975. His wife died suddenly, only a few weeks later. After a couple of heart attacks, he died in November 1978 at the age of 67. His daughter and grandson subsequently worked for Bury F.C.

Honours

Player

Ireland *

British Home Championship The British Home Championship * sco, Hame Internaitional Kemp * gd, Farpais lìg eadar-nàiseanta * cy, Pencampwriaeth y Pedair Gwlad, name=lang (historically known as the British International Championship or simply the International Champio ...

**''Runners-up'' 1946–47 1

Manager

Deal Town * Kent League **''Winners'' 1953–54: 1

Individual

* Brentford Hall of Fame

References

External links

Northern Ireland's Footballing Greats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gorman, Bill 1911 births 1978 deaths Republic of Ireland men's association footballers Republic of Ireland association football managers Pre-1950 IFA men's international footballers Ireland (FAI) men's international footballers Dual Irish men's international footballers Bury F.C. players Bury F.C. wartime guest players Brentford F.C. players Manchester United F.C. wartime guest players Bolton Wanderers F.C. wartime guest players Liverpool F.C. wartime guest players Association footballers from County Sligo Glasgow United F.C. players Deal Town F.C. players Irish Free State men's international footballers Deal Town F.C. managers Men's association football fullbacks