George Renger Dewis (22 January 1913 – 23 October 1994) was an English

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 ...

who played as a centre forward in

The Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in Association football around the wor ...

between the 1930s and 1950s. Born in

Burbage, Leicestershire Burbage is a large village in the Borough of Hinckley and Bosworth in Leicestershire, England.OS Explorer Map 232 : Nuneaton & Tamworth: (1:25 000) : According to the United Kingdom Census 2001 the parish had a population of 14,324, increasi ...

, he spent the majority of his career with

Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city lies on the River Soar and close to the eastern end of the National ...

, whom he returned to once he retired from playing, becoming part of the coaching staff. Dewis also spent a brief time at

Yeovil Town Yeovil Town may refer to: * Yeovil Town F.C., an English football team based in Yeovil, Somerset * Yeovil Town L.F.C. Bridgwater United Women's Football Club are an English women's association football club based in Bridgwater, Somerset who wer ...

and appeared as a guest player for a number of clubs during

World War II 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 opposing ...

Career

After playing as a junior for the

Stoke Golding Stoke Golding is a village and civil parish in the Hinckley and Bosworth district of Leicestershire, England, close to the county border with Warwickshire.OS Explorer Map 232 : Nuneaton & Tamworth: (1:25 000) : According to the 2001 census ...

village side, Dewis was playing for

Nuneaton Town Nuneaton Borough Football Club is an English football club that is based in Nuneaton, Warwickshire. The men's 1st team competes in the , the seventh tier of English football. In 1889, Nuneaton St. Nicholas FC was the first team in Nuneaton to ...

when he was spotted by First Division side

in 1933. Dewis made his league debut for Leicester on 9 December 1933 in a home fixture against

West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pl ...

, and remained a mainstay of the club until 1950, scoring 45 goals in 116 league games. The club experienced mixed fortunes during the 1930s and suffered relegation but in 1938–39 Dewis was Leicester's top scorer. Dewis lost much of his career to 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 opposi ...

, spending time in the army while playing for Leicester in the wartime football leagues, as well as guesting for

Chesterfield Chesterfield may refer to: Places Canada * Rural Municipality of Chesterfield No. 261, Saskatchewan * Chesterfield Inlet, Nunavut United Kingdom * Chesterfield, Derbyshire, a market town in England ** Chesterfield (UK Parliament constitue ...

Leeds United Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire in England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of England's football league system, and plays its home matches at Elland Road ...

Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history of cutlery production. The team have played home games at ...

, Bury Town and Yeovil & Petters. Following the war Dewis resumed league football with Leicester, and was again their top scorer during the 1946–47 season. In April 1947 he hit a hat-trick for City in a

Second Division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...

game against

Millwall Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Limehouse, north of Greenwich and Deptford, eas ...

, which was City's first ever home game against Millwall. With his best years now behind him, Dewis moved to

, for whom he had previously guested during the war, in the summer of 1950, but stayed only one season before retiring. Following his retirement, Dewis became part of the coaching staff at his former club, Leicester City, initially as a coach, then as a trainer for the youth and reserve teams before finally becoming the club's kit man, a post he held until 1983. During his time as a coach, Dewis played a key role in the rise to prominence of

Peter Shilton Peter Leslie Shilton (born 18 September 1949) is an English former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. His 30-year career included spells at 11 clubs and he has the distinction of playing over 1,000 league games, including in ...

at the club.

References

External links

Leicester League/FA Cup appearances by season at 11v11.com
1913 births 1994 deaths Footballers from Leicestershire Association football forwards English Football League players Nuneaton Borough F.C. players Leicester City F.C. players Chesterfield F.C. wartime guest players Leeds United F.C. wartime guest players Sheffield United F.C. wartime guest players Yeovil Town F.C. players Leicester City F.C. non-playing staff English footballers People from Burbage, Leicestershire British Army soldiers British Army personnel of World War II Military personnel from Leicestershire {{England-footy-forward-1910s-stub