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

Career

Daniel was born in Swansea and started his career at his local club Swansea Town as an amateur, making his debut for the club as a full-back in a wartime fixture at the age of 15. In October 1946, he was signed by Arsenal, whom his elder brother

Bobby Bobby or Bobbie may refer to: People * Bobby (given name), a list of names * Bobby (actress), from Bangladesh * Bobby (rapper) (born 1995), from South Korea * Bobby (screenwriter) (born 1983), Indian screenwriter * Bobby, old slang for a constabl ...

had played for before he had been killed in 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 ...

, aged 18. Due to compulsory

National Service National service is the system of voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act 1939. The ...

duty between 1947 and 1949, he did not make his debut for Arsenal until 7 May 1949 against

Charlton Athletic Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, south-east London, which compete in . Their home ground is The Valley, where the club have played since 1919. They have also played at The Mount in ...

, on the final day of the 1948–49 season; Arsenal won 2–0. Daniel played at

centre half In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either ...

but spent much of his early career at Arsenal as a reserve, as understudy to Leslie Compton, 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 Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

, making his debut in a 1–1 draw 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 ...

Roker Park Roker Park was a football ground in Roker, Sunderland, England, which was the home of Sunderland A.F.C. from 1898 to 1997, before the club moved to the Stadium of Light. Its final capacity was around 22,500, with only a small part being seated ...

on 20 October 1951. He went on to win twenty-one caps for his country. When Compton retired in 1951, Daniel became Arsenal's regular at centre-half and played in the Gunners'

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...

final loss at the hands of Newcastle United in

1952 Events January–February * January 26 – Black Saturday in Egypt: Rioters burn Cairo's central business district, targeting British and upper-class Egyptian businesses. * February 6 ** Princess Elizabeth, Duchess of Edinburgh, becomes m ...

, 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. Daniel spent four seasons at Sunderland, and eventually became club captain. He played 136 League games for the Rokerites, 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. He left for

Hereford United Hereford United Football Club was an association football club based in Hereford, England. They played at Edgar Street for their entire history. They were nicknamed 'The Whites' or 'The Lilywhites', after their predominantly white kit, or 'Th ...

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 A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional ser ...

. He died aged 69 in 1997.

Honours

* First Division: 1952–53

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Daniel, Ray 1928 births 1997 deaths Welsh men's footballers Men's association football central defenders Swansea City A.F.C. players Arsenal F.C. players Sunderland A.F.C. players Cardiff City F.C. players Hereford United F.C. players Welsh football managers Hereford United F.C. managers Footballers from Swansea Wales men's international footballers