William Joseph Fallon (14 January 1912 – 23 March 1989 was an Ireland international footballer. His career spanned twenty years during the 1930s and 1940s. Fallon played for several clubs in the English League, most notably

Notts County Notts County Football Club is a professional association football club based in Nottingham, England. The team participate in the National League (division), National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. Founded on the 2 ...

and

Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an offshoot of ...

, and in the

League of Ireland The League of Ireland ( ga, Sraith na hÉireann), together with the Football Association of Ireland, is one of the two main governing bodies responsible for organising association football in the Republic of Ireland. The term was originally us ...

. He won an

FAI Cup The Football Association of Ireland Senior Challenge Cup (FAI Cup), known as the Extra.ie FAI Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a knock-out association football competition contested annually by teams from the Republic of Ireland (as well as Derry ...

winners medal and League of Ireland title with

Shamrock Rovers Shamrock Rovers Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Ruagairí na Seamróige) is an Irish association football club based in Tallaght, South Dublin. The club's senior team competes in the League of Ireland Premier Division and it is the most su ...

and Shelbourne respectively. He also scored in three FAI Cup finals for three different teams –

Dolphin A dolphin is an aquatic mammal within the infraorder Cetacea. Dolphin species belong to the families Delphinidae (the oceanic dolphins), Platanistidae (the Indian river dolphins), Iniidae (the New World river dolphins), Pontoporiidae (the ...

, Shamrock Rovers and Shelbourne. After retirement from football, Fallon lived in the

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east ...

area and worked in the building trade. He died on 23 March 1989.''"The Wednesday Boys"'', Jason Dickinson & John Brodie, Pickard Communication, , pages 101, Gives general biography.

Club career

Early Years

Fallon originally played

Gaelic football Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by kic ...

before he joined Brideville. While playing for

he made the first of three scoring appearances in

finals. Fallon played in the

1932–33 FAI Cup The FAI Cup 1932/33 was the twelfth edition of Ireland's premier cup competition, The Football Association of Ireland Challenge Cup or FAI Cup. The tournament began on 26 December 1932 and concluded on 26 March 1933 with the final replay held at ...

final against

. His Dolphin teammates included Joe Kendrick and

Jeremiah Robinson Jeremiah Robinson was an Irish soccer player during the 1920s and 1930s. He was also known as "Sam". Robinson was a tough defender during this era in the League of Ireland and was part of the Bohemians team of 1927/28 who won every trophy o ...

. Fallon scored in the 3–3 draw but Dolphin lost the replay 3–0.

Notts County

Fallon signed for

in February 1934. Between

1934 Events January–February * January 1 – The International Telecommunication Union, a specialist agency of the League of Nations, is established. * January 15 – The 8.0 1934 Nepal–Bihar earthquake, Nepal–Bihar earthquake strik ...

and

1938 Events January * January 1 ** The Constitution of Estonia#Third Constitution (de facto 1938–1940, de jure 1938–1992), new constitution of Estonia enters into force, which many consider to be the ending of the Era of Silence and the a ...

he made 120 English League appearances and scored 20 goals. Fallon returned to County for a second spell in 1946–47 making a further 15 league appearances and scoring 3 goals.Profile from www.doingthe92.com
/ref>

Sheffield Wednesday

Fallon signed for

from

for a transfer few of £3,000 plus Jack Roy. He was signed by Wednesday manager

Jimmy McMullan James McMullan (26 March 1895 – 28 November 1964) was a Scottish football player and manager. He won 16 Scotland caps as a player at half-back and was part of the famous ''"Wembley Wizards"'' side of 1928. Playing career Early life and Th ...

as a replacement for

Ellis Rimmer Ellis Rimmer (2 January 1907 – 16 March 1965) was an English professional footballer who played for Tranmere Rovers, Sheffield Wednesday and Ipswich Town. He was a left winger who was quite tall and scored his fair share of headed goals. His c ...

. He made his debut for Wednesday on 19 March 1938 in a 1–0 home defeat to

Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. As the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. In Barnsley, the population was 96,888 while the wider Borough has ...

, playing in all ten of the remaining League games of that 1937–38 season. He formed an exciting left wing partnership with

Charlie Napier Charles Edward Napier (8 October 1910 – 5 September 1973) was a Scottish footballer who played for Celtic (winning the Scottish Cup in 1931 and 1933), Derby County, Sheffield Wednesday, Falkirk (unofficial wartime competitions only) and Stenho ...

in the 1938–39 season, appearing in 40 matches in all competitions, scoring 11 goals as Wednesday missed out on promotion from the

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 ...

to city rivals

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 ...

by one point.Sheffield Wednesday Archive
Details Sheffield Wednesday career. One of Fallon's best displays for Wednesday was against

Norwich City Norwich City Football Club (also known as The Canaries or The Yellows) is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. The club competes in the EFL Championship following their relegation from the Premier League in the 20 ...

in November 1938 when he teased and tormented the Canaries' defence in a 7–0 win."''The Men Who Made Sheffield Wednesday Football Club''", Tony Matthews, Fallon had a lucky escape just before Christmas 1938 when the car he was travelling in, together with fellow Wednesday player Ted Catlin, skidded in snow at

Wadsley Bridge Wadsley Bridge is a suburb of Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, northwest of the city centre. The area is a mixture of residential housing and small industrial and commercial premises. The suburb falls within the Hillsborough ward of the City ...

and hit a telegraph pole. Both players went to hospital and were out of the team for several weeks.''"One Hundred Years at Hillsborough"'', Jason Dickinson, , page 94, Gives details of motor accident. On 2 September 1939 Fallon appeared in the final Sheffield Wednesday match before the outbreak of 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 ...

against

Plymouth Argyle Plymouth Argyle Football Club is a professional football club based in the city of Plymouth, Devon, England. As of the 2021–22 season, the team are competing in League One, the third tier of English football. They have played at Home Park, ...

. After the war Fallon returned to Wednesday, but he did not figure in their plans and was given a free transfer back to Notts County in June 1946.

League of Ireland

Following the outbreak of the

, Fallon returned to Ireland where he joined the

Irish Army The Irish Army, known simply as the Army ( ga, an tArm), is the land component of the Defence Forces of Ireland.The Defence Forces are made up of the Permanent Defence Forces – the standing branches – and the Reserve Defence Forces. The Ar ...

and played for three different clubs –

, Shelbourne and

Dundalk Dundalk ( ; ga, Dún Dealgan ), meaning "the fort of Dealgan", is the county town (the administrative centre) of County Louth, Ireland. The town is on the Castletown River, which flows into Dundalk Bay on the east coast of Ireland. It is h ...

. He played for Rovers during the 1939–40 season, helping them win the FAI Cup. Fallon scored in the 3–0 win in the final against

Sligo Rovers Sligo Rovers Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Ruagairí Shligigh) is an Irish professional football club playing in the Premier Division of the League of Ireland. The club is based in Sligo in the west of Ireland. The club was founded in 1928 ...

. The 1940–41 season saw Fallon switch to Shelbourne. During the 1943–44 season Fallon helped Shels win a league double, winning both the league itself and the

League of Ireland Shield The League of Ireland Shield ( ga, Sciath Sraithe na hÉireann) is a defunct Irish football tournament which was introduced when the League of Ireland started in 1921 and ran uninterrupted until 1972. It was played before the league season began ...

. Shels almost won a treble but lost 3–2 to Shamrock Rovers in the FAI Cup final. Fallon did however manage to score his third FAI Cup final goal.

Exeter City

In the 1947–48 season Fallon played for

Exeter City Exeter City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Exeter, Devon, England. The team play in , the third tier of the English football league system. Known as "the Grecians", the origin of their nickname is subject to ...

. Among his teammates at City was his younger brother, Peter Fallon, who also played for

and

Queens Park Rangers Queens Park Rangers Football Club, commonly abbreviated to QPR, is a professional football club based in Shepherd's Bush, West London, England, which compete in the . After a nomadic early existence, they have played home matches at Loftus Ro ...

in the 1940s.

Peterborough United

Fallon finished his playing career with

Peterborough United Peterborough United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England. The team compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Peterborough have a long-standing ...

, then playing in the

Midland Football League The Midland Football League is an English football league that was founded in 2014 by the merger of the former Midland Alliance and Midland Combination. The league has four divisions that sit at levels 9–12 of the football pyramid. History Th ...

. His career ended when he suffered a broken collar bone playing for Peterborough reserves against

International career

Ireland

Between 1934 and 1939 Fallon made nine appearances and scored twice for

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 ...

. He made his first five appearances while playing for

and his last four while playing for

. Fallon made his international debut on 16 December 1934 in a 4–2 home defeat against

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

. Fallon's first three international appearances were all against the same opponents. Fallon scored his first goal for Ireland on 6 December 1936 against Hungary. He opened the scoring after twenty minutes with a long range effort. However Hungary eventually won 3–2. He scored his second in a 3–2 win against

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

on 13 November 1938. Once again he opened the scoring, this time after ten minutes. Two minutes later he provided

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 ...

with an assist from a corner to make it 2–0. During his time playing for Ireland, Fallon also featured in two European tours. In May 1937 Fallon played in away games 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 ...

and

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. In May 1939 he also played in away games against Hungary and

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 ...

. These were the last two games Ireland played before the outbreak of the

League of Ireland XI

During the

Fallon also played for the

League of Ireland XI The League of Ireland XI, more recently referred to as the ''Airtricity League XI'' for sponsorship reasons, is the representative team of the League of Ireland, the national association football league of the Republic of Ireland. For much of its ...

. During The Emergency, the League of Ireland XI played regularly against the

Irish League XI The Irish League representative team was the representative side of the Irish Football League, the national league for football in Northern Ireland from 1922 and, prior to that the league for Ireland. The Irish League was suspended from 1941–42 t ...

and the Irish Army XI. During the 1941–42 season Fallon also played for the Irish Army XI against the League of Ireland XI and helped the Army team win 4–1.

Honours

Dolphin A dolphin is an aquatic mammal within the infraorder Cetacea. Dolphin species belong to the families Delphinidae (the oceanic dolphins), Platanistidae (the Indian river dolphins), Iniidae (the New World river dolphins), Pontoporiidae (the ...

**''Runners Up'': 1932–33

Shamrock Rovers Shamrock Rovers Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Ruagairí na Seamróige) is an Irish association football club based in Tallaght, South Dublin. The club's senior team competes in the League of Ireland Premier Division and it is the most su ...

**''Winners'': 1939–40

Shelbourne

**''Winners'': 1943–44 *

**''Runners Up'': 1943–44

Notes

* Some sources give Fallon's birthplace as

Larne Larne (, , the name of a Gaelic Ireland, Gaelic territory) is a town on the east coast of County Antrim, Northern Ireland, with a population of 18,755 at the United Kingdom census, 2011, 2011 Census. It is a major passenger and freight Roll-on/ro ...

County Antrim County Antrim (named after the town of Antrim, ) is one of six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and has a population o ...

, while others give it as

Killarney Killarney ( ; ga, Cill Airne , meaning 'church of sloes') is a town in County Kerry, southwestern Ireland. The town is on the northeastern shore of Lough Leane, part of Killarney National Park, and is home to St Mary's Cathedral, Ross Castl ...

County Kerry County Kerry ( gle, Contae Chiarraí) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the South-West Region and forms part of the province of Munster. It is named after the Ciarraige who lived in part of the present county. The population of the co ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fallon, Willie 1912 births 1989 deaths Republic of Ireland men's association footballers Republic of Ireland men's international footballers Dundalk F.C. players Shelbourne F.C. players Notts County F.C. players Sheffield Wednesday F.C. players Exeter City F.C. players Shamrock Rovers F.C. players Peterborough United F.C. players League of Ireland XI players League of Ireland players English Football League players Irish Army soldiers Men's association football outside forwards Dolphin F.C. (Ireland) players