William Walsh (31 May 1921 – 28 July 2006) 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, rugb ...

. Walsh played for several clubs, but most notably with

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 t ...

, for whom he made more than 100 appearances. As an international, Walsh represented four national teams: after playing for the England Schoolboys XI, he then became a dual Irish international, playing for both Ireland teams – the FAI XI and the IFA XI. In 1949, he was a member of the FAI XI that defeated

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 ...

2–0 at

Goodison Park Goodison Park is a association football, football stadium in the Walton, Liverpool, Walton area of Liverpool, England. It has been the home stadium of Premier League club Everton F.C. since its completion in 1892. Located in a residential area ...

, becoming the first non-United Kingdom team to beat England at home. He then emigrated to

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...

and also played in an unofficial game for their

national team A national sports team (commonly known as a national team or a national side) is a team that represents a nation, rather than a particular club or region, in an international sport. The term is most commonly associated with team sports, for exa ...

. In 1960 Walsh was the selector of the Auckland FA with son, Kevin, in the side. Walsh eventually moved to Australia and settled in

Noosa, Queensland The Shire of Noosa is a local government area about north of Brisbane in the Sunshine Coast district of South East Queensland, Australia. The shire covers an area of . It existed as a local government entity from 1910 until 2008, when it was a ...

. In 2003, he and several other former Manchester City players returned for the last game at

Maine Road Maine Road was a football stadium in Moss Side, Manchester, England, that was home to Manchester City F.C. from 1923 to 2003. It hosted FA Cup semi-finals, the Charity Shield, a League Cup final and England matches. Maine Road's highest a ...

. He died on 28 July 2006 at the age of 85 and his ashes were interred at the Garden of Remembrance at the

City of Manchester Stadium The City of Manchester Stadium in Manchester, England, also known as the Etihad Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is the home of Premier League club Manchester City F.C., with a domestic football capacity of 53,400, making it the 6th-largest ...

Playing career

Early years

Walsh was born in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

, but moved to Gorton, Manchester, at the age of seven. There, he attended St Gregory's School and eventually played for the England Schoolboys XI. He later became the subject of a dispute between

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 Salford to the west. The ...

and

, who both claimed he had signed for them. After being signed by a United youth coach who also coached at his school, Walsh was taken to City by his mother, where he was given a job as an office boy.

The Football Association The Football Association (also known as The FA) is the governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest football association in the world a ...

intervened and gave Walsh the choice of clubs; he chose City, but the club was also given a fine of 5

guineas The guinea (; commonly abbreviated gn., or gns. in plural) was a coin, minted in Great Britain between 1663 and 1814, that contained approximately one-quarter of an ounce of gold. The name came from the Guinea region in West Africa, from where m ...

Manchester City

Walsh subsequently signed as an amateur with for Manchester City in 1936 and then turned professional in June 1938. 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 ...

delayed Walsh's full debut for City, his first appearance coming in a

Wartime League The Wartime League was a football league competition held in England during World War II, which replaced the suspended Football League. The exclusion of the FA Cup in these years saw the creation of the Football League War Cup and it was a friendly ...

game at home to

Stoke City Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...

on 18 November 1939, although he played out of position at

outside left Forwards (also known as attackers) are outfield positions in an association football team who play the furthest up the pitch and are therefore most responsible for scoring goals as well as assisting them. As with any attacking player, the role ...

. During the war, he worked as a miner and made 227 wartime league appearances for City, scoring 8 goals. He also played a further 67 Wartime Cup games. His wartime appearances became a City record. As well as playing for City, Walsh also made guest appearances for

Oldham Athletic Oldham Athletic Association Football Club is a professional football club in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. The history of Oldham Athletic be ...

Rochdale Rochdale ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, at the foothills of the South Pennines in the dale on the River Roch, northwest of Oldham and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Bor ...

and Manchester United. Walsh made his senior debut for Manchester City in the Third Round of the

1945–46 FA Cup The 1945–46 FA Cup was the 65th season of the world's oldest football cup competition, the Football Association Challenge Cup, generally known as the FA Cup, and the first to be held after the Second World War. Derby County were the winners, bea ...

against Barrow on 5 January 1946. The Football League did not resume until August 1946, but Walsh made his league debut on the opening day of the 1946–47 season, scoring the second goal in a 3–0 away win over

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 ...

. Walsh made 13 appearances in 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 ...

that season and helped City win the division title. However, he missed out on an actual medal because of his lack of games. Over the next three seasons, he established himself as a regular in the side and went on to make 118 competitive appearances, mainly as a right-half, although he would also play at left-half.

Later years

After leaving Manchester City, Walsh became a player-manager with

Chelmsford City Chelmsford City Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in Chelmsford, Essex, England. Currently members of they play at the Melbourne Stadium. History Chelmsford Chelmsford Football Club was established in 1878 by members of ...

on 11 April 1951. Then in August of the same year, despite offers from Lincoln City and

Port Vale Port Vale Football Club are a professional football club based in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England, which compete in . Vale are the only English Football League club not to be named after a place; their name being a reference to the valley of ...

to resume his playing career, he became player-manager with Canterbury City. He stayed with Canterbury until February 1954 when he was appointed manager of

Grimsby Town Grimsby Town Football Club is a professional football club based in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, England, that in the 2022–23 season will compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system, following the victory in t ...

, where he succeeded

Bill Shankly William Shankly (2 September 1913 – 29 September 1981) was a Scottish football player and manager, who is best known for his time as manager of Liverpool. Shankly brought success to Liverpool, gaining promotion to the First Division and winnin ...

. Walsh later emigrated to

, where he came out of retirement and played for Auckland side Eastern Suburbs. On 10 August 1957, he also played for an Auckland XI in a friendly against

Austria Wien Fußballklub Austria Wien AG (; known in English as Austria Vienna, and usually shortened to Austria (German: Österreich) in German-speaking countries, is an Austrian association football club from the capital city of Vienna. It has won the mos ...

. The team was captained by Ken Armstrong, a former

international while

Ken Hough Kenneth William Hough (24 October 1928 – 20 September 2009) was a cricketer and association football player who represented both New Zealand and Australia in football. He also represented New Zealand in Test cricket. Hough was born in Aubu ...

, an Australian who later played both

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...

and

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by st ...

for New Zealand, played in goal. The Auckland XI beat Austria Wien 3–0. Austria Wien had previously put fourteen goals past the New Zealand national team in earlier games. Walsh would also later play one unofficial game for New Zealand against a visiting English FA XI at the age of 40. He then moved to Australia where he worked for the

Norwich Union Norwich Union was the name of insurance company Aviva's British arm before June 2009. It was originally established in 1797. It was listed on the London Stock Exchange and was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. On 29 April 2008, Aviva ...

and coached both

Melbourne Hakoah Melbourne Hakoah is a defunct Australian sports club which had a predominantly Jewish Australian supporter base, akin to Hakoah Vienna. The club's best known arm was its soccer club. History The club was founded in 1927, and within a decade w ...

and Melbourne Hungaria. In 1967, he led the latter club to a

Victorian Premier League The National Premier Leagues Victoria, commonly known as NPL Victoria, is a semi-professional soccer league in Victoria, Australia. The league is a part of the National Premier Leagues, and is the highest level within the Victorian soccer lea ...

and

Australian Cup The Australian Cup is a Victoria Racing Club Group 1 Thoroughbred horse race for horses three years old and older, held under Weight for Age conditions, over a distance of 2000 metres, at Flemington Racecourse, Melbourne, Australia in March duri ...

double.

International career

When Walsh began his international career in 1944 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

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. ...

-based FAI – claimed jurisdiction over the whole of Ireland and selected players from the whole island. As a result, several notable Irish players from this era, including Walsh, played for both teams.

IFA XI

Between 1944 and 1948 Walsh played six times for the IFA XI. On 9 September 1944 he played for the IFA XI in an 8–4 defeat against a ''Combined Services XI'' at

Windsor Park Windsor Park is a association football, football stadium in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is the home ground of Linfield F.C. who own the land the stadium is built on, while the Irish Football Association own and operate the stadium and pay Li ...

. This team was basically a

Great Britain XI The United Kingdom national football team is a football team that represents the United Kingdom. Despite football being the most popular sport in the country, the team has not played since 1965 as separate teams represent each home nation ( Eng ...

and featured, among others,

Matt Busby Sir Alexander Matthew Busby (26 May 1909 – 20 January 1994) was a Scottish football player and manager, who managed Manchester United between 1945 and 1969 and again for the second half of the 1970–71 season. He was the first manager of an ...

Stanley Matthews Sir Stanley Matthews, CBE (1 February 1915 – 23 February 2000) was an English footballer who played as an outside right. Often regarded as one of the greatest players of the British game, he is the only player to have been knighted while sti ...

Tommy Lawton Thomas Lawton (6 October 1919 – 6 November 1996) was an English football player and manager. A strong centre-forward with excellent all-round attacking skills, he was able to head the ball with tremendous power and accuracy. Born in F ...

and

Stan Mortensen Stanley Harding Mortensen (26 May 1921 – 22 May 1991) was an English professional footballer, most famous for his part in the 1953 FA Cup Final (subsequently known as the "Matthews Final"), in which he became the only player ever to score a ha ...

. Walsh helped the IFA XI gain some respectable results, including a 2–0 win 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 ...

on 4 October 1947, a 2–2 draw with

on 5 November 1947 and a 2–0 win against

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 ...

on 10 March 1948. He also played against England in a 6–2 defeat on 9 October 1948. He made his last appearance for the IFA XI on 17 November 1948 in a 3–2 defeat against Scotland.

FAI XI

Between 1946 and 1950 Walsh also made 9 appearances for the FAI XI, making his FAI debut in a 1–0 defeat to

on 30 September 1946 at

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 ...

. This was the first time the FAI XI had played against England. He was also a member of the FAI XI that defeated

2–0 at

, becoming the first non-British team to beat England at home. Walsh made his last appearance for the FAI XI on 10 May 1950 in a 5–1 defeat to

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...

Honours

Player

;Manchester City *

champions: 1946–47

Manager

;Melbourne Hungaria *

winners: 1967 *

champions: 1967

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Walsh, Billy 1921 births 2006 deaths Association footballers from Dublin (city) Republic of Ireland association footballers Dual Irish international footballers Ireland (FAI) international footballers Pre-1950 IFA international footballers Manchester City F.C. players Oldham Athletic A.F.C. wartime guest players Rochdale A.F.C. wartime guest players Manchester United F.C. wartime guest players Canterbury City F.C. players Chelmsford City F.C. players Eastern Suburbs AFC players Republic of Ireland football managers Chelmsford City F.C. managers Canterbury City F.C. managers Grimsby Town F.C. managers Melbourne Hakoah managers Association football midfielders England youth international footballers Footballers from Manchester People from Gorton Irish association footballers (before 1923) British emigrants to Australia British emigrants to New Zealand English footballers