"ENGLAND'S
DISPLAY WITHOUT A SAVING GRACE"
Daily Herald |
Officials |
England |
FIFA ruling on substitutes |
Ireland |
Referee
(black)
John
Alexander
Mowat 42/43 (1906), Rutherglen |
The FIFA ruling of allowing a substitute to replace an injured player prior to the 44th minute, and a goalkeeper at any time, is in place. |
blue flag
Linesmen
red flag |
John Holden
Clough 39 (17 October 1909),
Bolton |
G. Black |
|
|
England
Team |
|
Rank |
No official ranking system established; ELO rating 3rd to 5th |
Colours |
The
1949 home uniform -
White collared jerseys, blue shorts, red socks. |
P 5th of 43, W 2 - D 0 - L 3 - F 9 - A 10. |
Captain |
Billy Wright |
Manager |
Walter Winterbottom, 36 (31 March 1913), appointed as FA national director of coaching/team manager on 8 July 1946; |
8th of 90, W 5 - D 0 - L
3 - F 22 - A
12. |
P 23rd
of 139, W 16 - D 3 - L 4 - F 75 - A 24. |
¹ |
Team chosen by Selection Committee headed by Arthur Drewry on
Monday, 12 September, in Sheffield. |
England
Lineup |
|
three changes
to the previous match (Mozley,
Harris& Pye>Ellerington, Mullen & Rowley) |
league position
(12 September) |
|
|
Williams, Bert F. |
29 233 days |
31 January 1920 |
G |
Wolverhampton Wanderers FC
(FL TOP) |
2 |
3ᵍᵃ |
|
14th keeper to face a penalty kick |
|
|
|
687 |
2 |
Mozley, Bert |
26 |
21 September 1923 |
RB |
Derby County FC
(FL 7th) |
1 |
0 |
thirtieth County player to represent
England |
3 |
Aston, John |
28 18 days |
3 September 1921 |
LB |
Manchester United FC
(FL 2nd) |
8 |
0 |
4 |
Wright, William A. |
25 227 days |
6 February 1924 |
RHB |
Wolverhampton Wanderers FC
(FL TOP) |
23 |
1 |
5 |
Franklin,
Cornelius |
27 240 days |
24 January 1922 |
CHB |
Stoke
City FC (FL 13th) |
23 |
0 |
6 |
Dickinson, James W. |
24 150 days |
24 April 1925 |
LHB |
Portsmouth FC (FL 9th) |
3 |
0 |
688 |
7 |
Harris, Peter P. |
23 276 days |
19 December 1925 |
OR |
Portsmouth FC (FL
9th) |
1 |
0 |
eighth Portsmouth player to represent
England |
8 |
Morris, John |
25 359 days |
27 September 1923 |
IR |
Derby County FC
(FL 7th) |
3 |
3 |
final app
1949 |
689 |
9 |
Pye, Jesse |
29 273 days |
22 December 1919 |
CF |
Wolverhampton Wanderers FC
(FL TOP) |
1 |
0 |
the 22nd Wanderer to represent
England |
only app
1949 |
10 |
Mannion,
Wilfred
J. |
31 128 days |
16 May 1918 |
IL |
Middlesbrough FC
(FL 21st) |
16 |
8 |
11 |
Finney,
Thomas |
27 169 days |
5 April 1922 |
OL |
Preston
North End FC (FL2
11th) |
19 |
14 |
unused substitute: |
Phil Taylor (Liverpool FC (FL 4th)). |
records: |
First foreign country (non-Home Country) to beat England on their own
soil. But it must be remembered that nine of the Irish team played in
England's own Football League. The defeat ends a sequence of fifteen victorious friendly home
matches that started back in 1923. First time, post-war, that England have failed to score at
home. Not since
9 April 1938 vs. Scotland, have they failed to score at home. |
England were set-up in Southport prior to this match, using the Haig
Avenue ground to train on. |
|
2-3-5 |
Williams - Mozley, Aston - Wright, Franklin, Dickinson -
Harris,
Morris, Pye, Mannion, Finney. |
Averages: |
Age |
27 years 91
days |
Appearances/Goals |
9.1 |
2.4 |
|
|
Republic
of Ireland
Team |
|
Rank |
No official ranking system established; ELO rating 30th to 29th |
Colours |
Green jerseys with white collar,
white shorts, white and green hooped socks. |
Captain |
Johnny Carey |
Selection |
Selection Committee on Thursday, 15 September 1949. |
Republic
of Ireland
Lineup |
|
Godwin, Thomas F. |
22 32 days |
20 August 1927 |
G |
Shamrock Rovers FC |
5 |
7ᵍᵃ |
2 |
Carey, John
J. |
30 210 days |
23 February 1919 |
RB |
Manchester United FC, England |
22 |
2 |
also has seven appearances for Ireland |
3 |
Aherne, Thomas |
30 238 days |
26 January 1919 |
LB |
Luton Town AFC, England |
4 |
0 |
also has three appearances for Ireland |
4 |
Walsh, William
R. |
28 113 days |
31 May 1921 |
RHB |
Manchester City FC, England |
7 |
0 |
also has five appearances for Ireland |
5 |
Martin, Cornelius J. |
26 185 days |
20 March 1923 |
CHB |
Aston Villa FC, England |
12 |
3 |
|
ninth
penalty against scored
(19th overall) |
also has five appearances for Ireland |
|
|
|
|
6 |
Moroney, Thomas |
25 315 days |
10 November 1923 |
LHB |
West Ham United FC, England |
6 |
0 |
7 |
Corr, Peter |
26 90 days |
23 June 1923 |
OR |
Everton FC, England |
3 |
0 |
8
|
Farrell, Peter D. |
27 36 days |
16 August 1922 |
IR |
Everton FC, England |
9 |
1 |
also has seven appearances for Ireland |
9 |
Walsh, David J. |
26 146 days |
28 April 1923 |
CF |
West Bromwich Albion FC, England |
11 |
3 |
also has eight appearances for Ireland |
10 |
Desmond, Peter |
22 302 days |
23 November 1926 |
IL |
Middlesbrough FC, England |
2 |
0 |
11
|
O'Connor, Thomas A. |
21 173 days |
1 April 1928 |
OL |
Shamrock Rovers FC |
2 |
0 |
unused substitutes: |
not named |
team notes: |
Johnny Carey has played three
times against England for Ireland. Con Martin, Davy Walsh, Willie
Walsh and Peter Farrell twice. Bud Aherne once. |
|
2-3-5 |
Godwin - Carey, Aherne - W.Walsh,
Martin, Moroney - Corr, Farrell, D.Walsh, Desmond,
O'Connor. |
Averages: |
Age |
26 years 70
days |
Appearances/Goals |
7.5 |
0.6 |
|
|
Match Report by
Mike Payne |
This
was truly an amazing victory by the plucky Irishmen on their first visit to
English soil. Every one of their team was a hear as they defied all of England's
efforts.
Yet at the start, there was no inkling as to
the drama that was to follow. Indeed, England could have scored after only
20 seconds. Straight from the kick-off, Wilf Mannion sent Tom Finney away
and from the winger's centre, Jesse Pye headed just wide.
England
immediately took hold of the game. A move between Johnny Morris and Pye
ended with the centre-forward having his shot blocked. Finney that shot
straight at Godwin when it seemed he must score.
This early
dominance encouraged England but the Irish defended well and they were
dangerous when they broke quickly. Dave Walsh and Farrell provided
their main threat and they caused England some problems with Jimmy
Dickinson particularly suspect.
After 32 minutes there came the
first hint of what lay ahead. A quick pass by Moroney sent Desmond free
inside the box. Bert Mozley, trying to recover, succeeded only in bringing
the number-ten down from behind for an obvious penalty. It was Martin who
scored from the spot to give Eire a sensational lead.
The second
half was one-way traffic. With a swirling wind at their backs, England
threw everything at the beleaguered Irish defence. They had 90% of the
possession and a whole series of amazing escapes somehow left Eire's lead
intact.
Pye, Morris and Finney all hesitated when in good
positions, Morris shot straight at Godwin from ten yards and then Pye did
the same. Twice the inside-forwards dawdled with the goal at their mercy
and Godwin made flying saves from both Peter Harris and Wright; and when
the goalkeeper was beaten, Bill Walsh and Martin cleared shots from the
goal-line.
So, in rising excitement, the Irish clung on. Then, with
only five minutes to go, the unbelievable happened. With England pushing
everyone forward, Desmond's pass put Farrell through and suddenly the
match was all over as the number-eight shot past Bert Williams.
|
Match Report by
Norman Giller |
England were beaten on
English soil by a non-British team for the first time in their history.
Nine of the Irish players were with Football League clubs and two from
Shamrock Rovers but all of them were born in Ireland. Johnny Carey was a
magnificent captain, and Con Martin (penalty) and Peter Farrell scored in
each half to produce a stunning result. Derby defender Bert Mozley made
his England debut at right-back on his 26th birthday. It was an unhappy
debut, too, for Wolves centre-forward Jesse Pye and Pompey's John Harris,
who struck a shot against the bar with the score at 1-0. It sounded as if
the majority of the 52,000 fans packed into Goodison were supporting the
Irish as they battled their way to an amazing victory. Even big-hearted
Billy Wright could not turn back the green tide that swept across the
Goodison pitch. It was one of those days when nothing would go right for
England. They had a strong wind at their backs in the second half, but
still could not break down the Irish defence in which captain Johnny Carey
was a colossus. England might have had three or four goals, but the ball
just would not go into the net. |
Match Report
as appears in the F.A. Yearbook 1950-51, page 22 |
The opening of the 1949-50 season presented a new problem - to find a team
and reserves to represent England, should she be called upon to take part
in the World Cup Tournament in Brazil. The Selection Committee had to test
players whose performance in League games had been outstanding, bearing in
mind the type of player required to cope with fast-moving Continental
football, and they had to find the right blend of team, particularly in
the forward-line, where there had been many changes in the previous
season. England's performance in the season's international matches which,
though the International Championship was regained, may appear rather
disappointing, must be viewed in the light of this problem.
The
international season opened on September 22nd with a severe shock for
England, when Ireland (Eire) won their first match on English soil by 2
goals to 0. Luck was certainly with the Irish throughout, but England's
experimental forward-line, including two new caps, Pye and Harris,
persistently missed chances. Ireland's first goal came in the 32nd minute
when Martin scored from a penalty, making the score 1-0 at the interval.
The second half saw England attacking and there was an extraordinary
series of escapes for Ireland. Pye, Morris and Finney all hesitated at
close range, while Godwin, the Irish goalkeeper, made several remarkable
saves from shots by Harris and Wright. Then with only five minutes left
and England up in attack, Farrell broke through to score Ireland's second
goal.
Domestic
Football Results
(21 September 1949) |
The
Football League Division Three South:
Bournemouth & Boscombe
Athletic 3 Wolverhampton
Wanderers 1
Dean Court, Bournemouth (8,899)
Cheny, Lunn, McGibbon ~ Stone |
|
Reading 2 Millwall 0
Elm Park, Reading
(13,368) Allen
(2) |
|
|
|
|
Although another home win
took Reading to the top, they were to lose at home to Notts
County, three days later, and had still played two games more than
them. Both Bournemouth and Reading finished in mid-table. Bristol
City were 11th and Millwall were 15th. The Londoners were to
finish bottom, but avoided having to apply for re-election,
because the division was extended to 24 clubs. |
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|
|
In
Other News....
It was on 21 September 1949 that Mao Zedong, chairman of the
Chinese Communist Party, announced that a central government was
to be formed in the country which was to become the People's
Republic of China. |
|
|
Source Notes |
TheFA.com
Original newspaper reports
British Pathé |
|
Rothman's Yearbooks
Mike Payne's England: The Complete Post-War Record
Norman Giller, Football Author |
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