The England Party for the Continental Tour Pre-Portugal  May 1955
Player	Birthdate	Age	Pos	Club	starts	subs	App	G	Capt
Bentley, T.F. Roy	17 May 1924	31	IR	Chelsea FC	11	0	11	8	0
Blunstone, Frank	17 October 1934	20	OL	Chelsea FC	3	0	3	0	0
Byrne, Roger W.	8 September 1929	25	LB	Manchester United FC	12	0	12	0	0
Dickinson, James W.	24 April 1925	30	LHB	Portsmouth FC	39	0	39	0	0
Eckersley, William	16 July 1925	29	LB	Blackburn Rovers FC	17	0	17	0	0
	Eckersely was drafted into the Party on 9 May as a replacement for Meadows
Edwards, Duncan	1 October 1936	18	LHB	Manchester United FC	3	0	3	0	0
Flowers, Ronald	28 July 1934	20	HB	Wolverhampton Wanderers FC	1	0	1	0	0
Hooper, Harry	14 June 1933	21	OR	West Ham United FC	0	0	0	0	0
Lofthouse, Nathaniel	27 August 1925	29	CF	Bolton Wanderers FC	25	0	25	25	0
Matthews, Reginald D.	20 December 1932	22	GK	Coventry City FC	0	0	0	0ᵍᵃ	0
Matthews, Stanley	1 February 1915	40	OR	Blackpool FC	44	0	44	10	0
Meadows, James	21 July 1931	23	RB	Manchester City FC	1	0	1	0	0
	Meadows withdrew from the party on 9 May because of a knee injury.
Quixall, Albert	9 August 1933	21	IF	Sheffield Wednesday FC	4	0	4	0	0
Revie, Donald G.	10 July 1927	27	IR	Manchester City FC	3	0	3	0	0
Sillett, R. Peter T.	1 February 1933	22	LB	Chelsea FC	2	0	2	0	0
Williams, Bert F.	31 January 1920	35	GK	Wolverhampton Wanderers FC	22	0	22	29ᵍᵃ	0
Wilshaw, Dennis J.	11 March 1926	29	IL	Wolverhampton Wanderers FC	6	0	6	7	0
Wright, William A.	6 February 1924	31	RHB	Wolverhampton Wanderers FC	67	0	67	3	52

All information is complete to and including England's last match, the sixth of the 1954-55 season, against Spain on 18 May 1955.

Diary

Monday, 18 April 1955 - The seventeen names that will make up the party for England's tour of the Continent next month has been released. The party consists of ten of the players who overwhelmed Scotland, three other internationals in Dickinson, Bentley and Quixall, and four new players. The only absentee from the team that defeated Scotland is Ken Armstrong. The player he replaced, Len Phillips, is also omitted, still suffering with the injury that withdrew him from that team.

Monday, 9 May 1955 - Bill Eckersley, the Blackburn Rovers left-back, has been selected to accompany the England party on their close season tour of France, Spain and Portugal, despite not playing for England since November 1953. He takes the place of Jimmy Meadows, the Manchester City left-back, who tore ligaments in his left knee after he fell on the ball in the twentieth minute and limped off out of the FA Cup Final on Saturday.
He joins up with the rest of the party on London tonight, although Don Revie has flown home to Manchester with the rest of the City team.

Tuesday, 10 May 1955 - Don Revie flew back to London and the party all reported fit as they trained and practised at Finchley FC. In a practise match against a scratch team composed of Fulham and Charlton Athletic players, as well as the England reserves. The match ended 2-2, and England lined up as: Williams; Sillett and Byrne; Flowers, Wright and Edwards; Matthews, Revie, Lofthouse, Wilshaw and Blunstone.
Ron Flowers, the wonder boy of Wolverhampton, will get his first England cap against France in the shallow bowl of Colombes Stadium on Sunday. Another youngster, Chelsea right-back Peter Sillett, is the only other new cap. The England team has not been announced officially, but it has been revealed. The team will train in London again tomorrow, Charlton Athletic providing the opposition, and taking a break on Thursday.

Thursday, 12 May 1955 - The England party concluded their home preparations today with light training in Finchley. Then, accompanied by Walter Winterbottom, they watched films of the France vs. Spain and France vs. Germany matches.

Friday, 13 May 1955 - The England players and officials fly to Paris.

Saturday, 14 May 1955 - The England team is officially announced.

Sunday, 15 May 1955 - "So we are back in the football doghouse―and with tails well down. England's exhibition against France here today was NEVER INSPIRING AND OFTEN PATHETIC. How we could look so full of fight against Scotland, then descend to today's basement level needs a lot of explaining. Form is fickle, of course, but when a team shows the right spirit much can be forgiven. THIS ENGLAND TEAM SEEMED SADLY LACKING IN ENTHUSIASM. The winning goal was a penalty, the rights of which could be argued about from here to Madrid, where we play the next match, but nothing alters my opinion that France won deservedly with more forceful, more methodical, and more skilful football. After 37 minutes Peter Sillett half tripped, half fell against French outside-left Roger Vincent. Possibly eight referees out of ten would have waived the penalty claim, but the German, M. Schmetzer, pointed to the spot and centre-forward Raymond Kopa scored. A torrential hailstorm was in progress at the time and Bert Williams slipped on the soaked turf just as Kopa shot." - Clifford Webb, The Daily Herald.

Monday, 16 May 1955 - The England players and officials leave Paris in the afternoon, by air for Madrid. Both Dennis Wilshaw and Don Revie are nursing injuries following yesterdays match, but both are expected to be fit.
Madrid is in festive mood, the opening of Parliament and bull-fighting, as well as the match, is attracting many more thousands of visitors. Upon arrival, the party went straight to their headquarters, based in the Hotel Fenix at Torrelodones, a health resort twenty miles from the capital. The weather too, is vastly different to that of Paris, instead of being wet and chilly, it is sunny and hot, reaching about 80°F.

Tuesday, 17 May 1955 - The selectors have rung the changes for the match against Spain, making three changes. Bizarrely, as the Selection Committee were making their way to the conference room in the Hotel Fenix, the elevator they were using got jammed, and in the twenty minutes they were stuck, they named the team. Jimmy Dickinson comes in for Ron Flowers, who had had a poor debut. Roy Bentley replaces the injured Don Revie and Albert Quixall replaces Frank Blunstone, who also had a poor match against France. Quixall will play on the inside, however, with Wilshaw moving to the outside.

Wednesday, 18 May 1955 - The Battle of Madrid - "England drew 1―1 with Spain, but this was not sport, it was war. The scene, the setting and the occasion, hailed as the greatest in Spanish sporting history, turned against themselves and made it an afternoon of sheer butchery. The sound and the fury in the burning Castillian sun, the stunning, soaring four-decker stadium reaching for the sky made it a tremendous spectacle in sport. But it became a mockery of all the quality, artistry and finesse which football can offer. The Spaniards made a furious start. For half an hour it was Spain, speed, skill and fire. Every attack was beautifully directed by Kubala, a superb centre-forward. Spain had this England defence as taut as a guitar string. Only desperate interceptions, last-minute tackles and cat-like goalkeeping kept us alive. Suddenly [Matthews] was sending Bentley and Lofthouse through glaring gaps in the wide-strung Spanish defence. The Spaniards became a little unsure of themselves. And after 38 minutes, they were shattered. Bentley hit a master shot from 20 yards, snuggling the ball under the bar at the post. Within the minute Wilshaw had the ball in again but was given offside. For Spain this was death in the afternoon. After half an hour of complete superiority to be suddenly struck down like this, crushed them like a Seville orange. Now we had the full Spanish treatment of elbows, body checks and obstruction. Two minutes from half-time Lofthouse was clear a yard in front of the great centre half, Garay. Garay couldn't reach Nat with a tackle, but he could with his hands. Taking a huge Spanish fistful of the Lofthouse shirt he hauled him off the ball, off his feet and the shirt almost literally off his back. I have never seen such a blatant incident on any international field. And they used everything but a Toledo sword on Stanley Matthews. Their obstructionism grew worse in the second half, until even Matthews of all people was annoyed. We had 45 minutes of head-high boots, flailing tackles, hurtling bodies. Some of our tackling in reply was hard, tough and rugged. After 65 minutes Edwards checked right half Mauri in the penalty area, but saw the ball bobble away to the feet of inside-left Rial, who had the easiest of chances. In the last 25 minutes it was Spain, wave upon wave of red shirts. SOMEHOW WE SURVIVED." - Bob Ferrier, Daily Mirror

Friday, 20 May 1955 - The England party arrived tonight in Oporto by air in two groups, the first, including most of the reserves, had a light work out in the evening. Don Revie is reported as being fit and may be back in the frame for an England start against Portugal. "I want to be sure that Revie is quite fit for a major international abroad," Winterbottom stated. "If he is, he will be at inside-right, and we shall have a Bentley-Wilshaw left-wing. If not, Bentley will be inside right, with Wilshaw and Blunstone as the left wing. The defence will be unchanged."

Saturday, 21 May 1955 - The team to play Portugal is announced and Revie is not fit to take his place. Blunstone is recalled and Wilshaw moves to the left.

England Form: last six games
W W W W L D  f 16:a 7  success: 75%
291	2 October 1954 - Northern Ireland 0 England 2 [0-0] Windsor Park, Belfast (59,000)	Haynes, Revie	BC	AW
292	10 November 1954 - England 3 Wales 2 [0-1] Empire Stadium, Wembley (91,112)	Bentley (3) J.Charles (2)		HW
293	1 December 1954 - England 3 West Germany 1 [1-0] Empire Stadium, Wembley (100,000)	Bentley, R.Allen, Shackleton Beck	Fr	HW
294	2 April 1955 - England 7 Scotland 2 [4-1] Empire Stadium, Wembley (96,847)	Wilshaw (4), Lofthouse (2), Revie Reilly, Docherty	BC	HW
295	15 May 1955 - France 1 England 0 [1-0] Stade Olympique Yves-du-Manoir, Paris (54,696)	Kopa (pen)	tour	AL
296	18 May 1955 - Spain 1 England 1 [0-1] Estadio Santiago Bernabéu, Madrid (125,000)	Rial Bentley		AD