The
England Party
for the
Continental Tour
Pre-Sweden May
1956 |
Player |
Birthdate |
Age |
Pos |
Club |
starts |
subs |
App |
G |
Capt |
Astall, Gordon |
22 September 1927 |
28 |
OR |
Birmingham City FC |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0
|
0 |
Atyeo, P. John W. |
7 February 1932
|
24 |
IR
|
Bristol
City FC |
2 |
0 |
2 |
1
|
0 |
Berry, R. John |
1 June 1926 |
29 |
OL |
Manchester United FC |
3 |
0 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
Bryne, Roger
W. |
8 September 1929 |
27 |
LB
|
Manchester United FC |
19 |
0 |
19 |
0
|
0 |
Clayton,
Ronald |
5 August 1934
|
21 |
RHB |
Blackburn Rovers FC |
3 |
0 |
3 |
0
|
0 |
Cummings, Thomas S. |
12 September 1928 |
27 |
CB |
Burnley FC |
0
|
0 |
0
|
0
|
0 |
Dickinson, James
W. |
24 April 1925 |
31 |
RHB |
Portsmouth FC |
45 |
0 |
45 |
0 |
0 |
Dickinson withdrew from the party on 7 May because of an ankle
injury. |
Edwards, Duncan |
1 October 1936
|
19 |
LHB |
Manchester United FC |
6 |
0 |
6 |
0 |
0 |
Grainger, Colin |
10 June 1933
|
22 |
OL |
Sheffield United FC |
1 |
0 |
1 |
2 |
0 |
Hall, Jeffrey
J. |
7 September 1929
|
26 |
RB |
Birmingham City FC |
6 |
0 |
6 |
0
|
0 |
Haynes, John
N. |
17 October 1934
|
21 |
IL |
Fulham FC |
5 |
0 |
5 |
2 |
0 |
Lofthouse, Nathaniel |
27 August 1925 |
30 |
CF |
Bolton Wanderers FC |
30 |
0 |
30 |
27 |
0 |
Matthews, Reginald D. |
20 December 1932
|
23 |
G |
Coventry City FC |
2 |
0 |
2 |
3ᵍᵃ |
0 |
Taylor,
Thomas |
29 January 1932 |
24 |
CF |
Manchester United FC
|
7 |
0 |
7 |
4 |
0 |
Wheeler, John E. |
26 July 1928 |
27 |
RHB |
Bolton Wanderers FC |
1 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
Wheeler replaced Dickinson in the party on 7 May after his
withdrawal. |
Wilshaw, Dennis J. |
11 March 1926 |
30 |
IL |
Burnley FC |
9 |
0 |
9 |
9 |
0 |
Wood, Raymond E. |
11 June 1931 |
24 |
GK |
Manchester United FC |
2 |
0 |
2 |
2ᵍᵃ |
0 |
Wright, William A. |
6 February 1924 |
32 |
CHB |
Wolverhampton
Wanderers FC |
74 |
0 |
74 |
3
|
59 |
All information is complete to and including
England's last match, the sixth of the 1955-56 season, against
Brazil on 9 May 1956.
Diary
Friday, 27 April 1956
- The England team that will play Brazil
for the first time has been announced, and Stan Matthews has finally
earned a deserved recall from the selectors. It comes because Tom
Finney is unavailable, Vic Groves is injured, Harry Hooper only has
experience as a reserve and Peter Harris was a flop for the Football
League match against the Irish counterparts. Matthews was due to fly
to Kenya has part of a coaching mission on 9 May. There is a further
surprise in the dropping of Bill Perry, replaced with Colin Grainger.
At the same time, the party to tour the continent was also chosen. It
excludes Stan Matthews, but does include the the uncapped Tommy
Cummings and Gordon Astall. Johnny Berry has been recalled after three
years away from the international scene. At the same time in
Lausanne, England and Republic of Ireland were drawn together in Group
One of the European Zone of the 1958 World Cup, alongside Denmark.
Monday, 30 April 1956 -
Following the news of Grainger's inclusion
in the party, Bill Perry was told he will be taking Grainger's place
in the FA Tour of South Africa. Fulham's Bobby Robson takes the place
of Leyton Orient's Ron Heckman, who drops out because of a fractured
jaw.
Thursday, 3 May 1956 -
The invited party reported in London today for a practise session at
the Bank of England ground in Roehampton. In half an hour's warming up
before the practise match, Stan Matthews and Nat Lofthouse, two of the
oldest players on view, ran a mile round the ground. Unfortunately, as
the team were doing laps, Jimmy Dickinson felt a twinge in his left
ankle. He missed out on the practise match, as did Jeff Hall, who will
be playing for Birmingham City at the FA Cup Final on Saturday, and
was with his club in Twyford, so his place at right-back went to Tommy
Cummings. The opposition was drawn from other members of
the Continental party and South African tour plus some London club
players (Reynolds; Charlton, Evans; Greenwood, Owen, Marchi; Hurst,
Ayre, Lofthouse, Bloomfield and Tucker).
Monday, 7 May 1956 - The FA have stated today that
Portsmouth's wing-half, Jimmy Dickinson, has withdrawn from the
England party because of his ankle injury. His place in the team to
face Brazil has gone to Ronnie Clayton. However, the
selectors have called up Bolton Wanderers' Johnny Wheeler to replace
Dickinson for the Continental tour. Wheeler last played for England in
October 1954. After lunch at Roehampton,
the party played a fast 20 minute each-way game against a side
composed of the best of the England tour men plus some London club
players. The result was a draw, Tottenham's Duquemin scored for
the Rest and Taylor brilliantly headed in the equaliser. Despite the
heat, Stanley Matthews showed great speed off the mark. FA Cup
runner-up Jeff Hall was on hand to help his England teammates.
Wednesday, 9 May 1956
- The morning newspapers are
convinced that this will be Stan Matthews last ever appearance in an
England shirt.
"Stanley Matthews will pull the white shirt of England
over his slender shoulders for the last time today. The cap he wins
against Brazil at Wembley will be his last." - Frank
McGhee, Daily Mirror.
"This afternoon Stan makes what I feel will be his last appearance in
an England shirt, and he is the one person the Brazilians fear."
-
Alan Williams, Birmingham Gazette
England 4 Brazil 2:-
The most heartening feature of this creditable
victory was the clearly discernible plan to which England played and
the fact that at long last they seem to have the young men to weld to
it. Devastating and rapier swift through-passing exploited the glaring
Brazilian defensive gap down the middle, and in four minutes, Taylor
and Grainger had put England two-up. Then in the 53rd minute, Paulinho
screwed in a ball from an impossible angle which hit Byrne and snaked
past a surprised defence. Three minutes later came the Didi equaliser,
but England fought back with verve and pace for Taylor to score his
second off Atyeo's headed pass in the 67th minute. Six minutes from
the end with the crowd braving the drizzle, Grainger got up to head a
beautiful goal off a pin-point Matthews' centre.
Monday, 14 May 1956
-
The youngest-ever seventeen-man England party fly out from London
Airport. Billy Wright still had three stitches in place above his
right eye, but still regards himself as "absolutely fit". The team
looks likely to remain largely the same as that which beat Brazil,
with the one exception of a needed replacement for Stan Matthews, who
is now on a coaching tour of Kenya. The responsibility looks to be a
certainty to fall at Johnny Berry's feet, although Gordan Astall seems
to be a possibility. The are four members of the Selection
Committee joining the party, Arthur Oakley, Joe Mears, Harry French
and Harold Shentall. They are staying at The Aston Hotel in Stockholm.
On arrival in the cool wet weather, the players had a light workout at
the Råsunda Stadium, where the match will be played. Left-half Duncan
Edwards slightly pulled a muscle, but Walter Winterbottom said it
would not prevent him from playing.
Tuesday, 15 May 1956
- The England team to meet Sweden shows the one expected
change to the side that beat Brazil at Wembley last week. Johnny
Berry will be outside right in place of Stanley Matthews.
England
Form: last six
games |
W
L W W
D W
f 18:a 7
success: 75% |
298 |
2 October 1955 -
Denmark
1 England
5 [0-3]
Idrætsparken, København
(>50,000) |
Lundberg
Revie
(2 (1 pen)), Lofthouse (2), Bradford |
Fr |
AW |
299 |
22 October 1955 -
Wales
2
England
1 [2-0]
Ninian Park, Cardiff
(60,000) |
Tapscott, Jones
J.Charles OG |
BC |
AL |
300 |
2 November 1955 -
England 3
Northern
Ireland 0
[0-0]
Empire Stadium, Wembley
(58,000) |
Wilshaw (2),
Finney |
HW |
301 |
30 November 1955 -
England 4
Spain
1 [2-0]
Empire Stadium,
Wembley
(95,550) |
Atyeo, Perry (2),
Finney
Arieta |
Fr |
HW |
302 |
14 April 1956 -
Scotland 1 England
1
[0-0]
Hampden
Park, Glasgow
(132,817) |
Leggat
Haynes |
BC |
AD |
303 |
9 May 1956 -
England
4
Brazil 2
[2-0]
Empire Stadium, Wembley
(97,000) |
Taylor
(2), Grainger (2)
Byrne OG, Didi |
Fr |
HW |
|