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next match (24 days)
329 vs. Scotland
 
'U23' 16 vs. Italy
Wednesday, 18 March 1959
International Friendly Intermediate Match


France Espoirs 1 England 1
[1-0]

 
 
Stade de Gerland, 353 Avenue Jean-Jaurès, Gerland, VII Arondissement, Lyon, Rhône-Alpes
Kick-off (CET & GMT): afternoon

Attendance: '12,000'
unknown kicked-off
[1-0] Lucien Cossou 7
 Wisnieski centred low into the goalmouth, Armfield and Scott left it to each other and Cossau prodded the ball up into the roof of the net from a position almost under the crossbar'
[1-0] Albert Scanlon strike hits the crossbar 16
  [1-0] Ray Parry shot saved onto the crossbar 60
[1-1] Jimmy Murray 80
'Jimmy Greaves switched the ball through the middle for Murray to hammer it in from a narrow angle.'
'beat two defenders before putting the ball into the top left-hand corner of the net'
There is no Television or Radio coverage
"MURRAY TO THE RESCUE" Daily Mirror
Officials from Italy France FIFA ruling on substitutes England
Referee
Concetto Lo Bello
35 (13 May 1924) Syracuse
"Lyons, third city of France, with a population somewhere in the region of 800,000, could not have cared less about this match. I did not see a single advertisement of the game anywhere. No programmes were printed. When the England coach arrived at the ground it was to discover a match in progress between Lyon Reserves and a local military eleven" - Basil Easterbrook
Linesmen
Bruno de Marchi
33 (8 December 1925), Pordenone
M. Butil
France Espoirs Team
 
Rank No official ranking system established; Colours probably blue jerseys and white shorts
Captain   Selection Henri Guérin, 37 (27 August 1921), also trainer of Stade Rennais UC
France Lineup
1 Roussel, Guy 23
121 days
17 November 1935 G Toulouse FC 1937    
2 Synakowski, Maryan 23
4 days
14 March 1936 RB UA Sedan-Torcy    
3 Chorda, André 21
26 days
20 February 1938 LB Olympique Gymnaste Club Nice    
4 Cornu, Alain 22
96 days
12 December 1936 RHB Olympique Gymnaste Club Nice    
5 Tylinski, Richard 21
181 days
18 September 1937 CHB AS Saint-Étienne Loire  
6 Ferrier, René 22
101 days
7 December 1936 LHB AS Saint-Étienne Loire    
7 Wisniewksi, Maryan 22
45 days
1 February 1937 OR RC de Lens    
8 Guillas, Roland 22
170 days
29 September 1936 IR FC des Girondins de Bordeaux
9 Goujon, Yvon 22
56 days
21 January 1937 CF AS Saint-Étienne Loire  
10 Bourdoncle, Serge 23
53 days
24 January 1936 IL FC Sochaux    
11
Cossou, Lucien 23
48 days
29 January 1936 OL Olympique Lyonnais    
unused substitutes: not known
 
2-3-5 Roussel -
Synakowski, Chorda -
Cornu, Tylinski, Ferrier -
Wisniewski, Guillas, Goujon, Bourdoncle, Coussou
Averages: Age 22 years 149 days Appearances/Goals
 
England Intermediate Team
 
Rank No official ranking system established; Colours The 1954 Umbro away uniform - Red v-necked short-sleeved continental jerseys, white shorts, red socks with white tops.

Captain
Jimmy Armfield Manager Walter Winterbottom, 45 (31 March 1913), appointed as FA national director of coaching/team manager on 8 July 1946;
3rd of 4, W 2 - D 1 - L 0 - F 8 - A 2. Trainer: Ron Greenwood (Arsenal FC) 15th of sixteen intermediate match, W 10 - D 3 - L 2 - F 44 - A 16.
  Team chosen by the Intermediate Selection Committee, headed by Frank Adams, on Monday, 2 March.
England Lineup
  three changes from the previous U23 match league position (2 March)  
  Hopkinson, Edward 23
140 days
29 October 1935 G Bolton Wanderers FC (FL 4th) 3 4ᵍᵃ
final U23 app 57-59
2 Armfield, James 23
178 days
21 September 1935 RB Blackpool FC (FL 6th) 5 0
3 Allen, Anthony 19
111 days
27 November 1939 LB Stoke City FC (FL2 4th) 3 0
4 Setters, Maurice E. 22
92 days
16 December 1936 RHB West Bromwich Albion FC (FL 5th) 7 0
  "The only untoward incident occurred just before the interval when the referee took the name of Setters for answering back."
           
5 Scott, Melyvn Douglas 19
173 days
26 September 1939 CHB Chelsea FC (FL 17th) 3 0
6 McGuinness, Wilfred 21
144 days
25 October 1937 LHB Manchester United FC (FL 3rd) 3 0
7 Scanlon, Albert Joseph 23
159 days
10 October 1935 OR/OL Manchester United FC (FL 3rd) 3 0
8
Greaves, James P. 19
26 days
20 February 1940 IR Chelsea FC (FL 17th) 7 7
=most goals 58-59
9
Murray, James Robert 23
158 days
11 October 1935 CF/IL Wolverhampton Wanderers FC (FL TOP) 2 2
oldest u23 scorer final U23 app 58-59
10 Charlton, Robert 21
158 days
11 October 1937 IL/CF Manchester United FC (FL 3rd) 3 5
11 Parry, Raymond A. 23
58 days
19 January 1936 OL/OR Bolton Wanderers FC (FL 4th) 2 0
reserves: Tony Macedo (Fulham FC (FL2 2nd)), Alan Williams (Bristol City FC (FL2 9th)) and Ray Parry (Bolton Wanderers FC).
team changes: Peter Brabrook (Chelsea FC (FL 17th)) was the original named outside-right. After he dropped out on 17 March, because of pulling a muscle in the Highbury practice match, Scanlon went from left to right and Parry brought in to cover the outside left position.
team notes: Maurice Setters married Kathleen Fletcher at Christ Church, West Bromwich, three days before this match, a day before the team flew out.
Albert Scanlon stepped foot on an aeroplane for the first time since the Munich Air Disaster.
 
2-3-5 Hodgkinson -
Armfield, Allen -
Setters, Scott, McGuinness -
Brabrook, Greaves, Baker, Charlton, Scanlon.
notes: "a reorganised attack with Scanlon on the left, Parry on the right and Charlton roving in the middle, showed England in a better light after the interval"
Averages: Age 21 years 293 days Appearances/Goals 3.7 1.2
 
  
               Match Report by Ken Jones, Daily Mirror, Thursday, 19 March 1959

SLIM Jim Murray, 22, Wolves centre forward, who has hit nine goals in eight come-back days, saved England's Under-23 side when he crashed in a brilliant eighty-minute equaliser against Young France at the Municpal Stadium. Chunky wing half Maurice Setters sent Ray Parry, who had switched to insight right away in midfield. Greaves switched the ball through the middle for Murray to hammer it in from a narrow angle. But England, who never had the breaks in front of goal, can thank dusky Martinique-born left winger Lucien Cossau for this dramatic draw. Cossau missed three great chances after he had given France the lead in the tenth minute.
   Now team manager Walter Winterbottom has seen ten of England's top forwards score only one goal in less than twenty-four hours, and it looks as though the selectors will have to think again before the clash with Scotland on April 11.
The English defence made few mistakes, except the one that allowed Cossou to give France a simple lead. And Stoke City left back [Tony] Allen showed once again that he is a full England prospect of the very near future. England's luck was out. Right winger Albert Scanlon rapped the crossbar in the first half and Bolton's Ray Parry was twice desperately unlucky after the interval. Inside left Bobby Charlton brought a super save out of keeper Roussel, who really became a national hero three minutes from time when he grabbed a goalbound effort from Jimmy Murray that would have clinched the game for England.
  

               Match Report as appears in the F.A. Yearbook 1959-60 page 34

Only a well taken goal by Murray a mere nine minutes from the end saved the Young England team from defeat at Lyons. It was a match in which they never got into their stride. In most respects, France were the better team, and took the lead after only seven minutes play, Cossou scoring after a mistake by the English defence. The England wing-halves were unable to gain a grip on the game, though several more chances were missed by the French forwards at half-time. Allen and Scott did well in defence, and Charlton showed his real form in flashes. The French defence was tight, Tylinski and Ferrier being insurmountable barriers.
  

Other Football Results   
Football League Division One
  
Bolton Wanderers 1 Aston Villa 3
 
Burnden Park, Bolton (21,808)
Lofthouse ~ Hitchens (3)
Wanderers were without Eddie Hopkinson & Ray Parry
Aston Villa remain third from bottom with this victory, three points from safety.
  
Leicester City 2 Birmingham City 4
 
Filbert Street, Leicester (15,413)
Walsh (2) ~ Stubbs (3), Gordon
  
 
Football League Division Four
 
Darlington 0 York County 1
 
Feethams, Darlington (2,180)
Tait

F.A. Cup semi-final replay
 
Luton Town 1 Norwich City 0
 
St. Andrews, Birmingham (49,500)
Bingham
   
  
  
               Source Notes
Official matchday programme
FA Yearbook 1959-60
  Rothman's Yearbooks
Original newspaper reports
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