Bill Bower (footballer)
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Ronald William Charles Bower[1] | ||
Date of birth | [1] | 17 November 1911||
Place of birth | Wrexham, Wales | ||
Date of death | December 1998[1] | (aged 87)||
Place of death | Colchester, England | ||
Position(s) | Right-back | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
1932–1934 | New Brighton | 24 | (0) |
1935–1936 | South Liverpool | ||
1936–1937 | Bolton Wanderers | 3 | (0) |
1937–1945 | Millwall | ||
→ Southend United (guest) | 39 | (0) | |
→ New Brighton (guest) | 40 | (1) | |
→ Aldershot (guest) | 44 | (5) | |
1945 | → Colchester United (guest) | 10 | (0) |
1945–1949 | Colchester United | 45 | (0) |
1949–1956 | Sudbury Town | ||
Total | 205 | (6) | |
*Club domestic league appearances and goals |
Ronald William Charles Bower (17 November 1911 – December 1998) was a Welsh professional
Bower began his career as a
Career
Born in
The outbreak of World War II curtailed his professional career, but Bower did make guest appearances for a number of clubs. He made 39 appearances for Southend United, 40 appearances in addition to one goal for his first club New Brighton, and 44 appearances for Aldershot, scoring five goals.[1]
Bower joined Colchester United as a guest for their 1945–46 campaign, where he made ten appearances prior to signing a professional contract with the club.[2] He signed on 28 November 1945 and was ever-present for an entire season where Colchester used 80 players, playing all 20 league fixtures and 10 cup ties. He was one of only four players to be retained at the end of the 1945–46 season.
With Colchester's squad already possessing two players by the name of Ronald, manager Syd Fieldus decided to refer to Bower as Bill, owing to his middle name of William. In his second season with the club, Bower made a further 30 league appearances, seven Southern League Cup games and two FA Cup outings, missing just one game all season.
Bower stepped aside to allow the developing
Bower left Colchester to join Sudbury Town, where he played until 1956. Outside of football, he worked in the dispatch department for Woods in Colchester. He died in the town in December 1998.[1]
References
- ^ ISBN 978-1-85983-629-3.
- ^ "Bill Bower". Coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 21 July 2015.