Bill Lacey (footballer)

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Bill Lacey
Personal information
Full name William Lacey
Date of birth (1889-09-24)24 September 1889
Place of birth Enniscorthy, Wexford, Ireland
Date of death 30 May 1969(1969-05-30) (aged 79)
Height 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)[1]
Position(s) Defender/Midfielder/Forward
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1906–1909 Shelbourne 10 (3)
1909–1912 Everton 37 (11)
1912–1915 Liverpool 99 (12)
→ Belfast United (guest)
→ Linfield (guest)
1919–1924 Liverpool 131 (6)
1924–1925 New Brighton 7 (0)
1925–1931 Shelbourne 66 (12)
1931–1932 Cork Bohemians (player coach)
International career
1909–1924
Ireland (IFA)
 23 (3)
1927–1930
Irish Free State (FAI)
 3 (1)
192x–19xx League of Ireland XI 3 (x)
Managerial career
1930s
Irish Free State (FAI)
1933–1938 Bohemians
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

William Lacey (24 September 1889,

FAI XI
.

An extremely versatile and talented player, Lacey played in all eleven positions during his career. He was a prominent member of the

1914 British Home Championship and was also a member of the Liverpool team that won two successive English First Division titles in 1922 and 1923. He was also the first player to be capped at full international level while playing for both Everton and Liverpool. In 1927 at the age of 37, he became the oldest player to make his debut for an FAI XI, and in 1930 at the age of 41 he became the FAI XI's oldest ever player. After retiring as a player, Lacey became a coach, most notably with the FAI XI and Bohemians
.

In August 2010, a plaque was unveiled for Bill in his hometown of Enniscorthy coming 14 months after the 40th anniversary of his death in 1969. The plaque was unveiled at his birthplace on the Ross Road, Enniscorthy, County Wexford.

Club career

Shelbourne

Lacey first played senior football with

1926. During his second spell with Shelbourne, he also played three times for the League of Ireland XI.[2]

Everton

Lacey followed

Billy Scott.[3]

Liverpool

In February 1912 Lacey joined

FA Cup final. However Liverpool lost the match 1–0 to Burnley
.

During the

Belfast and District League, first for the now defunct team, Belfast United, and then for Linfield. While with Linfield he helped them reach two successive Irish Cup finals in 1918 and 1919, finishing as runners-up and winners respectively. After returning to Liverpool, Lacey helped them win two successive First Division titles in 1922 and 1923. Among his teammates at Liverpool during this era where Ephraim Longworth and Elisha Scott. Lacey left Liverpool in June 1924 and briefly played with New Brighton before returning to Shelbourne.[4][5][6]

Irish international

When Lacey began his international career in 1909, Ireland was represented by a single team, selected by the

FAI XI
.

IFA XI

Between 1909 and 1924 Lacey won 23 caps and scored 3 goals for the

IFA XI. He won the first 10 caps while at Everton, the next 12 at Liverpool and his last with New Brighton. He made his international debut on 13 February 1909 in a 4–0 defeat to England and then on 20 March he scored his first international goal in a 3–2 defeat against Wales
.

Although Lacey only scored two more goals for the IFA XI, they would prove significant. Along with

1914 British Home Championship. On 14 February he scored twice as Ireland beat England 3–0 at Ayresome Park. In a game which saw Lacey play in three different positions, including in goal, Ireland then clinched the title following a 1–1 draw with Scotland at Windsor Park in Belfast. He made his last appearance for the IFA XI on 22 October 1924 in 3–1 defeat against England.[7][8]

FAI XI

After returning to

FAI XI. On 23 April 1927, at the age of 37, he became the oldest player to ever make his debut for the FAI XI when he was selected to play against Italy B – this was later surpassed in 1931 by 40-year-old Patsy Gallacher whose first appearance was also his last.[9] On 12 February 1928 Lacey inspired the FAI XI to a comeback. 2–0 down at half-time, he scored the FAI XI's opening goal in a 4–2 away win against Belgium. On 11 May 1930, at the age of 41, he became the oldest player ever to play for the FAI XI when he played against Belgium again. In his three appearances for the FAI XI, he played as outside-right, inside-right and right-back.[8]
[10][11][12][13][14]

Coaching career

FAI XI

During the 1930s Lacey also coached the

Second World War era when a team featuring Paddy Moore and Tom Davis, beat Germany 5–2 at Dalymount Park.[8]

Bohemians

Lacey was appointed coach of

1933–34 season and with a team that included Fred Horlacher and Billy Jordan he subsequently guided them to a League of Ireland and League of Ireland Shield double. He also guided them to an FAI Cup win in 1935.[15][16][17]

Honours

Player

Shelbourne

Everton

Ireland

  • 1914 British Home Championship
    : 1914

Liverpool

Linfield

  • Irish Cup winners: 1918–19
    • runners-up: 1917–18

Manager

Bohemians

References

  1. ^ Junius (22 August 1921). "First Division prospects. Liverpool". Athletic News. Manchester. p. 5.
  2. ^ "Irish Cup finals". Archived from the original on 7 March 2016. Retrieved 20 May 2007.
  3. ^ Who's Who Of Everton (2004): Tony Matthews
  4. ^ Matthews, Tony (6 July 2006). Who's Who of Liverpool. Mainstream Publishing. ASIN 1845961404 – via Amazon.
  5. ^ www.liverpoolfc.tv Archived 24 May 2006 at the Wayback Machine
  6. ^ LFChistory.net. "Liverpool career stats for Bill Lacey – LFChistory – Stats galore for Liverpool FC!". Archived from the original on 17 June 2010. Retrieved 30 July 2006.
  7. ^ "Shelbourne fansite". Archived from the original on 22 October 2009. Retrieved 24 January 2008.
  8. ^ a b c Ryan, Sean (1 October 1997). The Boys in Green: The Fai International Story. Hushion House. ASIN 1851589392 – via Amazon.
  9. ^ "Ireland player Patsy Gallacher". SoccerScene.ie. Archived from the original on 27 February 2017. Retrieved 27 February 2017.
  10. ^ "Statistics: Republic of Ireland [Powered by tplSoccerStats]". Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 14 April 2007.
  11. ^ "Football Association of Ireland". Archived from the original on 7 December 2006. Retrieved 1 November 2006.
  12. ISBN 1-900110-06-7
    .
  13. ^ "Shelbourne internationals". Archived from the original on 26 December 2016. Retrieved 20 May 2007.
  14. ^ "Shelbourne Trivia". Archived from the original on 12 March 2007. Retrieved 1 November 2006.
  15. ^ www.bohemians.ie[permanent dead link]
  16. ^ www.bohemians.ie Archived 18 November 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  17. ^ Jcd (18 November 2006). "Paddy Farrell". Archived from the original on 9 February 2012. Retrieved 24 January 2008.

External links

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