Wilf Copping
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Wilfred Copping | ||
Date of birth | 17 August 1909 | ||
Place of birth | Barnsley, Yorkshire, England | ||
Date of death | June 1980 (aged 70) | ||
Place of death | Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England | ||
Position(s) | Left half, Centre half | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
1929–1934 | Leeds United | 162 | (0) |
1934–1939 | Arsenal | 189 | (0) |
1939–1942 | Leeds United | 12 | (0) |
Total | 363 | (0) | |
International career | |||
1933–1939 | England | 20 | (0) |
Managerial career | |||
1946–1947 | K. Beerschot V.A.C. | ||
*Club domestic league appearances and goals |
Wilfred Copping (17 August 1909 – June 1980) was an English football-player who played for Leeds United, Arsenal and the England national team.
Career
Leeds United
Copping was born in
Together with his Leeds United teammate Billy Furness, he made his debut for England, against Italy on 13 May 1933. Copping played over 160 League games for Leeds in five seasons, and won six England caps during that time.[1]
Arsenal
Copping was signed by Arsenal in the summer of 1934 for £8,000, as a replacement for
Copping recovered from his injury to continue playing for Arsenal, making over 35 appearances in each of his first four seasons with the club. During his time at Highbury, Arsenal won the
He remained a near-ever present for Arsenal until March 1939; with World War II looming, Copping put in a transfer request so that he could return to the North with his family. Arsenal duly complied, and Copping re-signed for Leeds United. In all he played 189 matches for Arsenal.[2]
Return to Leeds United
Copping played out the rest of the
Copping was known as a hard and strong player; his most famous quote was "the first man in a tackle never gets hurt". Despite his nickname of "The Iron Man", and his image (he took to the field unshaven, a remarkably unusual practice at the time), Copping was never booked or sent off in his career.
Later career
After the war ended, Copping became a trainer and coach at various clubs, including Beerschot in Belgium, Southend United, Bristol City and Coventry City. He retired to live in Southend-on-Sea. He died in 1980, aged 70.[1]
In 1998,
Honours
- 1936
- 1937–38
References
- ^ a b c d "Wilf Copping". England Football Online.com.
- ^ a b c d e "Wilf Copping". Arsenal.com.
- ^ "1934/35 F.A. Charity Shield". footballsite.co.uk. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
- ^ "1938/39 F.A. Charity Shield". footballsite.co.uk. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
- Harris, Jeff (1995). Hogg, Tony (ed.). Arsenal Who's Who. Independent UK Sports. ISBN 1-899429-03-4.
External links
- Leeds United profile
- Wilf Copping at Englandstats.com
- Profile on www.englandfc.com Archived 20 June 2008 at the Wayback Machine