 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | William Spencer Rowley | ||
| Date of birth | (1865-09-11)11 September 1865[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Hanley, Staffordshire, England[1] | ||
| Date of death | 16 March 1934(1934-03-16) (aged 68)[1] | ||
| Place of death | Longton,Stoke-on-Trent, England[1] | ||
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)[2] | ||
| Position(s) | Goalkeeper | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Hanley Orion | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1883–1884 | Stoke | 0 | (0) |
| 1884–1886 | Burslem Port Vale | 0 | (0) |
| 1887–1896 | Stoke | 124 | (0) |
| 1898 | Leicester Fosse | 1 | (0) |
| International career | |||
| 1889–1892 | England | 2 | (0) |
| Football League | 1 | (0) | |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1895–1897 | Stoke | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
William Spencer Rowley (11 September 1865 – 16 March 1934) was an Englishfootballer who played asgoalkeeper forStoke in the 1880s and 1890s, also making two appearances forEngland. He later became Stoke'smanager between 1895 and 1897.[3]
He played forBurslem Port Vale before joining Stoke in 1887. He played in the first-ever season of theEnglish Football League before helping the "Potters" to theFootball Alliance title in 1890–91. He also won England caps in 1889 and 1892. After struggling with injuries, he was appointedplayer-manager at Stoke in 1896 and took the club to sixth in the league. However, he left the game for good after being censored for arranging his owntransfer toLeicester Fosse in August 1898.
William Spencer Rowley was born on 11 September 1865 inHanley, Staffordshire.[1] His father, Charles, a clerk, was widowed following the death of 33-year-old Sarah (née Stevenson) in 1870.[1] He worked in the pottery industry.[1] He married dressmaker Ellen Rhodes on 29 April 1893 inEdensor.[1] They had ten children together, including Ellen (1893–1901), William Spencer (stillborn mid-1895), Annie (born 1897), Spencer (born 1902) and another William (born 1908).[1] In 1890, Rowley played professional baseball forStoke in theNational League of Baseball of Great Britain.
Rowley was born inHanley, Staffordshire and started his professional career playing inStoke'sreserve team as a forward in August 1883.[4][5] He switched to goalkeeping and joinedlocal rivalsBurslem Port Vale in April 1884.[2]
Immediately establishing himself as the first-choice goalkeeper, he played 66 games in his two-and-half years with the club. He even scored a goal, being one of the scorers in a 12–0 route of Ironbridge in the final of the 1885 Burslem Challenge Cup.[6] He was called up to theEngland national team for the match againstIreland in 1886, to act asWilliam Rose's reserve.[2]
Hebroke arib in a 3–1friendly defeat at Stoke on 1 May 1886, and as a result, Vale successfully sued Stoke in county court, forcing Stoke to pay £20 to charity.[7] Nevertheless, he signed with Stoke in early 1887.[6] This move came after he signed acontract to play exclusively for the Vale and, despite the case being upheld in aBurslem court, Vale allowed him to leave for Stoke in December 1886.[6]
Rowley was a member of the Stoke side that were founder members of theEnglish Football League in 1888. He made his league debut on 8 September 1888, keeping goal for Stoke in a 2–0 defeat byWest Bromwich Albion at theVictoria Ground. He played 21 of Stoke's 22 Football League matches and kept three clean sheets whilst restricting the opposition to a single goal on four occasions.[8] Stoke finished at the bottom of the table in both1888–89 and1889–90 and in 1890 dropped down to theFootball Alliance.[3]The following season, Stoke were champions of the Football Alliance and returned to the Football League, where they once again struggled, finishing second last in1891–92, before finishing in mid-table in1892–93.[3]
He was a virtual ever-present throughout his first six years with Stoke, and his form earned him a call into thenational team for the match againstIreland on 2 March 1889. The match was played atAnfield, then the home ofEverton, and the selectors made eleven changes to the side that had beatenWales a week before with nine new caps, including Rowley's Stoke teammate,Tommy Clare at right-back.[9] England won the match "quite comfortably"[10] 6–1, withJack Yates scoring ahat-trick in his only international appearance.
Rowley's only other England appearance came three years later, also against Ireland, at theSolitude Ground,Belfast, when he was joined by his Stoke teammatesTommy Clare andAlf Underwood as the two full-backs.[11]Harry Daft ofNotts County marked the occasion by scoring twice, either side ofhalf-time, in an "unconvincing victory".[12]
Some serious injuries interrupted his career, withTom Cain taking over in goal for most ofthe 1893–94 season. Although Rowley recovered his place forthe next season, he suffered from further injuries, including abrokenbreastbone,[13] withGeorge Clawley replacing him. Clawley now established himself as first-choice 'keeper, and in his final three seasons at theVictoria Ground, Rowley managed only twelve further League appearances.[3]
In 1896, he ceased playing and became Stoke'splayer-manager, a position he held for two years.[3] He guided Stoke to their highest league position to that point of sixth in the1895–96 season and 13th in his second season in charge.[3] In September 1897,Horace Austerberry was appointed secretary-manager of Stoke, and Rowley was made general secretary.[3] A charismatic wheeler-dealer, Rowley often paidtransfer fees from his own pockets and even tookAlan Maxwell fromDarwen in exchange for a set ofwrought iron gates.[2]
In August 1898, Rowley transferred himself toLeicester Fosse and even agreed his own signing on fee. This transaction caused uproar bythe FA, who suspended Rowley resulting in his retirement.[3]
He was described as a "brave and cool goalkeeper",[13] and as "a fine and fearless goalkeeper with an enormous kick. Rowley handled the ball well and was never afraid to go in where it hurts (when the legs and boots were flying)."[14]
Rowley picked up numerous injuries from his fearless play in defending his goal from sometimes violent attackers, and his resilience made him a popular figure with football supporters across the country.[2] Despite this, he was often criticised for his poor distribution skills.[2] He could withstand kicks and brutal charges only to throw or kick the ball to the opposition.[2]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Stoke[3] | 1886–87 | – | – | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| 1887–88 | – | – | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | ||
| 1888–89 | The Football League | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 0 | |
| 1889–90 | The Football League | 21 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 24 | 0 | |
| 1890–91 | Football Alliance | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | |
| 1891–92 | The Football League | 24 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 29 | 0 | |
| 1892–93 | First Division | 30 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 31 | 0 | |
| 1893–94 | First Division | 10 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 12 | 0 | |
| 1894–95 | First Division | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | |
| 1895–96 | First Division | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| 1896–97 | First Division | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | |
| Total | 124 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 140 | 0 | ||
| Leicester Fosse | 1897–98 | Second Division | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Career total | 125 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 141 | 0 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| England | 1889 | 1 | 0 |
| 1892 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 2 | 0 | |
| Team | From | To | Record | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | W | D | L | Win % | |||
| Stoke[18] | August 1895 | May 1897 | 66 | 29 | 4 | 33 | 043.9 |
| Total | 66 | 29 | 4 | 33 | 043.9 | ||
Burslem Port Vale
Stoke
England
