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 63 vs. Wales
 
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69 vs. Wales
Monday, 20 March 1899
Home International Championship 1898-99 (16th) Match


England 4 Wales 0
[2-0]
 



Football League Record

Ashton Gate, Ashton Vale, Bedminster, Bristol, Gloucestershire
Kick-off (GMT): 3.30pm
Attendance: 10,000;
Gilbert Smith won the toss Wales kicked-off

[1-0] Ernest Needham 30
 'from a Smith free-kick'.

[2-0] Steve Bloomer 44
 'rebound, after an Athersmith shot and Jones save'.
 
[3-0] Fred Forman 55 
 'Athersmith made a grand run the length of the field and sent to Fred Forman, who dribbled the ball in'.
[4-0] Steve Bloomer 86
 'from Forman's centre'.
 
 
 

Match Summary

Officials       

England Team Records Wa les
Referee
Thomas Robertson
35 (9 December 1863), Baldernock, Stirlingshire, Scotland FA
P 7th of 20 - W 6 - D 0 - L 1 - F 27 - A 6. played against England in 1890
 
Linesmen
Percy Alexander Timbs
33 (13 June 1865), St. Giles, London
not known

England Team

 
Rank No official ranking system established;
ELO rating 1st
Colours White jerseys and navy blue knickerbockers
Captain Gilbert Smith
eighth, ninth or tenth captaincy
Selection
In charge: Charles J. Hughes
The seven-man FA International Selection Committee, on Monday, 27 February 1899, at 61 Chancery Lane, London.
P 8 of 13, W 6 - D 0 - L 2 - F 35 - A 8. P 35th of 195, W 28 - D 4 - L 3 - F 148 - A 33.
England Lineup
  two changes to the previous match (Robinson & Thickitt>Hillman & Back remain) league position (27th February) ave lge pos: xth¹⁰
  Robinson, John W. 28 22 April 1870 G Southampton FC 6 5ᵍᵃ
the first Southampton player to represent England
246   Thickitt, Henry 26
357 days
28 March 1872 RB Sheffield United FC 1 0
the seventh United player to represent England
  Williams, William 23
59 days
20 January 1876 LB West Bromwich Albion FC 6 0
final app 1897-99
  Forman, Frank 23 23 May 1875 RH Nottingham Forest FC 4 1
  Crabtree, James W. 27 23 December 1871 CH Aston Villa FC 8 0
Needham, Ernest 26 21 January 1873 LH Sheffield United FC 9 2
  Athersmith Harper, W. Charles 26 10 May 1872 OR Aston Villa FC 9 3
Bloomer, Stephen 25 20 January 1874 IR Derby County FC 10 19
mst gls
  Smith, Gilbert O. 26 25 November 1872 CF Old Carthusians AFC & Corinthians FC 15 10
  Settle, James 23 September 1875 IL Bury FC 2 3
Forman, Frederick R. 25 8 November 1873 OL Nottingham Forest FC 2 3
reserves: not known
team notes: Fred and Frank Forman are brothers.
records: Jack Robinson is the third goalkeeper to keep three clean sheets.
The third time England have scored seventeen goals in a season.
 
2-3-5 Robinson -
Thickitt, Williams -

Fk Forman, Crabtree, Needham -
Athersmith, Bloomer, Smith, Settle
, Fd Forman.
Averages: Age 25.3 Appearances/Goals 6.5 3.4

 

Wales Team

 
Rank No official ranking system established;
ELO rating 6th
Colours Probably blue and red halves shirts and white shorts
Captain Smart Arridge Selection Team selection chosen by Committee, following a series of trial matches.
only, W 0 - D 0 - L 0 - F 0 - A 4.
Wales Lineup
  Jones, Samuel 28/29 1870 G Druids FC 6 27ᵍᵃ
final app 1893-99
  Blew, Horace Elford 21 20 January 1878 RB Wrexham AFC 3 0
  Arridge, Smart Atkinson 26 21 June 1872
in Sunderland, England
LB New Brighton Tower FC, England 8 0
final app 1892-99
  Richards, George 24 winter 1874 RH Druids FC 3 0
192   Buckland, Thomas James 28 summer 1870 CH Bangor FC 1 0
only app 1899
193   Harrison, William Clare 26 10 April 1872
in Portsmouth, England
LH Wrexham AFC 1 0
  Vaughan, James 30 summer 1868 OR Druids FC 4 0
final app 1893-99
  Meredith, William Henry 24 30 July 1874 IR Manchester City FC, England 10 4
  Owen, Trevor Owen 25 14 June 1873 CF Crewe Alexandra FC, England 2 0
final app 1899
  Morris, Arrhur Grenville 21 13 April 1877 IL Nottingham Forest FC, England 7 1
  Atherton, Robert 22 29 July 1876 OL Hibernian FC, Scotland 2 0
reserves: not known
team notes: Neither Fred Kelly of Wrexham AFC, Tottenham Hotspur FC's John Jones (injury), Wolverhampton Wanderers FC's John Mathais ('cried off!') or Preston North End FC's James Trainer ('cried off!') were able to take their places. The vacancies were filled respectively by James Vaughan, Tom Buckland, Horace Blew and Sam Jones.
records: Wales have now gone a record seven consecutive defeats, and eleven matches without victory.
 
2-3-5 Jones -
Blew, Arridge -
Richards, Buckland, Harrison -
Vaughan, Meredith, Owen, Morris, Atherton.
Averages: Age 24.8/25 Appearances/Goals 4.3 0.5

 

    Match Report
The English eleven easily beat Wales at Bristol yesterday by four goals to none. It might have been 12 or more had not the Welsh Association found in S. Jones, of the Druids, a keeper of such merit as to worthily fill the position usually occupied by Trainer, of Preston North End. The Welsh full backs, too, were very good. But for all this the match was disappointing, and if the pick of England's footballers are not going to strive their best against even moderate opponents, it would be well that the Football Association should revert to the old policy of making their matches with Ireland and Wales simply trials for the greater fixture with Scotland. The object of the Association in going away from the old rgime was simply to bring combination into their side, for this can only properly be secured by an acquaintance by the men with each other's football. It must have been palpable to any one with only an elementary knowledge of the game that yesterday the English team, knowing their superiority in skill in every branch of the play, took periods for trifling with the Welshmen. Much of their footwork, their passing and dribbling, was excellent to watch, but their form as a whole was lacking in sting, and when Scotland come to be met in three weeks' time at Birmingham the Englishmen will have to play very differently if they wish to obtain success. While England were playing so often leisurely yesterday the Welshmen were throwing great energy and courage into a game that was almost hopeless for them before the kick-off. In Association football class, as in most games, will prevail...Needham and Bloomer each got a goal late in the first half for England. The play that led up to Needham's arose from a penalty kick against the Welsh goalkeeper for running beyond the regulation distance when holding the ball, and G. O. Smith, taking the kick, made an opening for Needham, who lofted the ball, and it just dropped into the net. The second goal Bloomer scored from practically a scrimmage, and immediately after Jones had saved a long side shot by Athersmith, Fred Forman scored the third goal. Then came a long spell of dulness, but eventually England again renewed their energy, and Bloomer got the fourth goal... The match was played on the Bedminster ground, the choice of which led to some little complaint from the county executive, who thought that the Association should have handed over to them the whole arrangements for the game. - The Times - Tuesday 21st March, 1899

Source Notes

Bobby Atherton, the Welsh outside-left, later went on to captain Middlesbrough FC. He was lost at sea on 19 October 1917.  But there seems to be no trace of him after leaving Chelsea FC in 1906.  The 1911 Census Return states that the Bethesda-born player was in fact the Hotel Manager of the Market Hotel in Hartlepool (left).  The same place that English outside-left Fred Priest would also manage and later die in.    
The ground of Bedminster FC was chosen at the same committee meeting at 61 Chancery Lane that was used to choose the English XI to face Ireland, on 1 February 1899.
Welsh Football Data Archive
Original newspaper reports 
Rothmans Yearbooks
FA Yearbooks 1950-60
Ancestry.com
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CG