England Match No. 219 - Wales - 22 October 1938

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	Page Last Updated 4 April 2025	*Cymru*

218 vs. France 219 220 vs. Rest of Europe	Saturday, 22 October 1938 Home International Championship 1938-39 (51st) Match Wales 4 England 2 [2-2]		Match Summary Wales Party England Party
		Ninian Park, Sloper Road, Cardiff, Glamorgan Attendance: 55,000 (a new ground record); Receipts: £4,500 (a new ground record); Kick-off: 3.15pm GMT
		Wales - Dai Astley (ran onto a L.Jones centre and shot 4, set up by Cumner 65), Alf Young (rose higher than Hopkins to head in from a Whatley free-kick 33), Bryn Jones (dribbled through and placed his shot 63) England - Tommy Lawton (penalty 27), Stanley Matthews (a run ending with a shot started by Lawton 35)
Results 1930-39		Wales won the toss, England kicked-off.

Match Summary

Officials	Wales	Type	England
Referee - William R. Hamilton Belfast, Ireland Linesmen - not known		Goal Attempts
		Attempts on Target
		Hit Bar/Post
		Corner Kicks Won
		Offside Calls Against
		Fouls Conceded
		Possession

Wales Team

Rank:	No official ranking system established; ELO rating 13th	Colours:		Made by St. Margaret's - Red shirts with white collars, white shorts, red socks
Capt:	"Dai Richards"	Selectors:		Team selection chosen by Committee, on Monday, 17 October 1938.
Wales Lineup
	John, W. Ronald	27	29 January 1911	G	Swansea Town FC	13	21 GA
2	Whatley, William	26	12 October 1912	RB	Tottenham Hotspur FC, England	1	0
3	Hughes, William M.	20	6 March 1918	LB	Birmingham FC, England	4	0
4	Green, George H.	25	12 November 1912	RH	Charlton Athletic FC, England	2	0
5	Jones, Thomas G.	21	12 October 1917	LH	Everton FC, England	2	0
6	Richards, David T.	31	31 October 1906	CH	Birmingham FC, England	20	0
7	Hopkins, Idris M.	28	11 October 1910	OR	Brentford FC, England	10	1
8	Jones, Leslie J.	27	1 July 1911	IR	Arsenal FC, England	10	0
9	Astley, David J.	29	11 October 1909	CF	Derby County FC, England	11	10
10	Jones, Brynmor	26	14 February 1912	IL	Arsenal FC, England	11	4
11	Cumner, R. Horace	20	31 March 1918	OL	Arsenal FC, England	1	0
reserves:		reserves not known
team notes:		Arsenal FC had not agreed to the release of their up and coming star Horace Cumner. Although they had no objection to the Jones' being called upon, they were surprised by Cumner's inclusion, because of his tender age, believed to be nineteen at the time. They allowed his inclusion in the team a day later.
goal notes:		Not an Idris Hopkins goal, clearly, from phoographic and film evidence, an Alf Young own goal.

2-3-5		John - Whatley, Hughes - Green, T.Jones, Richards - Hopkins, L.Jones, Astley, B.Jones, Cumner.
Averages:		Age	25.5	Appearances/Goals		7.7	1.1

England Team

Rank:	No official ranking system established; ELO rating 7th	Colours:		The 1935 home uniform - White collared jerseys, navy blue shorts, black socks topped with two white hoops
Capt:	Eddie Hapgood, fifteenth captaincy.	Selectors:		The fourteen-man FA International Selection Committee, following the inter-league match, on Monday, 17 October 1938. 186th match, W 118 - D 30 - L 38 - F 557 - A 220.
England Lineup
	Woodley, Victor R.	28	26 February 1910	G	Chelsea FC	12	19 GA
2	Sproston, Bert	23	22 June 1915	RB	Tottenham Hotspur FC	9	0
3	Hapgood, Edris A.	30	24 September 1908	LB	Arsenal FC	24	0
4	Willingham, C. Kenneth	25	1 December 1912	RH	Huddersfield Town AFC	6	1
5	Young, Alfred	32	4 November 1905	CH	Huddersfield Town AFC	9	0
ninth own goal conceded by England		32	4 November 1905	CH	Huddersfield Town AFC	9	0
6	Copping, Wilfred	31	17 August 1907	LH	Arsenal FC	18	0
7	Matthews, Stanley	23	1 February 1915	OR	Stoke City FC	11	7
8	Robinson, John	21	10 August 1917	IR	Sheffield Wednesday FC	4	3
9	Lawton, Thomas	19 16 days	6 October 1919	CF	Everton FC	1	1
tenth penalty kick scored - youngest to score		19 16 days	youngest debutant to score	CF	Everton FC	1	1
10	Goulden, Leonard A.	26	9 July 1912	IL	West Ham United FC	9	2
11	Boyes, Walter	25	5 January 1913	OL	Everton FC	2	0
reserves:		Don Welsh (Charlton Athletic FC) and Frank Broome (Aston Villa FC)
team notes:		Tommy Lawton, at 19 years and 16 days, becomes the youngest player to score on his debut, a record held for the past four years by Stanley Matthews (and a record held for another 78 years).

2-3-5		Woodley - Sproston, Hagood - Willingham, Young, Copping - Matthews, Robinson, Lawton, Goulden, Boyes.
Averages:		Age	25.7	Appearances/Goals		9.5	1.1

Match Report

Wales beat England at Cardiff on Saturday by four goals to two, and thoroughly deserved a victory which, although they were playing on their own ground, was nevertheless unexpected. England had won the Championship last year and won it with a team that had proved itself in all departments, but that same team on Saturday showed unexpected weaknesses, and, although at times it played good football, it was nearly always struggling...
...Wales took the lead when the game was only a few minutes old. The ball was worked by Richards, and then some passing between the Joneses left Astley free to run on to the ball and beat Woodley with a shot that went high and wide of his left hand...

After 27 minutes a Welsh defender handled in the penalty area and Lawton placed the shot coolly out of John's reach. Wales, however, went ahead again very soon afterwards. A free-kick was awarded them well outside the penalty area. Whatley took it, lobbed the ball into the goal-mouth. Hopkins and English defenders jumped for it. Woodley came a little too far out, and the ball found itself at the back of the net. England struck back ; a pass from Lawton sent Matthews away, and Matthews, who is always a brave individualist, determined to go on his own. He weaved his way into the centre, but the final shot he sent in with his left foot was half-topped and it looked as though John might have saved it had he been a little quicker in his dive...

...First some clever Welsh passing left B. Jones with a sitting shot and then a run by Cumner and a resulting pass gave Astley time and opportunity to make the score 4-2. - The Times - Monday 24th October, 1938

ENGLISH F.A. AND NUMBERING OF PLAYERS

TO BE DISCUSSED AT SCARBOROUGH MEETING

   The Council of the Football Association will hold an important meeting at Scarborough next Saturday, when, in addition to the election of the chairman and vice-chairman for the ensuing year, reports of various committees will be read.
   One of the most interesting items on the agenda concerns the numbering of players. Brig-General W.R.N. [Maddox], the New Zealand F.A. representative, will move that players, other than the goalkeeper, be numbered from 1 to 10 in the following matches:-
   F.A. Cup semi-final and final ties.
   F.A. Charity Shield.
   International trial.
   England team in internationals.
   In view of the controversy over the question of the numbering of players, the discussion is likely to be a lively one. - 20 June 1938.

SCOTLAND DEFIED

   The most important decision taken by the F.A. at the summer meeting at Scarborough was to number players, other than the goalkeeper, in the F.A. Cup final, semi-finals, international matches, international trial, and the F.A. charity shield match. New Zealand put forward the resolution in the person of Brigadier-General W.R.N. Maddox, and the proposal will bring about the numbering of players from 1 to 10.
   The decision to number players means that England players will be numbered in matches against Scotland, even though Scotland may not adopt the procedure for her own players.
   Mr F.W. Rinder, vice-president of the Football Association, and one of the strongest supporters of the numbering scheme, made this clear in an interview. He said: "I can see no logical objection to the idea. The England team will be numbered against Scotland. Objections arise from old-fashioned sentiment, and the present tendency of interchange of positions calls for numbering to assist even the experienced spectator to identify players. I have always been in favour of numbering." - 25 June 1938.

Football League

Football League Division One
22 October 1938

Team P Pts

Everton 11 18

Derby County 12 18

Liverpool 11 14

Bolton Wanderers 11 14

Leeds United 11 13

Charlton Athletic 11 13

Middlesbrough 11 12

Blackpool 11 11

Aston Villa 11 11

Arsenal 11 11

Sunderland 11 11

Chelsea 11 11

Portsmouth 11 11

Stoke City 11 11

Preston North End 11 10

Leicester City 12 10

Wolverhampton Wanderers 11 9

Grimsby Town 11 9

Manchester United 11 8

Huddersfield Town 12 8

Brentford 11 7

Birmingham 12 6

Division One matches played on 22 October 1938:

ARSENAL 1-0 PRESTON NORTH END
A.Beattie o.g. 37
40,296 (Highbury, London)

Arsenal were without Copping, and Hapgood (the captain), who were playing against Wales in Cardiff, and Cumner (making his international debut), Bryn Jones and Leslie Jones, who were playing for Wales.

ASTON VILLA 1-2 LEICESTER CITY
Haycock 83 (Dewis 63, Reeday pen. 75)
46,233 (Villa Park, Birmingham)

Villa were without Frank Broome, who was a reserve against Wales at Cardiff.

BLACKPOOL 1-1 STOKE CITY
Munro 81 (Baker 87)
23,501 (Bloomfield Road, Blackpool)

Stoke were without Stan Matthews, who scored the second equaliser against Wales at Cardiff.

BRENTFORD 1-0 CHELSEA
Reid 65
31,425 (Griffin Park, London)

Brentford were without Idris Hopkins, who scored Wales' second goal past Chelsea goalkeeper, Vic Woodley, against England at Cardiff.

DERBY COUNTY 5-1 MANCHESTER UNITED
Dix 10, McCulloch 35, 82, Vose o.g. 47, Crooks 65 (Smith 46)
26,612 (Baseball Ground, Derby)

Derby were without Dai Astley, who scored twice for Wales against England at Cardiff.

EVERTON 4-0 LEEDS UNITED
Trentham 33, Bell 41, 44, 52
30,747 (Goodison Park, Liverpool)

Everton were without Boyes, and Lawton (who scored the first equaliser, from a penalty, on his international debut), who were playing against Wales at Cardiff, and Jones, who was playing for Wales.

GRIMSBY TOWN 1-0 BIRMINGHAM
Bartholomew 49
11,022 (Blundell Park, Cleethorpes)

Birmingham were without Hughes and Richards, who were playing for Wales against England at Cardiff.

HUDDERSFIELD TOWN 2-1 BOLTON WANDERERS
Baird 4, Beasley 16 (Roberts 13)
18,027 (Leeds Road, Huddersfield)

Huddersfield were without Willingham and Young, who were playing against Wales at Cardiff.

PORTSMOUTH 0-2 CHARLTON ATHLETIC
(Tadman 22, Brown 72)
24,702 (Fratton Park, Portsmouth)

Portsmouth's Joe Worrall had a penalty saved by Sam Bartram, with twelve minutes remaining, and Worrall was then sent off, along with Charlton's captain, Jimmy Oakes, for fighting. Charlton were without Welsh, who was a reserve against Wales at Cardiff, and Green, who was playing for Wales.

SUNDERLAND 1-2 MIDDLESBROUGH
Smeaton 90 (Camsell 17, Yorston pen. 57)
39,440 (Roker Park, Sunderland)

WOLVERHAMPTON WANDERERS 2-2 LIVERPOOL
McIntosh 83, Westcott 88 (Taylor 75, Nieuwenhuys 77)
25,668 (Molineux, Wolverhampton)

Everton and Derby continued their impressive starts to move four points clear of the chasing pack, but only Everton would last the pace right through to the end of the season.

Football League Division Two
22 October 1938

Team P Pts

Fulham 12 17

Blackburn Rovers 12 15

Newcastle United 12 14

West Bromwich Albion 12 14

Millwall 11 13

Sheffield United 11 13

Sheffield Wednesday 11 13

Tottenham Hotspur 11 13

Bradford 11 13

Burnley 12 13

Plymouth Argyle 11 12

Luton Town 11 12

West Ham United 12 11

Bury 11 10

Coventry City 11 10

Nottingham Forest 11 9

Chesterfield 11 9

Manchester City 11 8

Norwich City 11 8

Southampton 11 8

Tranmere Rovers 11 7

Swansea Town 11 6

Division Two matches played on 22 October 1938:

BLACKBURN ROVERS 3-1 TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR
Buckingham o.g., Butt, Clarke (Lyman)
18,136 (Ewood Park, Blackburn)

Tottenham were without Sproston, who was playing against Wales in Cardiff, and Whatley, who was playing for Wales.

BRADFORD 2-2 PLYMOUTH ARGYLE
Lewis, Hallard (Lane, Fletcher)
10,807 (Park Avenue, Bradford)

BURY 2-1 NOTTINGHAM FOREST
Ormandy, Livingstone (Peacock)
8,090 (Gigg Lane, Bury)

CHESTERFIELD 2-0 NORWICH CITY
Lyon, Ponting
11,452 (Recreation Ground, Chesterfield)

FULHAM 1-1 SOUTHAMPTON
Evans (Tomlinson)
21,423 (Craven Cottage, London)

MANCHESTER CITY 3-2 SHEFFIELD UNITED
Milsom, Brook, Toseland (Hampson, Dodds)
31,544 (Maine Road, Manchester)

MILLWALL 1-1 BURNLEY
Barker (Hornby)
33,975 (The Den, London)

SHEFFIELD WEDNESDAY 2-2 COVENTRY CITY
Driver, Lewis (Crawley 2)
24,008 (Hillsborough, Sheffield)

Wednesday were without Jackie Robinson, who was playing against Wales at Cardiff.

SWANSEA TOWN 2-3 LUTON TOWN
Bamford 2 (Clark 2, Connelly)
8,658 (Vetch Field, Swansea)

Swansea were without Roy John, who was in goal for Wales against England at Cardiff.

TRANMERE ROVERS 3-1 WEST BROMWICH ALBION
Docking 2, Cassidy (Johnson)
11,930 (Prenton Park, Birkenhead)

WEST HAM UNITED 1-1 NEWCASTLE UNITED
Ancell o.g. (Cairns)
26,721 (Upton Park, London)

West Ham were without Len Goulden, who was playing against Wales at Cardiff.

After a strong start, Fulham began to stumble and they would end the season in mid-table.

Division Three on 22 October 1938:

Barnsley led the northern section on goal average from Crewe Alexandra. They would only lose three more games all season and an immediate return to the second division was their reward. Newport County led the southern section by a point from Aldershot. They, too, would finish the season on top, to earn their first ever promotion.

IN OTHER NEWS...

It was on 21 October 1938 that Japanese troops captured the Chinese port of Guangzhou and isolated the British island of Hong Kong, placing it under serious threat.

Source Notes

Welsh Football Data Archive
Original newspaper reports
Rothmans Yearbooks
FA Yearbooks 1950-60
Ancestry.com
CF
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CG