Bryan Edwards (27 October 1930 – 21 June 2016) was an English football player and

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities ...

. He played 518 games for Bolton Wanderers picking up an

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...

Winners medal in

1958 Events January * January 1 – The European Economic Community (EEC) comes into being. * January 3 – The West Indies Federation is formed. * January 4 ** Edmund Hillary's Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition completes the third ...

and later managed

Bradford City Bradford City Association Football Club is an English professional football club in Bradford, West Yorkshire. The team competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system and are currently managed by Mark Hughes. ...

and was a coach and physiotherapist at several clubs.

Playing career

Edwards excelled at both football and cricket and had trials for both sports, at Bolton Wanderers and

Yorkshire CCC Yorkshire County Cricket Club is one of 18 first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Yorkshire. Yorkshire are the most successful team in English cricketing hi ...

in 1947. He joined Bolton and signed a full-time professional contract in October 1947. He stayed at

Burnden Park Burnden Park was the home of English football club Bolton Wanderers who played home games there between 1895 and 1997. As well as hosting the 1901 FA Cup Final replay, it was the scene in 1946 of one of the greatest disasters in English footba ...

for 18 years, although his career was interrupted by two years National Service, winning an

winners medal in

when Bolton defeated Manchester United 2–0. He made 483 league appearances and 518 in all league and cup games mostly as a wing half before later playing as a centre half retiring in 1965, aged 35.

Managerial career

When Edwards retired he first joined Blackpool as assistant trainer-coach before moving to Preston North End first as coach and later first-team trainer. He moved to Plymouth Argyle as chief coach, before becoming manager at

in November 1971. He took over with City struggling towards the bottom of

Division Three The Football League Third Division was the third tier of the English football league system in 1920–21 and again from 1958 until 1992. When the FA Premier League was formed, the division become the fourth tier level. In 2004, following the fo ...

but he could not arrest the slide and the club were relegated in bottom place in the 1971–72 season. The club came 16th the following season and 8th in 1973–74 before Edwards resigned in January 1975 to be replaced by

Bobby Kennedy Robert Francis Kennedy (November 20, 1925June 6, 1968), also known by his initials RFK and by the nickname Bobby, was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 64th United States Attorney General from January 1961 to September 1964, a ...

. He became a qualified physiotherapist and served as physio and coach at

Huddersfield Town Huddersfield Town Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The team have played home games at the Kirklees Stadium since moving from Leeds Road in 1994. Th ...

and youth team coach at

Leeds United Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire in England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of England's football league system, and plays its home matches at Elland Road ...

before returning to Bradford City in July 1977. He filled a host of roles at

Valley Parade Valley Parade, known as the University of Bradford Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is an all-seater football stadium in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. Built in 1886, it was the home of Manningham Rugby Football Club until 1903, when they ...

including physio, assistant manager, and general manager.

Later life

He died in June 2016, aged 85.

Managerial statistics

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Edwards, Bryan 1930 births 2016 deaths English footballers Bolton Wanderers F.C. players English football managers Blackpool F.C. non-playing staff Preston North End F.C. non-playing staff Leeds United F.C. non-playing staff Bradford City A.F.C. managers Association football physiotherapists Men's association football midfielders FA Cup final players