Louis Antonio Page (27 March 1899 – 11 October 1959) was an

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

international

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player and football

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. His brothers Tom, Jack and

Willie Willy or Willie is a masculine, male given name, often a diminutive form of William or Wilhelm, and occasionally a nickname. It may refer to: People Given name or nickname * Willie Allen (basketball) (born 1949), American basketball player and ...

were also professional footballers. He spent his youth with Everton and South Liverpool before beginning his professional career with Stoke in 1919. After the "Potters" won

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out of the Second Division, he moved on to

Northampton Town Northampton Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Northampton, England. The team competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the English football league system. Founded in 1897, the c ...

in 1922. Three years later, he moved up to the First Division with

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2021 population of 78,266. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River B ...

. He scored 111 goals in 248 league games for the "Clarets" before he was sold to

Manchester United Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...

for a £1,000 fee in March 1932. Seven months later, he moved on to Port Vale before ending his playing career in the

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in the summer of 1933. He started his management career with Yeovil & Petters United and led the club to the Southern League West Section and Western League Division 1 titles in 1934–35. He then returned to the Football League with Newport County. He later took charge at

Glentoran Glentoran Football Club is a professional football club based in East Belfast, Northern Ireland, that plays in the NIFL Premiership. The club was founded in 1882 and has since won more than 130 major honours. They are one of three Northern Iris ...

before he was put in charge at

Swindon Town Swindon Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. The team, known as the "Robins", currently compete in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded as Swindon A ...

following the conclusion of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He spent eight years in charge of the Third Division South club before he spent three years in charge at

Chester Chester is a cathedral city in Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, Wales, River Dee, close to the England–Wales border. With a built-up area population of 92,760 in 2021, it is the most populous settlement in the borough of Cheshire West an ...

, who were struggling at the foot of the Third Division North table.

Early and personal life

Louis Antonio Page was born on 27 March 1899 in

Bootle Bootle (pronounced ) is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England, which had a population of 51,394 in 2011; the wider Bootle (UK Parliament constituency), Parliamentary constituency had a population of 98,449. It is pa ...

cum Linacre,

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...

. He was the youngest of ten children to Robert William and Jane (née Galvin); his father was born in

Calcutta Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...

and worked as a crane driver at the

Liverpool docks The Port of Liverpool is the enclosed Dock (maritime), dock system that runs from Brunswick Dock in Liverpool to Seaforth Dock, Seaforth, Merseyside, Seaforth, on the east side of the River Mersey and the Great Float, Birkenhead Docks betwee ...

. Three brothers – Tom, Jack and

– also played professional football. He married Lily Tinsley in 1920 and had six children: Lilian (born and died 1920), Louis (born 1921), Philimenia (born 1925), Mary (born and died 1928), Derek A. (born 1931) and Terence (born 1942).

Club career

Page began his senior career with

Merseyside Merseyside ( ) is a ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial and metropolitan county in North West England. It borders Lancashire to the north, Greater Manchester to the east, Cheshire to the south, the Wales, Welsh county of Flintshire across ...

clubs Everton and South Liverpool. He entered professional football with Stoke during the 1919–20 season, scoring his first senior goal on 13 December, in a 2–1 defeat to

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

at St Andrew's. However, he featured just eight times in 1920–21 and then once in 1921–22, as the "Potters" won

out of the Second Division. He left the

Victoria Ground The Victoria Ground was the home ground of Stoke City from 1878 until 1997, when the club relocated to the Britannia Stadium after 119 years. At the time of its demolition it was the oldest operational ground in the Football League. Histor ...

to sign with

of the Third Division South. The "Cobblers" finished eighth in 1922–23 and 1923–24, and ninth in 1924–25. He scored 24 goals in 122 league games at the County Ground. Page transferred to

, who finished one place and one point above the First Division

relegation Promotion and relegation is used by sports leagues as a process where teams can move up and down among divisions in a league system, based on their performance over a season. Leagues that use promotion and relegation systems are sometimes call ...

zone in 1925–26. He wrote himself into the club's record books on 10 April 1926, when he scored six goals in a 7–1 win over Birmingham. He finished as the club's top scorer in 1925–26 with 26 goals. He scored 15 goals in 1926–27 to again become the club's top scorer, as the "Clarets" achieved a top-five finish. They dropped to 19th in 1927–28, two places and one point above the relegation zone. They again finished 19th in 1928–29, but were seven points above the drop zone this time. Burnley were relegated in 1929–30, having attained a lower goal average than Sheffield United. They then finished eighth in the Second Division in 1930–31 and 19th in 1931–32. He made 248 league appearances, scoring 111 goals, during his time at

Turf Moor Turf Moor is an association football stadium in Burnley, Lancashire, England, which has been the home of Burnley F.C., Burnley Football Club since 1883. This unbroken service makes Turf Moor the second-longest continuously used ground in Footbal ...

. Page joined Walter Crickmer's Second Division side

for a £1,000 fee in March 1932. He played nine games at the end of the 1931–32 season and three games at the start of the 1932–33 season, before falling out of favour under new secretary Scott Duncan and moving on to league rivals Port Vale in October 1932. He played 19 games in all competitions during the 1932–33 season, falling out of favour in March 1933. He was not kept on at the

Old Recreation Ground The Old Recreation Ground was a football stadium located in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, England, and home to Port Vale F.C. from 1913 to 1950. It was the sixth ground the club used. Structure and facilities The stadium was in rather bad conditi ...

beyond the campaign, and so Page left the

to forge a career in management.

International career

Page featured for

seven times in 1927, alongside England and Everton great Dixie Dean. He played four

British Home Championship The British Home Championship (historically known as the British International Championship or simply the International Championship) was an annual football competition contested between the United Kingdom's four national teams: England, Scotlan ...

games and three friendlies, and scored against

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

on 1 May 1927; his goal came in the 63rd minute, in what was a 9–1 victory.

Caps

Management career

Yeovil & Petters United

Page's first managerial post was with Yeovil & Petters United in summer 1933, also being registered as a player. He finished as the club's top scorer in 1933–34 with 23 goals. In the 1934–35 season, Yeovil topped both the Southern League West Section and Western League Division 1 tables.

Newport County

Page was appointed

at Welsh club Newport County on 7 June 1935. The club finished 21st in the 22 team Third Division South in 1935–36, but successfully applied for re-election. Newport then moved up to 19th in the 1936–37 campaign, finishing two places and two points above the re-election zone. He was sacked on 9 September 1937, a few games into the 1937–38 season; his successor, Billy McCandless, led the club to a 16th-place finish in the Third Division South. After leaving Newport he became trainer- coach at

in 1939–40, as the "Glens" finished third in the Irish League. He later served as manager of

-based Carlton F.C.

Swindon Town

When league football resumed after the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he was appointed manager of

. Page was forced to build a completely fresh team, and so Swindon's fourth-place finish in the Third Division South in 1946–47 was seen as a highly respectable achievement. The "Robins" slumped to 16th place the following season – just two points off the bottom spot. They did though knock

out of the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...

, before being beaten in the Fifth Round by

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

. In 1948–49, Swindon again finished fourth, without ever challenging for the

spot. Swindon then finished 14th in 1949–50, 17th in 1950–51, 16th in 1951–52, and 18th in 1952–53. Page always had to deal with a shoestring budget at the County Ground, and was forced to sell many of his top players. Page was relieved of his duties at the end of the 1952–53 season, and was handed £500 in compensation.

Chester

He became manager of

in 1953. The "Seals" finished bottom of the Third Division North in 1953–54. The

Sealand Road Sealand Road was the home stadium of Chester City Football Club (known until 1983 as Chester Football Club) from 1906 until 1990. Although officially known simply as The Stadium, it was more commonly referred to as Sealand Road. It was much lov ...

club again finished last in 1954–55, before rising to 17th in 1955–56. He later worked as a

scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement ** Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom ** Scouts BSA, sect ...

for Leicester City.

Career statistics

Honours

As a player

Stoke *

Football League Second Division The Football League Second Division was the second level division in the English football league system between 1892 and 1992. Following the foundation of the FA Premier League, the Football League divisions were renumbered and the third tier ...

second-place promotion: 1921–22 England *

: 1926–27 (shared)

As player-manager

Yeovil & Petters United *Southern League West Section: 1934–35 *Western League Division 1: 1934–35 * Somerset Premier Cup: 1935

Baseball

Louis Page and his three brothers were all England baseball Internationals. Louis played in the annual International against Wales eight times between 1925 and 1933, 1928 being the exception, the last five as captain.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Page, Louis 1899 births 1959 deaths Footballers from Bootle Footballers from Liverpool English men's footballers England men's international footballers Men's association football forwards Everton F.C. players South Liverpool F.C. players Stoke City F.C. players Northampton Town F.C. players Burnley F.C. players Manchester United F.C. players Port Vale F.C. players Yeovil Town F.C. players English Football League players Southern Football League players Western Football League players Men's association football player-managers English football managers Yeovil Town F.C. managers Newport County A.F.C. managers Glentoran F.C. managers Swindon Town F.C. managers Chester City F.C. managers Southern Football League managers English Football League managers English football coaches English football scouts Leicester City F.C. non-playing staff 20th-century English sportsmen NIFL Premiership managers