William Charles Higgins (26 February 1924 — 1981) was an English

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played as a winger.

Career

In 1946, Everton signed Higgins from

Tranmere Rovers Tranmere Rovers Football Club are a professional association football club based in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. The team competes in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded in 1884 as Belmont Football Club, they ...

, with whom he played for on amateur terms. Higgins made his debut for Everton on 21 September 1946 in a 0–0

Merseyside derby The Merseyside derby is an association football match between Everton F.C., Everton and Liverpool F.C., Liverpool, two clubs based in Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It is the longest running top-flight local derby, derby in England, with its fi ...

draw against

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 ...

. Over the course of four seasons, Higgins made 48 league appearances, scoring eight times. In May 1950, Higgins signed for Colombian club

Millonarios Millonarios Fútbol Club, known simply as Millonarios, is a Colombian professional football club based in Bogotá, that competes in the Categoría Primera A, top flight of football in Colombia. It is one of the most successful and iconic clubs i ...

, during the

El Dorado El Dorado () is a mythical city of gold supposedly located somewhere in South America. The king of this city was said to be so rich that he would cover himself from head to foot in gold dust – either daily or on certain ceremonial occasions � ...

era of Colombian football, in which a breakaway league was formed. Despite receiving a £1,000 signing-on fee and a monthly wage of £120, Higgins' time in Colombia was short lived. The ''

Liverpool Echo The ''Liverpool Echo'' is a newspaper published by Trinity Mirror North West & North Wales – a subsidiary company of Reach plc and is based in St. Paul's Square, Liverpool, England. It is published Monday through Sunday, and is Liverpool's da ...

'' reported Higgins was unhappy in Colombia and in financial despair, with his signing-on fee "not in order". Higgins returned to England five months later, with £19 to his name. As a result of leaving Everton to join Colombia's Campeonato Profesional, Higgins was suspended by

The Football Association The Football Association (the FA) is the Sports governing body, governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Bailiwick of Guernsey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest footb ...

, before having his suspension later lifted. Despite talks with

Luton Town Luton Town Football Club is a professional association football, football club from Luton, Bedfordshire, England. The club currently competes in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system. Nicknamed "The Hatters", L ...

and

Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an off ...

, Higgins eventually ended up signing for Welsh club

Bangor City Bangor City Football Club () was a Welsh football club from the City of Bangor, Gwynedd. Founded in 1876, Bangor City have been founder members of the North Wales Coast League, the Welsh National League, the North Wales Combination, the W ...

, who played in the English

non-league Non-League football describes association football, football leagues played outside the top leagues of a country. Usually, it describes leagues which are not fully professional. The term is primarily used for football in England, where it is ...

system. Higgins made his debut for Bangor on 2 December 1950, scoring in a 2–1 win against

Runcorn Runcorn is an industrial town and Runcorn Docks, cargo port in the Borough of Halton, Cheshire, England. Runcorn is on the south bank of the River Mersey, where the estuary narrows to form the Runcorn Gap. It is upstream from the port of Live ...

. In October 1952, Higgins had a transfer request accepted by the club. Despite this, he remained with Bangor until the end of the 1952–53 season. Following his retirement from professional football, Billy Higgins took on the licence of the Imperial Hotel, Canterbury, which he ran until the late 1960s.

References

1924 births 1981 deaths Men's association football wingers English men's footballers English expatriate men's footballers Footballers from Birkenhead Tranmere Rovers F.C. players Everton F.C. players Millonarios F.C. players Bangor City F.C. players Categoría Primera A players Expatriate men's footballers in Colombia English expatriate sportspeople in Colombia English Football League players 20th-century English sportsmen {{England-footy-midfielder-1920s-stub