William James Morgan (19 June 1922 – 11 October 1976) was a professional
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 ...
who played in
The Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...
for
Bristol Rovers
Bristol Rovers Football Club are a professional football club in Bristol, England. They compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system.
They play home matches at the Memorial Stadium in Horfield, they have been ...
immediately after the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
. Jimmy was a member of the
Barton Hill Morgan footballing family
[ arton Hill Footballing Family https://www.facebook.com/groups/1682150868706426/ Retrieved on 2016-12-30.] which included his uncles
Jerry Morgan
Frederick "Jerry" Morgan was a professional footballer who played for Bristol Rovers between 1919 and 1925, having previously played 2 games for Bristol City. He was part of a large footballing family from Barton Hill in Bristol (Bristol Rovers), Tom Morgan (
Bristol City
Bristol City Football Club is a professional football club based in Bristol, England, which compete in the , the second tier of English football. They have played their home games at Ashton Gate since moving from St John's Lane in 1904. The ...
), Fred Morgan (Bristol City) and Jim Morgan (Wolverhampton Wanderers).
Prior to his footballing career Morgan had served in the
Royal Marines
The Corps of Royal Marines (RM), also known as the Royal Marines Commandos, are the UK's special operations capable commando force, amphibious light infantry and also one of the five fighting arms of the Royal Navy. The Corps of Royal Marine ...
during the war and took part in the
Normandy Landings
The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...
in 1944. Following the conclusion of hostilities Morgan was offered a contract with
Sheffield Wednesday
Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an offshoot ...
, but rejected the deal and opted instead to join his home town team Bristol Rovers.
In seven years with ''The Pirates'' Morgan played in 104 League games and scored 24 goals, before joining
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 s ...
side
Stonehouse in 1952.
Sources
*
References
1922 births
1975 deaths
Footballers from Bristol
English footballers
Association football forwards
English Football League players
Bristol Rovers F.C. players
Royal Marines personnel of World War II
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