John Patrick Ayris (born 8 January 1953) is an English former

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 ...

right winger In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

Club career

Ayris began his career at

Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies in a loop on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea, London, Chelsea ...

, before joining

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Stratford, London, Stratford, East London, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English f ...

after being spotted by a West Ham scout playing eight-a-side football in

Mile End Mile End is an area in London, England and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in East London and part of the East End of London, East End. It is east of Charing Cross. Situated on the part of the London-to-Colchester road ...

. On 3 October 1970, after excelling for West Ham's 'A' team in the

Metropolitan League The Metropolitan League was a football league in the south-east of England between 1949 and 1971.Geoff Hurst Sir Geoffrey Charles Hurst (born 8 December 1941) is an English former professional Association football, footballer. A Striker (association football), striker, he became the first player to score a Hat-trick#Association football, hat-trick in a ...

in a 3–1 home against

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 ...

. As a result of his impressive debut, manager

Ron Greenwood Ronald Greenwood (11 November 1921 – 9 February 2006) was an English football player and manager. He is best known for being manager of the England national football team from 1977 until 1982, as well as being manager of West Ham United for ...

offered Ayris a professional contract two days later. The following month, Ayris started in

Bobby Moore Robert Frederick Chelsea Moore (12 April 1941 – 24 February 1993) was an English professional footballer. He captained West Ham United for more than ten years, and was the captain of the England national team that won the 1966 FIFA ...

's testimonial, scoring West Ham's second goal in a 3–3 draw against Scottish champions

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foot ...

. On 11 September 1971, in a home game against Chelsea, Ayris was on the receiving end of a challenge from Ron Harris, leading to Ayris being substituted off. Hospital tests the following day confirmed Ayris had developed an air bubble on his lung. As a result of the challenge, Greenwood was reluctant to play Ayris regularly, wanting to protect Ayris and his diminutive figure against the

First Division 1st Division or First Division may refer to: Military Airborne divisions *1st Parachute Division (Germany) *1st Airborne Division (United Kingdom) * 1st Airmobile Division (Ukraine) * 1st Guards Airborne Division Armoured divisions *1st Armoure ...

's more robust defenders. In 1975, finding his first-team opportunities limited, Ayris spent three months on loan with South African side

Cape Town City A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment of any length that hangs loosely and connects either at the neck or shoulders. They usually cover the back, shoulders, and arms. They come in a variety of styles and have been used thr ...

, missing West Ham's victory in the 1975 FA Cup Final as a result. Ayris' last game for West Ham came on 16 October 1976, being substituted on in a 2–0 loss against

Ipswich Town Ipswich Town Football Club is a professional football club based in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. The club currently competes in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. Ipswich Town were founded in 1878 but did not turn ...

. In total, Ayris played 68 games in all competitions for West Ham, scoring two goals. In the summer of 1977, Ayris signed for

Wimbledon Wimbledon most often refers to: * Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London * Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships Wimbledon may also refer to: Places London * W ...

, who had been newly elected to the

Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in Association football around the world, the w ...

. Ayris failed to make a league appearance for Wimbledon, later joining

Brentford Brentford is a suburban town in West (London sub region), West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the River Thames, Thames, west of Charing Cross. Its economy has dive ...

, for whom he also failed to make a league appearance for.

International career

In 1971, Ayris made seven appearances for

England Youth England national under-18 football team, also known as England under-18s or England U18(s), represents England in association football at under-18 age level and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England ...

. Ayris' only goal for the side came in the 1971 UEFA European Under-18 Championship final in a 3–0 win against

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ayris, Johnny 1953 births Living people English men's footballers English expatriate men's footballers Men's association football midfielders West Ham United F.C. players Wimbledon F.C. players Brentford F.C. players English Football League players Footballers from the London Borough of Tower Hamlets People from Wapping Cape Town City F.C. (1960) players Expatriate men's soccer players in South Africa English expatriate sportspeople in South Africa England men's youth international footballers National Football League (South Africa) players