Len Davies
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Leonard Stephen Davies (28 April 1899 – 1945) was a Welsh 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 lea ...
. Born in
Cardiff Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...
, he trained as a marine engineer before becoming a footballer, making his senior debut for his hometown club
Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It currently competes in , the third tier of the English football league system in the 2025–26 season following relegation. Founded in 1899 a ...
in 1919 in the
Southern Football League The Southern League is a football competition featuring semi-professional clubs from East Anglia, the South and Midlands of England, and South Wales. Together with the Isthmian League and the Northern Premier League it forms levels seven a ...
. Cardiff joined 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 ...
the following year but Davies remained a reserve until establishing himself in the first team in late 1922. He scored Cardiff's first
hat-trick A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three Wick ...
in the Football League in January 1922 and was the club's top scorer in all competitions during the campaign. In the 1923–24 season, Cardiff went into their final game of the campaign needing a win to become the first Welsh side to win the
Football League First Division The Football League First Division was the top division of the Football League in England from 1888 until the end of the 1991–92 season, when its teams broke away to form the Premier League. From 1992 to 2004, the name First Division was g ...
title. During the match, Davies missed a
penalty kick A penalty shot or penalty kick is a play used in several sports whereby a goal is attempted during untimed play. Depending on the sport, when a player commits certain types of penalties, the opposition is awarded a penalty shot or kick attempt. ...
as his side were held to a goalless draw, missing out on the title via
goal average A goal or objective is an idea of the future or desired result that a person or a group of people envision, plan, and commit to achieve. People endeavour to reach goals within a finite time by setting deadlines. A goal is roughly similar to ...
. He also helped the club reach the
1925 FA Cup Final The 1925 FA Cup final was an association football match contested by Sheffield United F.C., Sheffield United and Cardiff City F.C., Cardiff City on 25 April 1925 at Wembley Stadium (1923), Wembley Stadium in London, England. The final was the s ...
but missed the game due to injury. He played in a final two years later, in the
1927 FA Cup Final The 1927 FA Cup final was an association football match between Cardiff City and Arsenal on 23 April 1927 at the Empire Stadium (the original Wembley Stadium). The final was the showpiece match of English football's primary cup competition, the ...
, helping the side become the only Welsh side to win the competition as they defeated
Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
1–0. He remains the record goalscorer for Cardiff City in both league and all competitions having scored 179 goals for the club between 1919 and 1931. He later played a single season for
Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after th ...
before finishing his career with Bangor City. He also represented
Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...
at international level 23 times during his career, scoring 6 goals


Early life

Born in the
Splott Splott () is a district and community in the south of the city of Cardiff, capital of Wales, just east of the city centre. It was built up in the late 19th century on the land of two farms of the same name: Upper Splott and Lower Splott Farms. S ...
district of
Cardiff Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...
, Davies attended Gladatone Road School. He trained as a marine engineer in his teens and spent time at sea. He also played cricket at youth level for
Glamorgan County Cricket Club Glamorgan County Cricket Club () is one of eighteen first-class cricket, first-class county cricket, county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the Historic counties of Wales, historic county of Gla ...
.


Club career


Early years

Davies began his football career with local youth side Victoria Athletic and represented Wales at youth level in 1913 against
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 ...
at
Penydarren Park Penydarren Park is a sports stadium in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales, that is the present home ground of Merthyr Town F.C. (2010), Merthyr Town Historically used for varying sports, it has been the home to two professional football teams, Merthyr Town a ...
. He joined
Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It currently competes in , the third tier of the English football league system in the 2025–26 season following relegation. Founded in 1899 a ...
in 1919 and made his senior debut in the 1919–20 season, replacing George Beare for a 2–2 draw 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 ...
on 13 September 1919 in the
Southern Football League The Southern League is a football competition featuring semi-professional clubs from East Anglia, the South and Midlands of England, and South Wales. Together with the Isthmian League and the Northern Premier League it forms levels seven a ...
. However, this proved to be his only first team appearance for more than a year. Cardiff joined the Second Division of 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 ...
in 1920, but Davies played only three times during the league season. His only other appearance during the 1920–21 season came in the
Welsh Cup The FAW Welsh Cup (), currently known as the JD Welsh Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a knock-out football competition contested annually by teams in the Welsh football league system. It is considered the most prestigious of the cup competitions ...
. With Cardiff meeting
Bristol City Bristol City Football Club is a professional football club based in Bristol, England. The team compete in the , the second level of the English football league system. Founded in 1894, the club competed in the Southern League and Western L ...
in the Football League on the same day, they were forced to field a reserve side for their match against
Pontypridd Pontypridd ( , ), Colloquialism, colloquially referred to as ''Ponty'', is a town and a Community (Wales), community in Rhondda Cynon Taf, South Wales, approximately 10 miles north west of Cardiff city centre. Geography Pontypridd comprises the ...
. Although Cardiff went on to lose the game, Davies scored the first senior goal of his career. Davies remained a reserve at the start of the 1921–22 season, during which the club initially struggled in the top tier. With Fred Pagnam having failed to score in 13 appearances, Davies was brought into the side in November and scored a brace during a 2–1 victory over Everton. He scored in his next two appearances and remained a regular in the first team for the remainder of the campaign. In December 1921, Cardiff rejected a £3,000 (around £140,000 in 2021) offer for Davies from a rival First Division club. He scored Cardiff's first
hat-trick A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three Wick ...
in the Football League on 21 January 1922 during a 6–3 victory over
Bradford City Bradford City Association Football Club is an English professional football club in Bradford, West Yorkshire. The club competes in , the third tier of English football, and is managed by Graham Alexander. The club was founded in 1903 and ...
. He was also prolific in the Welsh Cup, scoring four times against Newport County in the third round and adding a hat-trick against Merthyr Town in the fourth. In the final, Davies scored Cardiff's second goal as they defeated
Ton Pentre Ton Pentre () is a village in the Rhondda, Rhondda Valley in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. Historic counties of Wales, Historically part of Glamorgan, Ton Pentre, a former industrial coal mining village, is a district of the comm ...
2–0. He finished the season as Cardiff's second highest scorer in the First Division with 17, 3 short of Jimmy Gill, but his scoring exploits in the FA Cup and Welsh Cup saw him out score Gill in all competitions. Gill and Davies remained a prolific partnership for the club in the 1922–23 season, with Davies scoring 19 league goals, two more than his teammate. Davies' tally included a hat-trick during a 6–1 victory over Chelsea in March 1923. He also scored six times in four matches as Cardiff retained their Welsh Cup title, including a hat-trick in a 10–0 win over
Oswestry Oswestry ( ; ) is a market town, civil parish and historic railway town in Shropshire, England, close to the England–Wales border, Welsh border. It is at the junction of the A5 road (Great Britain), A5, A483 road, A483 and A495 road, A495 ro ...
in the fourth round and the winning goal in the final during a 3–2 victory over Aberdare Athletic.


Near title miss and FA Cup finals

Davies began the 1923–24 season slowly, scoring once in his first five appearances although Cardiff scored ten times in the games. From 15 September to 27 October, he embarked on a scoring run, netting in six of the seven matches his side played, which included winning goals in two matches. On 10 November, he scored all of Cardiff's goals in a 4–2 victory over
West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club (), commonly known as West Brom or The Albion, is a professional association football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the Englis ...
. He went on to finish the campaign as the club's top goalscorer having scored 23 times in the league, a career high tally. However, his campaign was overshadowed by a missed penalty on the final day of the season. In their last game, Cardiff met
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 ...
. If they won the game Cardiff would be guaranteed the First Division title. The match was goalless after 70 minutes, when a goal-bound shot from Gill was blocked by the hand of a Birmingham defender resulting in a penalty being given. The club's usual penalty taker Jack Evans had missed recent attempts, while Gill was reluctant to take it. Davies instead stepped in to take the first penalty of his senior career. His teammate Fred Keenor later described the attempt, noting "There is no doubt that the excitement and the knowledge that so much depended on the shot unnerved Len a little. Under ordinary circumstances it would have been a gift goal, but Len Davies muffed the kick and the ball rolled gently to the goalkeeper, who calmly gathered and made an easy clearance." The game eventually ended goalless while their nearest rivals
Huddersfield Town Huddersfield Town Association Football Club is a professional association football club based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England. They compete in , the third tier of English football league system, English football. Huddersfield Town we ...
won 3–0 and secured the title courtesy of
goal average A goal or objective is an idea of the future or desired result that a person or a group of people envision, plan, and commit to achieve. People endeavour to reach goals within a finite time by setting deadlines. A goal is roughly similar to ...
. The difference between the two sides, 0.024 of a goal remains the closest margin of victory ever recorded in the top tier of English football. Davies was said to be inconsolable following the miss. He was again Cardiff's highest goalscorer the following year, netting 20 times despite suffering several injury problems that restricted him to 30 league appearances. However, his injury issues cost him a place in the squad for
1925 FA Cup final The 1925 FA Cup final was an association football match contested by Sheffield United F.C., Sheffield United and Cardiff City F.C., Cardiff City on 25 April 1925 at Wembley Stadium (1923), Wembley Stadium in London, England. The final was the s ...
with Joe Nicholson starting in his place. His side went on to suffer defeat against Sheffield United. The signing of Hughie Ferguson in 1925 led to Davies being moved to an inside forward role and his scoring record fell as a result. He scored eight times during the 1925–26 season and seven the following year. In 1927, he was part of the Cardiff side that beat
Arsenal An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
to win the
FA Cup Final The FA Cup Final is the last match in the FA Cup, Football Association Challenge Cup. It has regularly been one of the List of sports attendance figures, most attended domestic football events in the world, with an official attendance of 89,472 ...
, becoming the only side from outside England to have won the competition. The only goal of the game came as the opposition goalkeeper was unable to control a shot from Hughie Ferguson as Davies advanced on him. Two weeks after the final, Davies scored the opening goal in Cardiff's 2–0 win over
Rhyl Rhyl (; , ) is a seaside town and community in Denbighshire in Wales. The town lies on the coast of North Wales, at the mouth of the River Clwyd. To the west is Kinmel Bay and Towyn, to the east Prestatyn, and to the south-east Rhuddlan ...
in the Welsh Cup final. Davies remained with Cardiff until 1931, one year after finishing as the club's top scorer for the fifth time in the Football League. He missed the majority of his final season after undergoing surgery for
appendicitis Appendicitis is inflammation of the Appendix (anatomy), appendix. Symptoms commonly include right lower abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, fever and anorexia (symptom), decreased appetite. However, approximately 40% of people do not have these t ...
, before being released alongside Keenor. The pair both made their final appearance for the club in a goalless draw with
Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as simply Tottenham (, , , ) or Spurs, is a professional Association football, football club based in Tottenham, North London, England. The club itself has stated that it should always ...
on 6 April 1931. The club had suffered relegation to the Third Division South by the time of his departure. He remains the club's highest scorer with 179 goals in all competitions and also holds the club record for the most hat-tricks, scoring eight during his time in Cardiff.


Later career

He instead joined fellow Third Division South Side
Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after th ...
. During only season with the club, they played his former side Cardiff which resulted in a clash of kit colours. Thames instead played in 11 of Davies' Welsh shirts which he had obtained on international duty. The match ended in a 9–2 defeat for his Thames side, a record league victory that still stands as of 2021 for his former club Cardiff. Thames finished bottom of the Third Division South in the 1931–32 season and the club was wound up at the end of the season. Davies instead joined Bangor City for the 1932–33 season, staying with the club until 1935 when he finished his playing career.


International career

Davies made a goalscoring debut for
Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...
on 4 February 1922 in a 2–1 win over
Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
and was ever present for the side for a further three year, playing in every international fixture until 1925. In 1929, Davies was named in a
Football Association of Wales The Football Association of Wales (FAW; ) is the Governing bodies of sports in Wales, governing body of association football and futsal in Wales, and controls the Wales national football team, its Wales women's national football team, correspo ...
XI that toured Canada. He was a prolific scorer during the tour, including scoring seven times in a single game during a match against a Lower Mainland XI. In total, Davies played 23 times for the Welsh national side, scoring six times and helping Wales to Home Championship titles in 1924 and 1928. His last game for Wales came on 20 November 1929 against
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 ...
.


Personal life

Davies met his future wife, Gwendoline Stroud, through his playing career as she was a fervent supporter of Cardiff. The pair married on 1 January 1923. After retiring from playing, Davies became a school sports coach at Mostyn House School, Parkgate, and later worked on an aircraft production line during
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 died of pneumonia in
Prescot Prescot is a town and civil parish within the Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley in Merseyside, England. It lies about to the east of Liverpool city centre. At the 2001 Census, the civil parish population was 11,184 (5,265 males, 5,919 femal ...
in 1945.


Career statistics


International goals

:''Results list Wales' goal tally first.''


Honours


As a player

Cardiff City *
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 ...
winner –
1927 Events January * January 1 – The British Broadcasting ''Company'' becomes the BBC, British Broadcasting ''Corporation'', when its Royal Charter of incorporation takes effect. John Reith, 1st Baron Reith, John Reith becomes the first ...
*
FA Community Shield The Football Association Community Shield (formerly the Charity Shield) is Football in England, English football's annual match contested at Wembley Stadium between the champions of the previous Premier League season and the holders of the FA ...
winner –
1927 Events January * January 1 – The British Broadcasting ''Company'' becomes the BBC, British Broadcasting ''Corporation'', when its Royal Charter of incorporation takes effect. John Reith, 1st Baron Reith, John Reith becomes the first ...
*
Welsh Cup The FAW Welsh Cup (), currently known as the JD Welsh Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a knock-out football competition contested annually by teams in the Welsh football league system. It is considered the most prestigious of the cup competitions ...
winner – 1922, 1923, 1927, 1928, 1930 * Division One runner-up – 1924 *
Welsh Cup The FAW Welsh Cup (), currently known as the JD Welsh Cup for sponsorship reasons, is a knock-out football competition contested annually by teams in the Welsh football league system. It is considered the most prestigious of the cup competitions ...
finalist – 1929


References

Bibliography * {{DEFAULTSORT:Davies, Len 1899 births 1945 deaths Deaths from pneumonia in England Welsh men's footballers Footballers from Cardiff Welsh football managers Wales men's international footballers Cardiff City F.C. players Thames A.F.C. players Bangor City F.C. managers English Football League players People from Splott Men's association football forwards