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

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

international football player and football manager. His brothers

Tom Tom or TOM may refer to: * Tom (given name), a diminutive of Thomas or Tomás or an independent Aramaic given name (and a list of people with the name) Characters * Tom Anderson, a character in '' Beavis and Butt-Head'' * Tom Beck, a character ...

Jack Jack may refer to: Places * Jack, Alabama, US, an unincorporated community * Jack, Missouri, US, an unincorporated community * Jack County, Texas, a county in Texas, USA People and fictional characters * Jack (given name), a male given name, ...

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 Aames (born 1960), American actor, television director, and scr ...

were also professional footballers. He spent his youth with Everton and South Liverpool, before beginning his professional career with

Stoke Stoke is a common place name in the United Kingdom. Stoke may refer to: Places United Kingdom The largest city called Stoke is Stoke-on-Trent in Staffordshire. See below. Berkshire * Stoke Row, Berkshire Bristol * Stoke Bishop * Sto ...

in 1919. After the "Potters" won promotion out of the

Second Division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...

, 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 plays in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1897, the club competed in the Midland L ...

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 2001 population of 73,021. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River ...

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

Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...

for a £1,000 fee in March 1932. Seven months later he moved on to

Port Vale Port Vale Football Club are a professional football club based in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England, which compete in . Vale are the only English Football League club not to be named after a place; their name being a reference to the valley of ...

, before ending his playing career 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 ...

in summer 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 that plays in the NIFL Premiership. The club was founded in 1882. History Early history In 1914, Glentoran won the Vienna Cup, becoming the first United Kingdom team to win a European t ...

, before he was put in charge at

Swindon Town Swindon Town Football Club is a professional football club based in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. The team currently competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club has played home matches at the County Ground sin ...

following the conclusion of

World War II 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 ...

. He spent eight years in charge of the

Third Division South The Third Division South of The Football League was a tier in the English football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran in parallel with the Third Division North with clubs elected to the League or relegated from Division Two allocated to on ...

club, before he spent three years in charge at

Chester Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...

, who were struggling at the foot of the

Third Division North The Third Division North of the Football League was a tier in the English football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran in parallel with the Third Division South with clubs elected to the League or relegated from a higher division allocated to ...

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 Parliamentary constituency had a population of 98,449. Historically part of Lancashire, Bootle ...

cum Linacre,

Liverpool Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a Historic counties of England, historic county, Ceremonial County, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significa ...

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

Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comm ...

and worked as a crane driver at the

Liverpool docks The Port of Liverpool is the enclosed dock system that runs from Brunswick Dock in Liverpool to Seaforth Dock, Seaforth, on the east side of the River Mersey and the Birkenhead Docks between Birkenhead and Wallasey on the west side of t ...

. Three brothers –

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 metropolitan and ceremonial county in North West England, with a population of 1.38 million. It encompasses both banks of the Mersey Estuary and comprises five metropolitan boroughs: Knowsley, St Helens, Sefton, Wirral ...

clubs Everton and South Liverpool. He entered professional football with

during the 1919–20 season, scoring his first senior goal on 13 December, in a 2–1 defeat to

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...

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

. 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. History ...

to sign with

of the

. 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 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 this time seven points above the drop zone. Burnley were relegated in 1929–30, having attained a lower goal average than

Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history of cutlery production. The team have played home games a ...

. 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. since 1883. This unbroken service makes Turf Moor the second-longest continuously used ground in English professional footbal ...

. Page joined

Walter Crickmer Walter Raymond Crickmer (1900 – 6 February 1958) was an English football club secretary and manager. He became Manchester United club secretary in 1926. He twice assumed managerial responsibility: from 1 April 1931 to 1 June 1932, and then a ...

'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

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 conditio ...

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 William Ralph "Dixie" Dean (22 January 1907 – 1 March 1980) was an English footballer who played as a centre forward. He is regarded as one of the greatest centre-forwards of all time and was inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame in ...

. He played four

British Home Championship The British Home Championship * sco, Hame Internaitional Kemp * gd, Farpais lìg eadar-nàiseanta * cy, Pencampwriaeth y Pedair Gwlad, name=lang (historically known as the British International Championship or simply the International Champio ...

games and three

friendlies An exhibition game (also known as a friendly, a scrimmage, a demonstration, a preseason game, a warmup match, or a preparation match, depending at least in part on the sport) is a sporting event whose prize money and impact on the player's or ...

, and scored against

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...

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 manager at Welsh club Newport County on 7 June 1935. The club finished 21st in the 22 team

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 William McCandless (20 December 1893 – 18 July 1955) was an Irish international football player and manager. As a player McCandless normally played at left-back, most notably at Rangers where he won six Scottish Football League titles with the ...

, 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, 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 ...

, he was appointed manager of

. Page was forced to build a completely fresh team, and so Swindon's fourth-place finish in the

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 knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competit ...

, before being beaten in the Fifth Round by

Southampton Southampton () is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire, S ...

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

promotion Promotion may refer to: Marketing * Promotion (marketing), one of the four marketing mix elements, comprising any type of marketing communication used to inform or persuade target audiences of the relative merits of a product, service, brand or i ...

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

in 1953–54. The

Sealand Road Sealand Road was the home stadium of Chester City Football Club (until 1983 known 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 loved ...

outfit 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 Leicester ( ) is a city, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city lies on the River Soar and close to the eastern end of the Nation ...

Career statistics

Source:

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 t ...

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 The Somerset Premier Cup is an association football knock-out cup competition run by the Somerset County Football Association (SFA). According to the current rules of the competition, to enter clubs first affiliation must be with the Somerset C ...

: 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 Sportspeople from Bootle Footballers from Liverpool English footballers England international footballers 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 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 Association football coaches Association football scouts Leicester City F.C. non-playing staff