Royston Harry "Roy" Swinbourne (25 August 1929 – 27 December 2015) 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 ...

who played as a

centre forward Forwards (also known as attackers) are outfield positions in an association football team who play the furthest up the pitch and are therefore most responsible for scoring goals as well as assisting them. As with any attacking player, the role ...

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

Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club (), commonly known as Wolves, is a professional association football, football club based in Wolverhampton, England, which compete in the . The club has played at Molineux Stadium since moving from Dudley Ro ...

. He was

capped In sport, a cap is a player's appearance in a game at international level. The term dates from the practice in the United Kingdom of awarding a cap to every player in an international match of rugby football and association football. In the ea ...

once by

England B England B is a secondary football team run occasionally as support for the England national football team. At times they have played other nations' full teams; they have also played matches against 'B' teams from other football associations. Si ...

Playing career

Swinbourne began his career at Wath Wanderers, the

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...

-based nursery club of

. He moved south to join Wolves in 1944 and signed as a professional the following year. After proving himself in the reserve ranks, he made his debut on 17 December 1949 in a 1–1 draw with

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

. He came to the fore during the 1950–51 season, replacing Jesse Pye in the attack, and finished as top goalscorer with 22 goals. Injuries waylaid him the following year, but in the next campaign, forming what was described as "a potent dual spearhead" with

Dennis Wilshaw Dennis James Wilshaw (11 March 1926 – 10 May 2004) was an English international footballer. A forward, he scored 173 goals in 380 appearances in the Football League, and also scored ten goals in twelve appearances for the England national t ...

, he was once again the club's leading scorer with 21 goals. His tally of 24 in the 1953–54 season was a career best and helped Wolves capture their first ever league championship. It was Swinbourne himself who scored twice in the final game, a 2–0 victory over

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English football. The team has playe ...

that confirmed the title. The following season brought another strong return, including two goals in Wolves' famous floodlit victory over Honved of Hungary. In 1955 he scored for

in a 1–1 draw against their German counterparts: His career was halted when he damaged his knee while hurdling over a posse of cameramen on the pitchside at

Luton Town Luton Town Football Club () is a professional association football club based in the town of Luton, Bedfordshire, England, that competes in the EFL Championship, Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1 ...

Kenilworth Road Kenilworth Road is an association football stadium in Luton, Bedfordshire, England. It has been the home ground of Luton Town Football Club since 1905. The stadium has also hosted women's and youth international matches, including the second l ...

ground in November 1955. After trying to return just weeks later, he was forced to undergo surgery on the injury. He was never able to resume his playing career and was forced to announce his retirement in May 1957.

Later life

In later life, Swinbourne lived in

Kinver Kinver is a large village in the District of South Staffordshire in Staffordshire, England. It is in the far south-west of the county, at the end of the narrow finger of land surrounded by the counties of Shropshire, Worcestershire and the ...

before moving to a nursing home in

Kidderminster Kidderminster is a large market and historic minster town and civil parish in Worcestershire, England, south-west of Birmingham and north of Worcester. Located north of the River Stour and east of the River Severn, in the 2011 census, it h ...

. He died on 27 December 2015, aged 86, following a long battle with vascular dementia. He was survived by his wife, Betty, and daughters Jayne and Helen.

References

External links

Film clip of Wolves v Honved 1954
at British Pathé {{DEFAULTSORT:Swinbourne, Roy 1929 births 2015 deaths People from Conisbrough Footballers from Doncaster English footballers England B international footballers Association football forwards Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. players English Football League players Deaths from vascular dementia