Alf Jones (footballer, born c. 1861)

For other people with similar names, see Alfred Jones (disambiguation).

Alfred Jones (born c. 1861) was an English professional footballer who made three appearances as a full back for England in the 1880s.

Career

Jones was born in Walsall and played junior football in the Walsall area before signing with Walsall Swifts, going on to become the club's first player to gain international recognition.

His first cap came on 11 March 1882 against Scotland. Scotland won the match 5–1, with England's consolation goal coming from Howard Vaughton.[1] Despite the size of the defeat, Jones was retained in defence for the next international match against Wales two days later. England were expected to claim a "comfortable victory", but the Welsh side "fought magnificently to secure a 5–3 victory",[2] with Jones scoring an own goal in the 60th minute.[3][4]

He then had a spell with Great Lever in Bolton, during which he collected his third and final England cap in a 2–3 defeat by Scotland on 10 March 1883.[5]

He returned to Walsall in the summer of 1883 and two years later he joined Aston Villa.[6] He also had a spell at Burnley, and in 1885 when Jones and Scotland international Alex McLintock played against a Blackburn Select XI, it was the first time that two international players had appeared in the same Burnley line-up. He later returned to Walsall in 1886 when he joined Walsall Town, who then amalgamated with Walsall Swifts to form Walsall Town Swifts in 1888.

References

  1. ↑ Scotland 5 - England 1, 11 March 1882 (Match summary)
  2. ↑ Gibbons, Philip (2001). Association Football in Victorian England - A History of the Game from 1863 to 1900. Upfront Publishing. p. 64. ISBN 1-84426-035-6.
  3. ↑ Wales 5 - England 3, 13 March 1882 (Match summary)
  4. ↑ Match summary at www.englandfootballonline.com
  5. ↑ England 2 - Scotland 3, 10 March 1883 (Match summary)
  6. ↑ Graham Betts (2006). England: Player by player. Green Umbrella Publishing. p. 142. ISBN 1-905009-63-1.

External links


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