Billy Birrell

William Birrell (13 March 1897 – 29 November 1968) was a Scottish professional football forward who made over 220 appearances in the Football League for Middlesbrough.[1] He also made over 120 appearances in the Scottish League for Raith Rovers.[3] He began his career in management while a player at Raith Rovers and after his retirement, he managed Football League clubs Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic, Queens Park Rangers and Chelsea.[4][5]

Billy Birrell
Personal information
Full name William Birrell[1]
Date of birth 13 March 1897
Place of birth Cellardyke, Scotland
Date of death 29 November 1968(1968-11-29) (aged 71)[2]
Playing position(s) Forward
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1914–1915 Inverkeithing United
1915–1921 Raith Rovers 77 (19)
0000–1920 → Kirkcaldy United (guest)
1921–1927 Middlesbrough 225 (59)
1927–1930 Raith Rovers 51 (22)
Teams managed
1927–1930 Raith Rovers (player-manager)
1930–1935 Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic
1935–1939 Queens Park Rangers
1939–1952 Chelsea
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Personal life

Birrell's brother Bob was also a footballer.[4]

Career statistics

Player
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National Cup Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Raith Rovers 1915–16[3] Scottish First Division 13 5 — 13 5
1916–17[3] 1 0 — 1 0
1919–20[3] 35 7 6 2 41 9
1920–21[3] 28 7 1 0 29 7
Total 77 19 7 2 84 21
Middlesbrough 1920–21[6] First Division 14 2 — 14 2
1921–22[6] 35 9 1 0 36 9
1922–23[6] 38 9 3 1 41 10
1923–24[6] 21 2 0 0 21 2
1924–25[6] Second Division 27 3 1 0 28 3
1925–26[6] 42 18 2 1 44 19
1926–27[6] 41 16 3 2 44 18
1927–28[6] First Division 7 1 0 0 7 1
Total 225 59 10 4 235 63
Raith Rovers 1926–27[3] Scottish First Division 15 4 3 1 18 5
1929–30[3] Scottish Second Division 20 12 2 1 22 13
1930–31[3] 16 6 0 0 16 6
Raith Rovers total 128 41 12 14 140 55
Career total 353 100 22 18 375 118

Manager
Team From To Record Ref
GWDLWin %
Raith Rovers (player-manager) 1927 1930 123 45 24 54 036.59 [7]
Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic August 1930 May 1935 220 67 56 97 030.45 [8]
Queens Park Rangers May 1935 April 1939 184 85 42 57 046.20 [8]
Chelsea April 1939 April 1952 285 96 74 115 033.68 [8]
Total 812 293 196 323 036.08 —

Honours

As a player

Middlesbrough

As a manager

Chelsea

  • Football League South War Cup (2): 1943–44, 1944–45[9]

References
  • Matthews, Tony (2005). Who's Who of Chelsea. Mainstream Publishing. ISBN 1-84596-010-6.
  • Mears, Brian (2004). Chelsea: A 100-year History. Mainstream Sport. ISBN 1-84018-823-5.
  1. Joyce, Michael (16 October 2012). Football League Players' Records 1888–1939 (3rd Revised ed.). Tony Brown. p. 28. ISBN 9781905891610.
  2. "billy birrell | Chelsea Manager | Stamford-Bridge.com The History of Chelsea FC". stamford-bridge.com. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  3. Litster, John. Record of Pre-War Scottish League Players. Norwich: PM Publications.
  4. "Birrell Billy Image 3 Middlesbrough 1926". Vintage Footballers. Retrieved 26 December 2018.
  5. "Billy Birrell | Official Site | Chelsea Football Club". ChelseaFC. Retrieved 26 December 2018.
  6. "Billy Birrell". 11v11.com. Retrieved 26 December 2018.
  7. "Raith Rovers Manager Billy Birrell Details". www.fitbastats.com. Retrieved 7 October 2019.
  8. Billy Birrell management career statistics at Soccerbase
  9. "1944 and 1945 Football League South Cup finals | Official Site | Chelsea Football Club". ChelseaFC. Retrieved 26 December 2018.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.