Digby Owen

William Digby Owen (1857 – 2 June 1901) was a Welsh amateur footballer who played as a forward in the first international match between Wales and England in January 1879. He played his club football for Oswestry, for whom he also played cricket. He later became a private tutor and died of pneumonia in his early forties.

Education Owen was born in Oswestry, a few miles from the Welsh border within Shropshire, in the third quarter (i.e. July to September) of 1857, son of George Owen (1827-1901), and educated at Oswestry School. He attended Trinity College, Oxford from where he graduated with a B.A. degree in 1878.

He was selected to represent Oxford University against Cambridge at football but was unable to play because of illness, thus missing out on a "blue". who was selected to represent Wales against England in the first international match between the two countries. The match was played at the Kennington Oval on 18 January and was shortened to two halves of only 30 minutes each because of the heavy snowfall. The match report in The Times said "In spite of the fact that a thick layer of snow covered Kennington-oval on Saturday, the match between England and Wales, announced for that day, was played." England scored twice in the first half, with William Davies scoring the Wales reply in the 47th minute.

Owen also represented North Wales against Sheffield in 1877 and against Lancashire in 1879, and Shropshire against Staffordshire in 1879.

Owen died of pneumonia in June 1901, in his early forties.