Jack Newnes

Jack Newnes (6 June 1895 – 3 February 1969) was a Welsh professional footballer who played as a half-back. He played amateur football while working as a collier and a steel worker prior to entering professional football with Bolton Wanderers in 1922. He went on to play almost 150 matches in the Football League for Bolton, Nelson and Southport, before moving into non-league football in 1928. Newnes spent several years in the non-league game and represented a number of clubs around Manchester. He won one cap for the Wales national football team in 1926.

Biography John Newnes was born on 6 June 1895 in the village of Trefnant, near St Asaph, Denbighshire. Before becoming a professional footballer, he worked in the steel industry and as a coal miner. During the First World War, Newnes served in the British Army with the Royal Welch Fusiliers. Following his retirement from football, he resided in the Manchester area and was employed as a salesman in a fruit and vegetable market. Newnes died in Salford, Greater Manchester, on 3 February 1969, at the age of 73.

Club career Newnes played amateur football for Whitchurch as a youth, and represented Brymbo Institute between 1919 and 1922. He was 26 years old when he entered the professional game with Football League First Division side Bolton Wanderers in May 1922. Newnes was initially restricted to reserve team matches, and made his League debut for the club in the 4–2 win against Nottingham Forest on 2 January 1923. He went on to make seven first-team appearances for Bolton during the remainder of the 1922–23 season. He played a total of 39 competitive matches for Nelson during the 1923–24 season, but despite scoring three goals (two of them penalties) he could not prevent the team being relegated to the Third Division North. Nelson finished second in the division behind Darlington, thus narrowly missing out on an immediate return to the second tier. Newnes remained at the club for one more season, and by the time he left Nelson in October 1926 he had made 113 league appearances and scored 7 goals. He subsequently spent a year with Manchester North End, followed by spells with Winsford United and Glossop. Newnes joined Altrincham in 1933 and stayed with the club for two seasons before returning to Manchester North End as a player-coach in September 1935. At the age of 40, he retired from football in 1936.

International football Newnes' performances for Nelson in the 1925–26 season earned him a call-up to the Wales national football team for the match against Ireland on 13 February 1926. He made his international debut in the match, but could not prevent the team falling to a 0–3 defeat and was never selected for his country again. In representing Wales, Newnes became the only player ever to be capped at senior international level while at Nelson.