William Williams

William Williams (born 1856) was a Welsh amateur footballer who played most of his football career with the Druids club of Ruabon. Generally playing at half-back, he made eleven appearances for Wales between 1876 and 1883.

Football career Williams was born in Ruabon, Denbighshire and was trained as a chimney top maker, working for one of the clay works at Afongoch.

He joined the Druids club in 1874 and in his time with the club, he appeared in eight finals of the Welsh Cup, winning the trophy five times. The match was played at Hamilton Crescent, Partick, the home of the West of Scotland Cricket Club on 25 March 1876, with Williams playing at left-half in a 2–2–6 formation. The Welsh were well defeated, conceding four goals without reply.

Williams was not selected for the return match against Scotland in 1877 and his second international appearance came on 23 March 1878, in a 6–0 defeat by Scotland at the original Hampden Park.

A week later, on 30 March 1878, Druids played in the final of the inaugural Welsh Cup tournament, losing 1–0 to local rivals Wrexham.

Known as "little Billy", Williams became a stalwart of the Druids side, who "could run all day" and "had endless reserves of stamina", although "never a subtle player"; his strong points were his "perfect tackling" and his "vigorous support" of the forwards.

Date Venue Opponent Result Goals Competition 25 March 1876 West of Scotland Cricket Ground, Partick 0–4 0 Friendly 23 March 1878 Hampden Park, Glasgow 0–9 0 Friendly 18 January 1879 Kennington Oval, London 1–2 0 Friendly 17 April 1879 Racecourse Ground, Wrexham 0–3 0 Friendly 15 March 1880 Racecourse Ground, Wrexham 2–3 0 Friendly 26 February 1881 Alexander Meadows, Blackburn 1–0 0 Friendly 14 March 1881 Racecourse Ground, Wrexham 1–5 0 Friendly 25 February 1882 Racecourse Ground, Wrexham 7–1 0 Friendly 13 March 1882 Racecourse Ground, Wrexham 5–3 0 Friendly 25 March 1882 Hampden Park, Glasgow 0–5 0 Friendly 17 March 1883 Ulster Cricket Ground, Ballynafeigh 1–1 0 Friendly

Honours Druids Welsh Cup winners: 1880, 1881, 1882, 1885, 1886 Welsh Cup runners-up: 1878, 1883, 1884