Ron Flowers
Encyclopedia
Ronald "Ron" Flowers is an English
former professional footballer, most known for his time at Wolverhampton Wanderers
. He was a member of England
's victorious 1966 World Cup
squad. He is the elder brother of John Flowers
.
. Within a year, he was moved down to Molineux
and soon broke into the first team, making a scoring debut against Blackpool
on 20 September 1952. Prior to this time, he had served in the RAF
and became an aircraftman second class at Padgate
before being transferred to Hednesford
.
Playing as an attacking midfield player (in modern terminology) at Wolves
, he won three league championships and an FA Cup
. In total, he made 515 appearances for the club, scoring 37 times.
Flowers won 49 caps for England
and scored 10 goals. His international debut came on 15 May 1955 in a 0–1 friendly defeat to France
. He went on to appear in the 1962 World Cup
and scored two goals from the penalty
spot in the group stage. rom November 1958 (his second international appearance) until April 1963, he appeared in 40 consecutive England international matches; only Billy Wright has appeared in more.
He also has the distinction of scoring England's first goal in a European Football Championships game - in the qualifying round first leg against France
at Hillsborough
on 3 October 1962.
Although his last England cap came before the finals (a friendly win over Norway
), he was a member of the squad that won the 1966 World Cup
, being the oldest and earliest-capped member of the squad. Flowers narrowly missed out on playing in the final itself. Jack Charlton
who was due to play, caught a cold on the eve of the West Germany match. Flowers was approached by his manager, Alf Ramsey, the night before the final and told that if Charlton had not recovered by the morning he was on. After a sleepless night, it turned out that Charlton was fine in the morning and, ultimately, Flowers never kicked a ball at the tournament.
He finally left Wolves in September 1967 to join Northampton Town
, where he later became player/manager. He ended his playing career at non-league Wellington Town (latterly known as Telford United
) as player-manager before retiring to run a sports shop in Wolverhampton
. His sports shop company: "Ron Flowers Sports" is still successfully trading on Queen Street in the town centre.
In an article in the England
international Official Match-Day Programme for the FIFA World Cup
qualifying match against Ukraine
on 1 April 2009 Flowers was cited as England's best ever penalty taker (shared with Alan Shearer
). He converted all six of the penalties he took for England.
In the 1966 World Cup final
only the 11 players on the pitch at the end of the 4–2 win over West Germany received medals. Following a Football Association
led campaign to persuade FIFA
to award medals to all the winners’ squad members, Flowers was presented with his medal
by Gordon Brown
at a ceremony at 10 Downing Street
on 10 June 2009.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
former professional footballer, most known for his time at Wolverhampton Wanderers
Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club that represents the city of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands region. They are members of the Premier League, the highest level of English football. The club was founded in 1877 and since 1889 has played at...
. He was a member of England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
's victorious 1966 World Cup
1966 FIFA World Cup
The 1966 FIFA World Cup, the eighth staging of the World Cup, was held in England from 11 July to 30 July. England beat West Germany 4–2 in the final, winning the World Cup for the first time, so becoming the first host to win the tournament since Italy in 1934.-Host selection:England was chosen as...
squad. He is the elder brother of John Flowers
John Flowers (footballer)
John Edward Flowers is an English former footballer. He is the younger brother of Ron Flowers.-Playing career:Flowers played for Stoke City and Doncaster Rovers before joining Port Vale for 'a small fee' in August 1971...
.
Career
Flowers began in the Doncaster Rovers academy, where his father played semi-professionally. Whilst he flourished on the pitch at Belle Vue, he also trained as an apprentice at the Doncaster rail sheds,(it was his father's insistence that he learned a trade before chasing his footballing dream). He was later released by Doncaster and joined the Wolves' nursery side Wath Wanderers, where he soon came to the attention of the highly successful Wolverhampton Wanderers manager: Stan CullisStan Cullis
Stanley Cullis was a professional footballer and manager, most notably for Wolverhampton Wanderers. During his term as manager between 1948 and 1964 Wolves became one of the strongest teams in the British game, winning the league title on three occasions, and playing a series of high-profile...
. Within a year, he was moved down to Molineux
Molineux stadium
Molineux Stadium is a Premier League football stadium situated in Whitmore Reans, Wolverhampton, England. It has been the home ground of Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club since 1889, and has a long and illustrious history as the first 'new build' stadium in Football League history, one of the...
and soon broke into the first team, making a scoring debut against Blackpool
Blackpool F.C.
Blackpool Football Club are an English football club founded in 1887 from the Lancashire seaside town of Blackpool. They are competing in the 2011–12 season of the The Championship, the second tier of professional football in England, having been relegated from the Premier League at the end of the...
on 20 September 1952. Prior to this time, he had served in the RAF
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
and became an aircraftman second class at Padgate
Padgate
Padgate was a village on the edge of Warrington, England, and today it is a large residential part of the town. During World War II it had a small RAF Station. RAF Padgate will be well-remembered by thousands of young men who were selected for RAF national service and on this site received their...
before being transferred to Hednesford
Hednesford
Hednesford is a small town and civil parish in Staffordshire, England, within Cannock Chase District. It adjoins Cannock Chase to the north, and the town of Cannock to the south. It had a 2010 mid-year estimated population of 16,928.-History:...
.
Playing as an attacking midfield player (in modern terminology) at Wolves
Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club that represents the city of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands region. They are members of the Premier League, the highest level of English football. The club was founded in 1877 and since 1889 has played at...
, he won three league championships and an FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
. In total, he made 515 appearances for the club, scoring 37 times.
Flowers won 49 caps for England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
and scored 10 goals. His international debut came on 15 May 1955 in a 0–1 friendly defeat to France
France national football team
The France national football team represents the nation of France in international football. It is fielded by the French Football Federation , the governing body of football in France, and competes as a member of UEFA, which encompasses the countries of Europe...
. He went on to appear in the 1962 World Cup
1962 FIFA World Cup
The 1962 FIFA World Cup, the seventh staging of the World Cup, was held in Chile from 30 May to 17 June. It was won by Brazil, who retained the championship by beating Czechoslovakia 3–1 in the final...
and scored two goals from the penalty
Penalty kick
A penalty kick is a type of direct free kick in association football, taken from twelve yards out from goal and with only the goalkeeper of the defending team between the penalty taker and the goal.Penalty kicks are performed during normal play...
spot in the group stage. rom November 1958 (his second international appearance) until April 1963, he appeared in 40 consecutive England international matches; only Billy Wright has appeared in more.
He also has the distinction of scoring England's first goal in a European Football Championships game - in the qualifying round first leg against France
France national football team
The France national football team represents the nation of France in international football. It is fielded by the French Football Federation , the governing body of football in France, and competes as a member of UEFA, which encompasses the countries of Europe...
at Hillsborough
Hillsborough
-In Canada:*Hillsborough, New Brunswick*Hillsborough, Nova Scotia, in Inverness County*Hillsborough , a defunct Prince Edward Island federal electoral district-In New Zealand:* Hillsborough, Auckland...
on 3 October 1962.
Although his last England cap came before the finals (a friendly win over Norway
Norway national football team
The Norway national football team represents Norway in association football and is controlled by the Football Association of Norway, the governing body for football in Norway. Norway's home ground is Ullevaal Stadion in Oslo and their head coach is Egil Olsen...
), he was a member of the squad that won the 1966 World Cup
1966 FIFA World Cup
The 1966 FIFA World Cup, the eighth staging of the World Cup, was held in England from 11 July to 30 July. England beat West Germany 4–2 in the final, winning the World Cup for the first time, so becoming the first host to win the tournament since Italy in 1934.-Host selection:England was chosen as...
, being the oldest and earliest-capped member of the squad. Flowers narrowly missed out on playing in the final itself. Jack Charlton
Jack Charlton
John "Jack" Charlton, OBE, DL is a former footballer and manager who played for Leeds United in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, and was part of the England team who won the 1966 World Cup...
who was due to play, caught a cold on the eve of the West Germany match. Flowers was approached by his manager, Alf Ramsey, the night before the final and told that if Charlton had not recovered by the morning he was on. After a sleepless night, it turned out that Charlton was fine in the morning and, ultimately, Flowers never kicked a ball at the tournament.
He finally left Wolves in September 1967 to join Northampton Town
Northampton Town F.C.
Northampton Town Football Club are an English professional football club based in Northampton, Northamptonshire. They currently play in Football League Two, the lowest league division, after being relegated from League One on the last day of the 2008–09 season...
, where he later became player/manager. He ended his playing career at non-league Wellington Town (latterly known as Telford United
Telford United F.C.
Telford United F.C. was an English football club based in Telford, Shropshire.The club existed under various names for a total of 132 years from its formation in 1872. The club was founder members of the Alliance Premier League in 1979 and played at this level for 25 years before being wound up in...
) as player-manager before retiring to run a sports shop in Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands, England. For Eurostat purposes Walsall and Wolverhampton is a NUTS 3 region and is one of five boroughs or unitary districts that comprise the "West Midlands" NUTS 2 region...
. His sports shop company: "Ron Flowers Sports" is still successfully trading on Queen Street in the town centre.
In an article in the England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
international Official Match-Day Programme for the FIFA World Cup
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
qualifying match against Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
on 1 April 2009 Flowers was cited as England's best ever penalty taker (shared with Alan Shearer
Alan Shearer
Alan Shearer OBE, DL is a retired English footballer. He played as a striker in the top level of English league football for Southampton, Blackburn Rovers, Newcastle United and for the England national team...
). He converted all six of the penalties he took for England.
In the 1966 World Cup final
1966 FIFA World Cup Final
The 1966 FIFA World Cup Final was the final match in the 1966 FIFA World Cup, the eighth football World Cup. The match was contested by England and West Germany on 30 July 1966 at Wembley Stadium in London, and had an attendance of 98,000. England won 4–2 after extra time to win the Jules Rimet...
only the 11 players on the pitch at the end of the 4–2 win over West Germany received medals. Following a Football Association
The Football Association
The Football Association, also known as simply The FA, is the governing body of football in England, and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. It was formed in 1863, and is the oldest national football association...
led campaign to persuade FIFA
FIFA
The Fédération Internationale de Football Association , commonly known by the acronym FIFA , is the international governing body of :association football, futsal and beach football. Its headquarters are located in Zurich, Switzerland, and its president is Sepp Blatter, who is in his fourth...
to award medals to all the winners’ squad members, Flowers was presented with his medal
1966 FIFA World Cup
The 1966 FIFA World Cup, the eighth staging of the World Cup, was held in England from 11 July to 30 July. England beat West Germany 4–2 in the final, winning the World Cup for the first time, so becoming the first host to win the tournament since Italy in 1934.-Host selection:England was chosen as...
by Gordon Brown
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...
at a ceremony at 10 Downing Street
10 Downing Street
10 Downing Street, colloquially known in the United Kingdom as "Number 10", is the headquarters of Her Majesty's Government and the official residence and office of the First Lord of the Treasury, who is now always the Prime Minister....
on 10 June 2009.
Honours
- FIFA World CupFIFA World CupThe FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
- Champions: 19661966 FIFA World CupThe 1966 FIFA World Cup, the eighth staging of the World Cup, was held in England from 11 July to 30 July. England beat West Germany 4–2 in the final, winning the World Cup for the first time, so becoming the first host to win the tournament since Italy in 1934.-Host selection:England was chosen as...
- Champions: 1966
- First DivisionFootball League First DivisionThe First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
- Champions: 1953–54, 1957–58, 1958–59
- Runners-up: 1954–55, 1959–60
- FA CupFA CupThe Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
- Winners: 1960
- FA Charity ShieldFA Community ShieldThe Football Association Community Shield is English football's annual match contested between the champions of the previous Premier League season and the holders of the FA Cup at Wembley Stadium. If the Premier League champions also won the FA Cup then the league runners-up provide the opposition...
- Winners: 19591959 FA Charity ShieldThe 1959 FA Charity Shield was the 37th FA Charity Shield, a football match between the winners of the previous season's First Division and FA Cup titles. This year's match was contested by league champions Wolverhampton Wanderers and FA Cup winners Nottingham Forest.The match was held at the...
- Shared: 19541954 FA Charity ShieldThe 1954 FA Charity Shield was the 32nd FA Charity Shield, a football match between the winners of the previous season's First Division and FA Cup titles...
, 19601960 FA Charity ShieldThe 1960 FA Charity Shield was the 38th FA Charity Shield, a football match between the winners of the previous season's First Division and FA Cup titles. The match was contested by league champions Burnley and FA Cup winners Wolverhampton Wanderers.... - Runners-up: 19581958 FA Charity ShieldThe 1958 FA Charity Shield was the 36th FA Charity Shield, a football match between the winners of the previous season's First Division and FA Cup titles. This year's match was contested by league champions Wolverhampton Wanderers and FA Cup winners Bolton Wanderers.The match was staged at...
- Winners: 1959
- Second DivisionFootball League Second DivisionFrom 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
- Runners-up: 1966–67