Dicky York Explained

Dicky York
Fullname:Richard Ernest York
Birth Date:25 April 1899
Birth Place:Handsworth, Staffordshire, England
Death Place:Handsworth, England
Height:[1]
Position:Winger
Youthclubs1:Handsworth Royal
Youthclubs2:Birchfield Rangers
Youthyears3:1915–1916
Youthclubs3:Aston Villa
Years1:1916–1931
Clubs1:Aston Villa
Caps1:356
Goals1:79
Years2:1931–1932
Clubs2:Port Vale
Caps2:26
Goals2:5
Clubs3:Brierley Hill Alliance
Totalcaps:382+
Totalgoals:84+
Nationalyears1:1919–1920
Nationalteam1:England Schoolboys
Nationalcaps1:2
Nationalgoals1:0
Nationalyears2:1922–1926
Nationalcaps2:2
Nationalgoals2:0
Nationalcaps3:2
Nationalgoals3:0

Richard Ernest York (25 April 1899 – 9 December 1969), known as Dicky York[2] (also spelled Dickie York[3]), was an English footballer, who in addition to a long club career with Aston Villa in the Football League appeared twice for the England national team. A winger, he spent 16 years at Villa from 1915 to 1931 and was on the losing team in the 1924 FA Cup final. He later had brief spells with Port Vale and Brierley Hill Alliance.

Early and personal life

Richard Ernest York was born on 25 April 1899 in Handsworth, Staffordshire.[4] He was the eldest of two children to Richard and Edith Mary (née Bagley); his father was a press tool maker.[4] York enlisted in the Army on 8 May 1917, and by April 1918 had transferred to the Royal Air Force.[4] He married Constance G. Wright in 1923.[4] He ran decorating and plumbing business in Birmingham after retiring from football.[4]

Club career

York started his career with his local clubs Handsworth Royal and Birchfield Rangers.[4] In March 1915, he joined Aston Villa as a young amateur, signing professional forms in August 1919.[5] He also guested for Chelsea and Boscombe Town during World War I. He scored one goal in 17 games for Villa in 1919–20, but did not feature in the 1920 FA Cup final, which ended in a 1–0 victory over Huddersfield Town at Stamford Bridge.[5] He appeared just 11 times in 1920–21, before going on to make 47 appearances in the 1921–22 campaign, as the "Villans" finished fifth in the First Division.[5] He scored nine goals in 37 games in 1922–23 and five goals in 43 games in 1923–24.[5] He also appeared at Wembley in the 1924 FA Cup final, in a 2–0 defeat to Newcastle United.[5] He scored seven goals in 34 matches in 1924–25, before hitting 20 goals in 44 appearances in 1925–26.[5] He bagged 13 goals in 43 games in 1926–27, before being limited to just four goals in 30 appearances in 1927–28.[5] He rediscovered his scoring form with 18 strikes in 48 matches in 1928–29, before hitting seven goals in 32 games in 1929–30.[5] However, he played just four times in the 1930–31 campaign, as Villa finished second in the league with an English record of 128 top-flight league goals scored.[5]

He joined Port Vale in June 1931, making his debut in a 3–1 win at Plymouth Argyle on 29 August.[6] He was a first-team regular until he was struck by injury in December of that year.[6] After his recovery he played infrequently, and ended the 1931–32 season with five goals in 26 Second Division appearances.[6] He left the Old Recreation Ground and was transferred to Brierley Hill Alliance in August 1932.[6]

International career

He made two appearances for England, both 1–0 defeats to Scotland in April 1922 and April 1926.

Career statistics

Club statistics

Source:

ClubSeasonDivisionLeagueFA CupTotal
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Aston Villa1919–20First Division17100171
1920–21First Division11100111
1921–22First Division41260472
1922–23First Division36910379
1923–24First Division37362435
1924–25First Division30641347
1925–26First Division4019414420
1926–27First Division4212104312
1927–28First Division28420304
1928–29First Division4216624818
1929–30First Division28641327
1930–31First Division400040
Total3567934739086
Port Vale1931–32Second Division26500265
Career total3828434741691

International statistics

England national team
YearAppsGoals
192210
192610
Total20

Honours

Aston Villa

Notes and References

  1. News: First Division prospects. Aston Villa . Brum . Athletic News . Manchester . 22 August 1921 . 5.
  2. Web site: Dicky York, Villa Winger – AVFC History . AVFChistory.Co.UK . en . 5 February 2022 . 5 February 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220205134251/https://www.avfchistory.co.uk/player/dicky-york . live .
  3. Web site: Vintage Footballers – Dickie York . VintageFootballers.com . en . 5 February 2022 . 5 February 2022 . https://archive.today/20220205140054/https://www.vintagefootballers.com/?s=York+Dickie . live .
  4. Web site: England Players - Dicky York . www.englandfootballonline.com . 10 March 2023.
  5. Web site: Detailed bio. Aston Villa Database. 4 June 2009.
  6. Book: Kent, Jeff. Port Vale Personalities. Witan Books. 319. 1996. 0-9529152-0-0.