Jack Davies - Player Profile

Jack Davies (1902–1985): Life and Career

Early Life and Introduction to Football

Jack Davies was born on 30 March 1902 in Chorley, Lancashire. Standing about 5 ft 11 in tall, he took up the position of goalkeeper in his youth. Davies began his football journey playing for Horwich RMI, a local railway works team in the Lancashire area. Horwich RMI competed in regional non-league competitions (primarily the Lancashire Combination) and had a long history as a semi-professional club. It was here that Davies developed a reputation as a dependable keeper, catching the eye of league scouts. In the mid-1920s, his performances for Horwich RMI led to opportunities in the English Football League.

Football League Breakthrough at Bury (1925–1927)

In 1925, Jack Davies signed with Bury F.C., stepping up from amateur football to the professional ranks. Bury at that time were a First Division club, enjoying a successful spell in the top flight – they even finished 4th in the league in 1925–26, their highest ever placing. Breaking into such a strong side was challenging. Davies spent two seasons at Bury as a reserve goalkeeper, serving as understudy to the club’s established first-choice keeper. He made five first-team league appearances for Bury between 1925 and 1927, without scoring (as expected for a keeper). These appearances came in England’s top division, giving Davies a taste of high-level competition. His limited game time suggests he was likely used when the regular keeper was unavailable, but those matches would have honed his skills and experience. Bury’s confidence in their main goalkeeper meant Davies’s role was primarily as squad depth. Still, being part of a First Division squad at Gigg Lane in the mid-1920s was a notable start to his professional career, and it set the stage for his next move.

Move to Swansea Town (1927–1929)

In 1927, Davies transferred to Swansea Town (now known as Swansea City). Swansea Town competed in the Second Division of the Football League at the time. Upon arriving in South Wales, Davies again found himself in a backup role. Swansea’s number-one goalkeeper in that period was the Scottish keeper Alexander “Alec” Ferguson, who had joined the Swans in 1927 and was an ever-present fixture in the lineup. In fact, Ferguson played every league match for Swansea in the 1927–28 season, leaving few opportunities for Davies to step in. Over two seasons at Vetch Field, Jack Davies made five league appearances for Swansea Town. These likely occurred in the 1928–29 campaign, when Ferguson missed a handful of games (Ferguson was again ever-present in 1929–30). During his outings, Davies would have played in the Second Division, facing strong English and Welsh clubs of the era. While Swansea Town had a solid team, Davies’s role remained that of the second-choice goalkeeper. His Football League experience now spanned two clubs – Bury and Swansea – albeit with limited matches at each. By 1929, as Swansea brought in or developed other goalkeepers, Davies parted ways with the club.

Leaving Swansea, Davies was around 27 years old and still eager for regular football. With his league chances restricted, he returned to his roots in the Lancashire football scene.

Return to Horwich RMI (1929–1932)

After his league stint in Wales, Jack Davies went back to Horwich RMI, the club where he originally made his name. From 1929 through 1932, he featured for Horwich RMI in the Lancashire Combination and other local competitions. This return to non-league football allowed Davies to play week in and week out, something he hadn’t experienced for a few years while sitting behind star keepers at league clubs. By now an experienced keeper in his late 20s, Davies was a valuable asset for Horwich. He had top-level experience under his belt (as one of the few Horwich players who had played in the Football League), which would have added leadership and quality to the side.

His performances did not go unnoticed. In late 1931, the town of Wigan (not far from Chorley and Horwich) lost its professional club – Wigan Borough – which folded due to financial problems. Wigan Athletic was formed in 1932 to fill that void and bring football back to the local community. As the new club assembled a squad for its debut season, they scouted local talent and experienced players who could be signed without a transfer fee. Davies, being a proven goalkeeper with league credentials and playing nearby at Horwich, was a natural candidate.

Joining Wigan Athletic’s Inaugural Season (1932–1933)

Jack Davies joined Wigan Athletic in late 1932, becoming part of the club’s first ever squad. Wigan Athletic was officially founded in 1932, and after some uncertainty, the new club was accepted into the Cheshire County League for the 1932–33 season (filling a spot left by another team). Davies signed for Wigan on a free transfer on 24 December 1932, arriving from Horwich RMI mid-season. At 30 years old, he was one of the more seasoned players in a team largely built from scratch. His prior Football League experience with Bury and Swansea was specifically noted by the club – he was “spotted playing for Horwich R.M.I.” and brought in as a dependable, experienced goalkeeper who had proven himself at higher levels.

Wigan Athletic’s first manager, Charlie Spencer, already had an older goalkeeper, Henry Abbott (born 1895), in the squad as the initial starter. Abbott had been signed from Rochdale and started the season as Wigan’s first-choice keeper. Jack Davies was signed to be Abbott’s deputy, providing depth and competition for the goalkeeping position. This arrangement mirrored Davies’s previous roles at Bury and Swansea, but at Wigan he would end up seeing more action on the field than he had in those league clubs, because the intense schedule and Abbott’s age meant the backup keeper was needed.

Wigan Athletic’s inaugural league match took place in August 1932 (a few months before Davies arrived), and the club’s early fixtures were handled by Abbott in goal. After joining in December, Davies made 11 league appearances in the remainder of the 1932–33 Cheshire League season. Over the 42-match season, Abbott played the majority of games (32 appearances) and Davies played the other 10, meaning Davies was in goal for roughly a quarter of Wigan’s matches. He donned the goalkeeper’s jersey in place of Abbott whenever required – possibly when Abbott was injured, unavailable, or when manager Spencer chose to rotate the squad.

Davies’s contributions helped Wigan Athletic enjoy a respectable first season. The team scored prolifically and also defended well; they conceded only 54 goals in 42 league games – the fewest goals against of any club in the Cheshire League that year. Wigan Athletic finished 5th in the league in their debut campaign, a strong showing for a new club. Davies’s share in that success was to provide reliable goalkeeping whenever he stepped in. Match reports from the time describe Wigan often keeping scores close, suggesting that both Abbott and Davies performed capably between the posts.

In addition to the league, Wigan Athletic competed in the Cheshire League Cup that season, progressing to the semi-finals. (They did not enter the FA Cup in their first year.) Notably, by joining Wigan Athletic, Davies became part of local football history – he was a member of Wigan’s first-ever team, helping establish the club that would decades later rise to the top tiers of English football.

However, Wigan Athletic’s squad would not remain the same for long. Manager Charlie Spencer was ambitious; after that first season, he made sweeping changes to strengthen the side. By the start of 1933–34, only two players from the inaugural squad were retained (Spencer kept himself – he was a player-manager – and one other player, George O’Dell). Virtually everyone else, even high-performing forwards, were released or replaced as Spencer sought to improve results. As part of this shake-up, Jack Davies was let go by Wigan at the end of the 1932–33 season. His contract effectively ended in May 1933 (he left on a free transfer on 31 May 1933). Wigan brought in new goalkeepers for the following season, so Davies’s time with the Latics was limited to that single historic campaign.

Later Years and Legacy

After departing Wigan Athletic, Jack Davies returned once more to familiar ground at Horwich RMI. By 1933, he was 31 years old. He likely rejoined Horwich RMI in the summer of 1933 and continued playing at the non-league level for a short period. Details of his matches in these later years are scarce – as was common for players outside the Football League in that era, their activities weren’t extensively documented in the national press. It is possible he played a couple more seasons of Lancashire Combination football. By the mid-1930s, having spent over a decade in senior football, Davies would have hung up his boots and retired from competitive play.

Jack Davies lived out his post-football life away from the spotlight. He died on 12 July 1985, at the age of 83. Looking back, his career offers a snapshot of a journeyman footballer in the early 20th century – moving between league and non-league, stepping in and out of the limelight as needed.

Legacy: Davies is remembered in the local histories of the clubs he served. At Bury, he is one of many players who made a handful of top-flight appearances for the Shakers during a golden era in the mid-1920s. At Swansea Town, his name appears as a squad member in the late 1920s, backing up one of the club’s legendary keepers. His most significant legacy is with Wigan Athletic, where he holds the distinction of being part of Wigan’s first-ever squad in 1932–33. Wigan Athletic historians note that Davies brought valuable football league experience to the fledgling club. He played a role in Wigan’s formative season, helping the team find its feet in competitive football. Although his time at Wigan was brief, supporters and record-keepers count him among the “Heritage Players” – in Wigan Athletic’s heritage number listing, Jack Davies is recorded (Heritage #16) as one of the club’s early players.