Evans Len Image 1 Aberdare Athletic 1927

Description

Goalkeeper Len Evans was born in Llandaff, Cardiff joined the amateur club Cardiff Corinthians in 1922, and within a couple of years had earned his first selection for the Wales Amateur XI, when in October 1924 they beat the touring South African team 1-0, though “they had a very anxious time during the first half, when they were mainly indebted to L. Evans, their goalkeeper, for preventing any score.” He continued to receive complimentary notices when representing his country. Against England in 1925, “if it had not been for some sound play by Evans, the goalkeeper, the score might have been considerably higher”, in a 4–0 defeat two years later, “the real hero of the Welsh side was L. Evans, the goalkeeper”

He moved on to Football League club Aberdare Athletic, still as an amateur, in October 1926, making his Football League debut against Merthyr Town. He played 24 games in the 1926-27 season, which was Aberdare’s last in the Football League, as they finished bottom of the Third Division South and failed to be re-elected. Despite his club’s lack of success, Evans himself performed sufficiently well to earn his first cap for the full Wales national team in April 1927. Evans moved on briefly to Merthyr Town, also of the Third Division South, playing 5 times in the late summer, and had short spells with former club Cardiff Corinthians and with Western League side Lovells Athletic in 1928, before settling at Barry of the Southern League in 1929.

Described as “something of a risk-taker, but … a classy and reliable ‘keeper”, his only weakness an erratic clearing kick, Evans had two seasons at Barry. In the summer of 1929, Evans was part of a Football Association of Wales team which toured Canada, playing 15 matches over a five-week period where he shared the goalkeeping duties with Bert Gray.

In April 1930 he returned to the Football League with Cardiff City, then playing in the Second Division. He understudied Ireland international Tom Farquharson at Cardiff, and in three years at the club played eight League games, though this lack of first-team football did not prevent his selection for his country. He won his second cap as a Cardiff City player, chosen to play Scotland on a day when the pool of players available for selection was restricted by the Football League’s rule forbidding its clubs from releasing players other than to England on days when League matches were being played; this weakened team earned a 1-1 draw. He also appeared in Wales’ next game, a 4-0 defeat at home to England, In September 1933 he joined Birmingham of the First Division, again as deputy to an international goalkeeper, in this case England’s Harry Hibbs, playing twice for Birmingham in the autumn of 1933. His fourth and last full cap was won as a Birmingham player and as a professional, in a 1-0 win against Ireland in Belfast in November 1933. Evans was then appointed assistant trainer at Birmingham. He then spent time playing football in Denmark, returning to England in 1937 to take up the position of trainer at Blackburn Rovers, which he held until the outbreak of the Second World War.

This photograph was taken on 9th April 1927 when Wales played Ireland at Ninian Park, Cardiff, on the occasion of Len’s first cap for Wales.