Willie_Groves

Willie Groves

Willie Groves

Scottish footballer (1868–1908)

Patrick William Groves (20 August 1868 – 13 February 1908)[3] was a Scottish footballer who played as a forward for Hibernian, Celtic, West Bromwich Albion, Aston Villa and Scotland. He is known for being the first player to be transferred for more than £100 (£10,631 in 2023, or roughly half the average price of a house at the time), becoming the first official record holder for the most expensive transfer ever. The record-setting transfer was from West Bromwich Albion F.C. to Aston Villa F.C. in 1893 for exactly £100. Three years later, in 1896, Groves' record was broken when Fred Wheldon was transferred to Aston Villa F.C. from Small Heath Alliance (now Birmingham City F.C.) for between £350 to £500.

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Career

Hibernian

Groves, an inside forward, first broke into the Hibernian squad as a 16-year-old during the 1885–86 season.[4][5] He featured prominently as Hibs won the Scottish Cup the following year, scoring in the first round, second round replay and semi-final.[5] Vale of Leven, Hibs' opponents in the semi-final, protested that Groves had accepted a payment from Hibs, which would have been illegal as the Scottish game was still amateur at the time.[5] The protest was not heard until after Hibs had defeated Dumbarton in the final.[5] Vale of Leven only presented hearsay as evidence, but it took the casting vote of the committee chairman to exonerate Hibs.[5]

In the following year, Groves made his international debut, in an 1888 British Home Championship match against Wales.[6] Groves scored the fourth goal in a 5–1 win for Scotland at Hibernian Park, Hibs' home ground.[6]

Celtic

By August 1888, Groves was one of several Hibs players who moved to the newly formed Celtic.[7] He scored ten goals in the club's 1888–89 Scottish Cup campaign.[8] Groves made two further appearances for the Scotland national football team while with Celtic.[9] In one of those appearances he scored a hat-trick against Ireland in the 1889 British Home Championship.[10]

West Bromwich Albion

Groves moved to the professional English Football League in 1890, signing for West Bromwich Albion. He helped Albion win the 1892 FA Cup Final, playing at half-back as Aston Villa were defeated 3–0.[11]

Aston Villa

Groves subsequently signed for Villa in 1893, becoming the first player to be transferred for over £100.[12][13] Villa were forced to pay that fee (around £16,000 in today's values)[14] to West Brom and were fined by the Football Association amidst allegations that Groves and Jack Reynolds had been illegally poached.[3] He helped Villa win the league championship in 1894.[4] During his time in England, Groves played for the Football League against the Scottish League.[15] He left Villa in November 1894 after a dispute over his contract with the club arose.[3]

Return to Scotland

After Hibs were elected to join the top division of the Scottish Football League in 1895, Groves returned to the club.[4][15] During this second spell he played in the 1896 Scottish Cup Final, which Hibs lost 3–1 to Edinburgh derby rivals Hearts.[4][16] This final is perhaps best known for being the only Scottish Cup Final to be played outside Glasgow.[4][16] He then briefly returned to Celtic, but soon retired, suffering from tuberculosis. He died in Edinburgh in 1908, aged 39.[3]

See also

Notes

  1. [N 1]
    The Scottish Football League did not commence until the 1890–91 season.

References

  1. [1]
    Tony Matthews, West Bromwich Albion: the complete record (2007)"
  2. [2]
    The Football League vs The Scottish League – 1890s, Before The 'D'...Association Football around the world, 1863-1937, 5 April 2014
  3. [3]
    Willie Groves Archived 22 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine, Spartacus Educational
  4. [4]
    "Logie Green: the final Edinburgh didn't want". The Scotsman. 27 March 2006.
  5. [5]
    Mackay pp. 35–39.
  6. [6]
    Sat 10 Mar 1888 Scotland 5 Wales 1, London Hearts.
  7. [7]
    Mackay, pp42.
  8. [8]
    Purden, Richard (24 April 2014). "The final resting place of Celtic's first star striker has been discovered". The Irish Post. Archived from the original on 3 September 2014. Retrieved 27 August 2014.
  9. [9]
    (Scotland player) William Groves, London Hearts Supporters Club
  10. [10]
    Sat 9 Mar 1889 Scotland 7 Ireland 0, London Hearts Supporters Club
  11. [11]
    Kennington Oval – Saturday 19 March 1892 Archived 23 July 2008 at the Wayback Machine, www.fa-cupfinals.co.uk
  12. [12]
    "The Joy of Six: record transfers". The Guardian, 30 August 2013. 30 August 2013. Retrieved 9 August 2021.
  13. [13]
    Football: Sidelines, The Independent, 24 January 1998.
  14. [14]
    1894 pounds in 2024
  15. [15]
    Mackay, pp58.
  16. [16]
    Mackay, pp. 60–61.
Sources
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