Dixie Dean
Personal information
Full name	William Ralph Dean
Date of birth	January 22, 1907
Place of birth	Birkenhead, England
Date of death	March 1, 1980 (age 73)
Place of death	Liverpool, England
Height	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Nickname	Dixie Dean
Position	Striker
Professional clubs1
Years	Club	App (Gls)*
1923–1925 1925–1937 1938–1939 1939–??	Tranmere Rovers Everton Notts County Sligo Rovers	029 0(27) 399 (349) 009 00(3)
National team
1927–1932	England	016 0(18)
1 Professional club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. * Appearances (Goals) Image File history File links Dixie_Dean. ... January 22 is the 22nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1907 (MCMVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Map sources for Birkenhead at grid reference SJ3088 Birkenhead is a town on The Wirral Peninsula, Merseyside, on the left bank of the River Mersey, opposite Liverpool. ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Capital London (de facto) Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2006 est. ... March 1 is the 60th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (61st in leap years). ... 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... Liverpool is a major city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Capital London (de facto) Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2006 est. ... The striker (wearing the red shirt) has run past the defender (in the white shirt) and is about to take a shot at the goal, while the goalkeeper positions himself to attempt to stop the ball. ... Tranmere Rovers Football Club is an English football club, based at Prenton Park, Prenton, Birkenhead, Merseyside. ... Everton Football Club are an English football club located in the city of Liverpool. ... Notts County Football Club are a football club based in Nottingham, England and are the oldest professional football team in the world. ... Sligo Rovers F.C. (Irish: An Cumann Peile Ruagairí Shligigh) is an Irish football club playing in the Football League of Ireland. ... First international Scotland 0 - 0 England (Partick, Scotland; 30 November 1872) Biggest win Ireland 0 - 13 England (Belfast, Ireland; 18 February 1882) Biggest defeat Hungary 7 - 1 England (Budapest, Hungary; 23 May 1954) World Cup Appearances 12 (First in 1950) Best result Winners, 1966 European Championship Appearances 7 (First in...

William Ralph Dean (January 22, 1907 - March 1, 1980), popularly known as Dixie Dean, was an English football player and the most prolific goal-scorer in English football history,^[1] best known for his legendary exploits at Everton. January 22 is the 22nd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1907 (MCMVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... March 1 is the 60th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (61st in leap years). ... 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Capital London (de facto) Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2006 est. ... Football (soccer) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ... The sport of association football is the national sport of England, and as such has an important place within English national life. ... Everton Football Club are an English football club located in the city of Liverpool. ...

Biography

Born in Birkenhead, Merseyside, Dean initially played for his local club, Tranmere Rovers, before moving to his boyhood side, Everton, for a fee of £3,000 in 1925, and immediately made an impact, scoring 32 goals in his first full season. Map sources for Birkenhead at grid reference SJ3088 Birkenhead is a town on The Wirral Peninsula, Merseyside, on the left bank of the River Mersey, opposite Liverpool. ... Arms of the former Merseyside Metropolitan County Council Merseyside is a county, located in the North West of England. ... Tranmere Rovers Football Club is an English football club, based at Prenton Park, Prenton, Birkenhead, Merseyside. ...

Despite a serious motorcycle accident in Holywell North Wales in 1926, in which he suffered a fractured skull and jaw, Dean fully recovered and went on to greater success at the club. He is still the only player in English football to have scored 60 League goals in one season (1927-28), a total that the entire Everton squad have surpassed just once since the inception of the Premiership. In the same season Everton won the Division One title. Although Everton were relegated to Division Two in 1930, Dean stayed with them, and the club subsequently, and uniquely, won the Second Division in 1931, followed by the First Division again in 1932, and the FA Cup in 1933 - a sequence of success not matched since. The introduction to this article provides insufficient context for those unfamiliar with the subject matter. ... From 1889 until 1992, this was the highest division overall of organized football in England. ... From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football. ... The introduction to this article provides insufficient context for those unfamiliar with the subject matter. ... The introduction to this article provides insufficient context for those unfamiliar with the subject matter. ... Note: for the full results of all FA Cup finals, see FA Cup Final The FA Cup - this is the fourth trophy, in use since 1992, and identical in design to the third trophy introduced in 1911. ... The 1933 FA Cup Final was contested by Everton and Manchester City at Wembley. ...

By then, Dean was captain of the side. However, the harsh physical demands of the game took their toll, and he was dropped from the first team in 1937. Dean went on to play for Notts County and then Sligo Rovers in Ireland. After retiring, he went on to run a pub known as the Dublin Packet, and work at Littlewoods Football pools as a porter at their Walton Hall Avenue offices, where he was remembered by fellow workers as a quiet, unassuming man. Notts County Football Club are a football club based in Nottingham, England and are the oldest professional football team in the world. ... Sligo Rovers F.C. (Irish: An Cumann Peile Ruagairí Shligigh) is an Irish football club playing in the Football League of Ireland. ... A thatched pub (The Williams Arms) at Wrafton, near Braunton, North Devon, England The Kings Arms Pub in Sandford-on-Thames, Oxfordshire. ... Littlewoods Shop Direct Home Shopping Limited () is a United Kingdom retail company, based in Liverpool, Merseyside, England. ... Pool has several meanings: A planted garden pool at Mission San Juan Capistrano It is any of several games similar to billiards, distinguished by using a table that has one pocket at each corner and one in the middle of each of the two longer sides. ...

In total, Dean scored a total of 383 goals for Everton, in 433 appearances, an exceptional strike-rate. With modern scoring rates being much lower, both that record, and the record of 60 League goals in a season, are unlikely to ever be broken. He was also known as a very professional player, having never been booked or sent off throughout his entire career despite suffering rough treatment and provocation from opponents (indeed Dean lost a testicle in one tackle).

Only Arthur Rowley has scored more English league career goals, although it should be noted that while Rowley made 619 appearances, scoring 433 goals (0.70 goals per game), Dean scored 379 goals in 438 games (0.87 goals per game), and while Dean spent one prolific season in the Second Division, that was all, while Rowley spent several seasons in the third and fourth divisions. Arthur Rowley (April 21, 1926 - December 19, 2002) was an English association footballer, holding the record for the greatest number of career goals in the Football League, 434. ...

He also made 16 appearances for England, scoring 18 goals. Six of those goals came in the way of hat-tricks. Dean scored three against Belgium in May 1927 and then another three against Luxembourg 10 days later. First international Scotland 0 - 0 England (Partick, Scotland; 30 November 1872) Biggest win Ireland 0 - 13 England (Belfast, Ireland; 18 February 1882) Biggest defeat Hungary 7 - 1 England (Budapest, Hungary; 23 May 1954) World Cup Appearances 12 (First in 1950) Best result Winners, 1966 European Championship Appearances 7 (First in...

His nickname "Dixie" is said to have been given to him by fans due to his dark complexion and curly black hair, which was, in their perception, similar to that of African-Americans in the Southern United States. Dean himself deeply disliked the moniker, preferring to be known as Bill. DIXIE is an obsolete protocol for accessing X.500 directory services. ... An African American (also Afro-American or Black American) is a member of an ethnic group in the United States whose ancestors, usually in predominant part, were indigenous to Africa. ... Southern United States. ...

Dean died from heart failure in 1980 at Goodison Park, Everton's home ground, whilst watching a match against their closest rivals, Liverpool. Liverpool won the match 2-1. In 2001, a statue of Dean was erected outside the Park End of the stadium carrying the inscription, "Footballer, Gentleman, Evertonian." In 2002 Dean became an Inaugural Inductee to the English Football Hall of Fame. In 2003, Littlewoods Football pools sponsored the ‘Dixie Dean Award’ for Everton Personality of the Year, at the Merseyside Sports Personality of the Year Awards. It was won by former Everton boss Howard Kendall. Goodison Park is the home ground of Everton F.C. in Liverpool. ... Liverpool Football Club is a football club based in Liverpool, in the north west of England. ... The Hall of Fame is housed at The National Football Museum in Preston, England. ... Littlewoods Shop Direct Home Shopping Limited () is a United Kingdom retail company, based in Liverpool, Merseyside, England. ... Pool has several meanings: A planted garden pool at Mission San Juan Capistrano It is any of several games similar to billiards, distinguished by using a table that has one pocket at each corner and one in the middle of each of the two longer sides. ... Howard Kendall is an English football manager and former player. ...

Ability

Dixie was a real legend of the game. His dribbling, running, shooting and ability to create goals for others were exceptional. But his most prestigious ability was his heading, he was known as one the most remarkable headers the game has ever seen. Dixie used to practice heading by using a medicine ball with fellow player Tommy Lawton. Many believe that he should be talked about in the same sentences as the likes of Pelé and Alfredo Di Stéfano but due to his achievements being pre-war, this is rarely the case. A medicine ball is a heavy ball, roughly the size of a volleyball. ... Tommy Lawton (October 6, 1919 - November 6, 1996) was an English association footballer. ... Edson Arantes do Nascimento, KBE (born October 23, 1940 in Três Corações, Brazil), best known by his nickname Pelé, is a former Brazilian football player, and widely regarded to be the greatest of all time. ... Alfredo Di Stéfano (born July 4, 1926 in Barracas, Buenos Aires) is an Argentine-born former footballer and coach, acknowledged as one of the greatest players in the history of the game. ...

Bill Shankly, then manager of local rivals Liverpool, said (on the BBC) "those of us privileged to see Dean play, talk of him the way people talk about Beethoven, Shakespeare or Mozart, he was that good" William Bill Shankly, OBE (September 2, 1913 – September 29, 1981) was one of Britains most successful and respected football managers. ...

His goalscoring achievement, a lifetime record of 0.94 goals per game (Pele achieved 0.93), puts him in the same league as the true greats of sport, such as Bradman or Mark Spitz.

Achievements

• League Championship: 2 (1928, 1932)
• Second Division Championship: 1 (1931)
• FA Charity Shield:2 (1928, 1932)
• FA Cup: 1 (1933)
• Central League Championship: 1 (1938)
• League of Ireland Runners Up: 1 (1939)
• FA of Ireland Cup Runners Up: 1 (1939)
• England Caps: 16
• England Goals: 18
• Football League Representative Appearances: 6
• Football League Representative Goals: 9

From 1889 until 1992, this was the highest division overall of organized football in England. ... From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football. ... The FA Community Shield (formerly the Charity Shield) is an English association football trophy. ... Note: for the full results of all FA Cup finals, see FA Cup Final The FA Cup - this is the fourth trophy, in use since 1992, and identical in design to the third trophy introduced in 1911. ... The Football League of Ireland, usually known simply as the League of Ireland or the Eircom League (from the leagues sponsorship by Irish telcom Eircom), is a league of football clubs in the Republic of Ireland. ... The FAI Cup is a knock-out football competition contested annually by teams from the Republic of Ireland. ...

Awards

• 'Sunday Pictorial Trophy' for 60 League Goals in 1927-28
• Lewis's Medal to commemorate 200 league goals in 199 appearances
• Hall of Fame Trophy (1971)
• Football Writers' Association inscribed silver salver (1976)
• Inaugural inductee in The National Football Museum Hall of Fame (2002)
• BBC Radio Merseyside's 4th "Greatest Merseysider" (2003)

The Football Writers Association (FWA) is an association of English football journalists and correspondents writing for newspapers and agencies. ... The Hall of Fame is housed at The National Football Museum in Preston, England. ... BBC Radio Merseyside is the BBC Local Radio service for the English metropolitan county of Merseyside and north Cheshire. ...

The Ballad of Dixie Dean

© Gerry Murphy 1980

I On the Banks of the river Mersey It is morning in the streets There’s a boy in a football jersey Playing music with his feet He is bound for greater glory Than the North End has ever seen Generations will tell the story Of the legendary Dixie Dean

II He’s a child of the dockside In the age of the First World War He is a railway worker’s boy child In the days when they had nothing at all He is the hunter in that frozen field In pursuit of a leather case ball Little does he know he is going to be The greatest of them all

Chorus The children sing “Good old Billy Dean You are the greatest centre-forward ever seen How they say it is a pleasure to have been To see you play You are the legend of sixty goals In one league season all told The king of St. Domingo Road And Liverpool Bay”

IV Well he started out at Tranmere And “Dixie” became his name From the ‘pool, Birkenhead And all over Lancashire In their thousands they came He was the Goodison Park gladiator He was working class royalty And as the man strode up to take the F.A. Cup in 1933 The children sang

Chorus “Good old Dixie Dean…… You are the greatest centre-forward ever seen How they say it is a pleasure to have been To see you play You are the legend of sixty goals In one league season all told The king of St. Domingo Road And Liverpool Bay”

Middle On the field he gave his best He was always head and shoulders ‘bove the rest And when he scored, how they roared And the yelled for more To meet a cross how he leapt And the ball would more than likely hit the net And when he died, grown men cried to see such a brave one die

V So on the banks of the river Mersey We may be mourning in the street Still the boys in their football jerseys Play their music with their feet They are bound for greater glory In the ranks of our football teams You can bet they will all know the story Of the legendary “Dixie” Dean

Chorus So goodbye Dixie Dean, You are the greatest centre-forward ever seen How they say it is a pleasure to have been To see you play You are the legend of sixty goals In one league season all told The king of St. Domingo Road The best of all time so goodbye You’ll never fade away.

External links

• Biography on Everton website
• A fan's personal tribute
• Association of Football Statisticians article
• English Football Hall of Fame Profile

References

1. ^ Beesley, Christopher (2007-01-11). Living up to legend of number nines. Retrieved on 2007-01-12.