Bill Joyce

For other people named Bill Joyce, see Bill Joyce (disambiguation).

Bill Joyce
Personal information
Full name William Joyce
Date of birth (1877-04-08)8 April 1877
Place of birth Prestonpans, Scotland
Position(s) Centre-forward
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1892–1895 Morton 28 (14)
1894–1897 Bolton Wanderers 30 (16)
1898–1899 Tottenham Hotspur 40 (33)
1899–1900 Thames Ironworks 27 (8)
1900–1901 Portsmouth
1901–1903 Burton United
1903–1904 Morton 15 (7)
1904–1905 Motherwell 9 (3)
Total 149 (81)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

William Joyce (born 8 April 1877) was a Scottish footballer who played as a centre-forward in the Football League for Bolton Wanderers and Burton United. He played in Thames Ironworks' final season before reforming as West Ham United, and also played for Morton, Tottenham Hotspur, Portsmouth and Motherwell.[1][2]

Joyce started his career at Morton before moving to England and Bolton Wanderers in early 1895.[3] He suffered a broken leg while with the club in 1896.[1]

Joyce played for Tottenham in 1898–99 (taking over from Tommy Meade who was dropped due to wage increase demands), scoring 26 goals in 38 games.[1][4] He signed for Thames Ironworks for the 1899–1900 season (the club's last season before becoming West Ham United), along with Spurs colleagues Harry Bradshaw and Kenny McKay,[5] and made 27 Southern League appearances for the club, scoring 8 goals. He also averaged a goal a game in seven FA Cup appearances that season.[6] His three goals in a 5–1 test match victory, against Fulham at White Hart Lane on 30 April 1900, assured a league place for the successor club the following season.[7]

Joyce went on to join Portsmouth as a replacement for Sandy Brown. At the time of the 1901 UK census he was living in the city with his wife, daughter and a boarder – fellow Pompey player Tom Wilkie.[8] A year later, he moved to Burton United and made 29 appearances over two seasons.[1] He later returned to Morton and played for Motherwell.[2][3]

  1. ^ a b c d Hogg, Tony (2005). Who's Who of West Ham United. Profile Sports Media. p. 113. ISBN 1-903135-50-8.
  2. ^ a b Joyce, Michael (2012) [2002]. Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939. Nottingham: SoccerData. p. 159. ISBN 978-1-905891-61-0.
  3. ^ a b John Litster (October 2012). "A Record of pre-war Scottish League Players". Scottish Football Historian magazine. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  4. ^ Bill Joyce Fact File My Eyes Have Seen The Glory
  5. ^ Northcutt, John. "Farewell Thames Ironworks". theyflysohigh.co.uk. Retrieved 9 March 2018.
  6. ^ "Joyce". westhamstats.info. Retrieved 11 February 2007.
  7. ^ Northcutt, John. "The Letter "J"". theyflysohigh.co.uk. Retrieved 9 March 2018.
  8. ^ 1901 UK census, via Ancestry UK (subscription required)