Billy Hardy (footballer)

Billy Hardy

Personal information
Full name	William Hardy
Date of birth	(1891-04-18)18 April 1891
Place of birth	Bedlington, England
Date of death	March 1981 (aged 89)
Place of death	Iver, England
Height	5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)[1]
Position(s)	Half back
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
	Bedlington United
1910	Heart of Midlothian	5	(0)
1910–1911	Stockport County	1	(0)
1911–1932	Cardiff City	497	(8)
Managerial career
1934–1936	Bradford Park Avenue
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

William Hardy (18 April 1891 – March 1981) was an English professional footballer who played as a half back. He began his career with his hometown side Bedlington United before moving to Scotland where he made his professional debut with Heart of Midlothian in 1910 at the age of 18. He remained with the side for a year, making sporadic appearances, before joining Football League Second Division side Stockport County. However, he made only one appearance for the first team.

In 1911, he joined Cardiff City along with his Stockport manager Fred Stewart where he quickly became established in the first team. Prior to World War I, he helped the side win their first Welsh Cup in 1912 and the Second Division of the Southern Football League a year later. After the war, he was part of the Cardiff side that joined the Football League in 1920 and won promotion to the Football League First Division in their first season. He remained a mainstay in the first team for seven more years in the First Division, helping the side finish as runners-up in the 1923–24 season and reach two FA Cup finals, in 1925 and 1927. In the latter, Cardiff became the first team from outside England to win the competition.

Hardy was appointed player-coach in 1930 and remained with the side until 1932 by which time Cardiff had been relegated to the Third Division South. He was released by the club after 21 years. He remains Cardiff's record appearance holder having featured in 590 matches in all competitions between 1911 and 1932. He took up a coaching position with Second Division Bradford Park Avenue before becoming manager of the side in 1934. He reverted to his coaching position after two years in charge after finishing in the bottom half of the table in each of his two seasons.