x

Shared Connection..................Newcastle United

Another game and another opponent can only mean one more thing we are looking at another shared connection between the two sides and if it's Newcastle then surely we can only look at the Golden Boy of Welsh Football?

The name of Ivor Allchurch will pass the lips of many Swansea supporters every home game thanks to the statue of him that stands outside of the Liberty Stadium and there is little doubt that he deserved that tribute to him when you consider his career statistics.

He was discovered by the Swans and made his debut in 1949 after completing his national service with the army. In 1951 he was awarded the first of 68 caps for Wales which remained a record for caps won for his country until it was beaten in 1986 by Joey Jones.

He made 330 appearances for the Swans and scored 124 goals before he eventually made the move to the first division as it was then with Newcastle. That was not though before he played for Wales in the 1958 World Cup Finals in Sweden and it was those finals that bought him to the fore of other clubs with Wales captain Dave Bowen saying "I'm sure we surprised a lot of people that they looked at Ivor and wondered where he has been hiding."

Wales were knocked out in the quarter finals but it was enough to get the offer from Newcastle for £28,000 in October of that year. He eventually played 143 games for the North East side and scored 46 goals but never won any of the major trophies that football had to offer.

He eventually returned to Swansea via a three year spell at Cardiff City before finishing his career in non league football.

Former team mate and Wales international Cliff Jones once said of Ivor "He had the lot, including a marvellous temperament and would have been a sensation in the game today. It was late by the time he joined Newcastle but I am sure that if he's gone to a big English club earlier then we 'd be speaking about one of the all time greats"

But of course in Swansea he will always be classed as one of the all-time greats and rightly so.

What to read next:

Bristol City v Swansea City : Another departure and the very latest team news
Swansea City travel to Ashton Gate, Bristol City today for a Championship fixture and a following of over two thousand will accompany them. All the focus again will be on Luke Williams whose nine lives have reached ten this week.
Luke Williams : Coleman was like a madman : I’ve got more experience than all of them
Today Swansea City head coach, Luke Williams has talked about his ‘wounded’ Chairman, Andrew Coleman who has been let down by his staff internally. It’s no surprise we have been saying this for many months. But now it seems employees tasked with simple jobs leading up to and during this transfer window have failed to complete their remit.
Swansea City & Richard Montague : So many links but the answer still evades us …
With a lot of speculation flying around regards the new director of football / director or whatever the appointment will be we decided with one of our researchers to grab the bull by the horns and ask some direct questions.
Swansea City : Luke Williams will stay at Swansea City, no plans to sack him
Luke Williams will be the head coach at Swansea City for another game despite his side not winning a fixture this year and conceding goals. Swans Chairman, Andrew Coleman is under no pressure to relieve him of his role and is more than happy with him at this time.
Matt Grimes : An in-depth look into the reasons why ?
A week ago it was only Matt Grimes, Chairman Andrew Coleman and a few significant others who knew he had met with the club and told them he wanted out. For anyone to think that was on the spur of the moment really does need to gather their thoughts.
Swansea City in absolute joke mode after deadline day
Thousands and thousands of Swansea City followers were expecting positve action with so many players linked to the club on deadline day morning. In the end we saw no permanent signings and a desperate scramble to save face late on in the day.
Swans turn to plan B : Million pound offer rejected
Swansea City have had some knock backs today, Jacob Wright the Man City youngster who has agreed and disagreed to joining the Swans it seems is now going elsewhere.
Swansea City on deadline day : Afternoon update
For those who are happy to follow the ever changing day on the Indy here are the latest links today.
Swansea City : Transfer Deadline Day
It’s Transfer Deadline Day on the Indy. From this morning will be reporting on all activity that directly and Indirectly affects Swansea City today right up until 11pm tonight (UK time)
Swansea City in another shocking display
Whatever hope Swansea City fans had today was quickly dashed as another low energy and clumsy performance greeted us today at the Swansea.com.