Latest news with #PeterMcParland
Times
16-05-2025
- Sport
- Times
Peter McParland obituary: footballer in controversial FA Cup win
The 1957 FA Cup final was expected to be a procession for Manchester United. Matt Busby's brilliant 'Babes' had already won the First Division and were heavy favourites to become the first team of the 20th century to win the league and cup double. In archive footage from Pathé News an old-fashioned voice reported breathlessly: 'The Wembley pitch is like a palace lawn and it's perfect weather as Aston Villa in the striped shirts take the field with Manchester United, league champions and odds-on favourites to win that elusive double…' Then a young Northern Irishman called Peter McParland rewrote the script in one of the most controversial moments in the long history of the competition. Disappointed to make poor contact with a header that bounced
Yahoo
05-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Aston Villa FA Cup hero who spent time at Worcester City club dies aged 91
A FORMER quick winger known for his cannonball shots and being a hero on the field has died aged 91. Peter McParland, a former Worcester City playmaker, was a notable face in the football world after scoring both goals which led to Aston Villa's 1957 FA Cup win. He was also a well-known character within the city's football landscape after he soon became one of three former internationals to be snapped up by Worcester City's 1964-65 team. A decision that arguably saw an explosive attack grace St George's Lane, adding elegant skills and classy goalscoring to the fearsome frontline. Before his death, he was known to be the last surviving member of the Aston Villa's 1957 FA Cup-winning team. A spokesperson for Aston Villa said: "Aston Villa Football Club is profoundly saddened to learn that Peter McParland, the last surviving member of the club's 1957 FA Cup-winning team, has passed away. 'The thoughts of everyone at the club are with Peter's family and loved ones at this extremely difficult time.' McParland scored 121 goals in 341 appearances for Villa and also scored in the 1961 League Cup final as Villa beat Rotherham 3-2 over two legs. He helped the club win the Second Division title in the 1959/60 season. But before his Villa days, McParland had already established himself within Northern Ireland, making his debut before turning 20 and racking up 34 international appearances. The star still holds the national record for most goals in a World Cup finals - eight in all for his country. In a social media post, the Irish FA said: 'Our thoughts and best wishes are with the family and friends of Peter McParland who has passed away. Peter represented Northern Ireland with distinction, in particular at the 1958 World Cup in Sweden. The last of our heroes from that famous era.' The Newry-born player began his career with Dundalk before joining Villa in 1952. He later joined City on a technical free transfer and made an ideal start with a goal on his competitive debut in the 3-0 win over Romford in August 1964. Later, it is said he won a place in the hearts of the City faithful with a stellar hat-trick in a 4-0 FA Cup victory over Bromsgrove. He accumulated 23 goals in 51 appearances during that maiden campaign before lining up with Atlanta Chiefs in America during the closed season. On his return, he weighed in with a further 14 goals in 63 appearances during a 1965-55 season that featured a whopping 28 cup games for City.
ITV News
05-05-2025
- Sport
- ITV News
Former Aston Villa FA Cup hero forward Peter McParland dies aged 91
Former Aston Villa and Northern Ireland forward Peter McParland has died at the age of 91. McParland scored 121 goals in 341 appearances for Villa and got both goals in their 2-1 win over Manchester United in the 1957 FA Cup final. He also scored in the 1961 League Cup final as Villa beat Rotherham 3-2 over two legs and helped the club win the Second Division title in the 1959/60 season. Capped 34 times by Northern Ireland, McParland scored five goals at the 1958 World Cup and holds the national record for most goals in World Cup finals. 'Aston Villa Football Club is profoundly saddened to learn that Peter McParland, the last surviving member of the club's 1957 FA Cup-winning team, has passed away,' the club said in a statement. 'The thoughts of everyone at the club are with Peter's family and loved ones at this extremely difficult time.' In a social media post, the Irish FA said: 'Our thoughts and best wishes are with the family and friends of Peter McParland who has passed away. Peter represented Northern Ireland with distinction, in particular at the 1958 World Cup in Sweden. The last of our heroes from that famous era.' The Newry-born player began his career with Dundalk before joining Villa in 1952. After almost a decade with the club, he went on to play for Wolves, Plymouth, Worcester City, Toronto Inter-Roma and Atlanta Chiefs.
BBC News
05-05-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
NI great McParland left mark on club and international stages
Peter McParland was one of the all-time greats of Northern Ireland football, who also made his mark in English League football with Aston County Down native, who died on Sunday aged 91, is his country's record goalscorer at World Cup finals, having scored five in Sweden in was the last surviving member of that Northern Ireland 1958 World Cup squad, which reached the quarter-final won both FA Cup and League Cup winners' medals with holds a unique place in English football history as the first player in the game to score in and win both English major domestic knockout in Newry, McParland was spotted playing for Dundalk in the League of Ireland by Aston Villa manager George Martin, who signed him for a fee in the region of £3, outside left spent the majority of his career at the Midlands club, while his international career spanned nine years from 1954-62.A fine header and striker of the ball, he is regarded as one of the greatest players to represent both Aston Villa and Northern played 340 games in total for Villa, scoring 120 goals. He scored twice in the FA Cup final against Manchester United in 1957 but also became involved in a controversial incident in which he shoulder-charged (at the time a legitimate form of challenge) the United keeper Ray Wood after only six minutes, leaving him unconscious with a broken goals were remembered as examples of his all-round abilities as a player, showcasing his diving header and volleying scored 22 league goals to help Villa win the Second Division title in 1960 and then won a League Cup winners' medal in Northern Irishman was on the scoresheet for the second leg of the 1961 League Cup final, when Villa overturned a 2-0 deficit against Rotherham United to win the second encounter between the sides 3-0 at Villa Park and become the winners of the first Football League Cup, McParland's extra-time winner proving subsequently joined Wolverhampton Wanderers for £35,000 in January 1962, scoring 10 goals in 21 games during his one season with the final English League club was Plymouth Argyle, followed by a spell with non-league Worcester City, but in 1965 he was recruited to play for Inter-Roma FC of the Eastern Canadian Professional Soccer League and then turned out for Atlanta Chiefs of the North American Soccer League in 1967 and won the NPSL Championship with the Chiefs in ended his career as player-manager of Irish League club Glentoran, where he spent three seasons, including a league championship success in the international stage, McParland scored 10 goals in 34 appearances, including those five goals at Sweden '58 to help propel his team into the quarter-finals, where a team by then decimated by injuries lost 4-0 to impressive haul at the finals included one goal in a 3-1 win over Argentina, two in a 2-2 draw with West Germany and another couple in a 2-1 success against Northern Ireland career had begun in style as the then 19-year-old bagged a double on his debut in a World Cup qualifying win over Wales in Wrexham in the 1953-54 Billy Bingham's death in 2022, he became the last surviving member of the Northern Ireland squad from that memorable 1958 was the youngest member of manager Peter Doherty's squad, which also included the likes of former Manchester United goalkeeper Harry Gregg, midfielders Danny Blanchflower and Bertie Peacock and forwards Jimmy McIlroy and Derek Dougan.
Express Tribune
04-05-2025
- Sport
- Express Tribune
Northern Ireland and Aston Villa legend Peter McParland dies at 91
Peter McParland, legendary Northern Ireland forward and Aston Villa icon, has died at the age of 91. A true footballing hero, McParland remains best known for scoring twice in Aston Villa's famous 2-1 victory over Manchester United in the 1957 FA Cup final—the last time the club lifted the prestigious trophy. The County Down-born striker earned 34 caps for Northern Ireland and holds the national record for most goals scored at World Cup finals. His five goals at the 1958 World Cup in Sweden helped Northern Ireland reach an incredible quarter-final finish, a feat unmatched since. McParland joined Aston Villa in 1952 from Dundalk and went on to score 121 goals in 341 appearances for the club. His impact extended beyond the FA Cup, helping Villa secure the Second Division title in the 1959-60 season and netting the decisive goal in extra time of the 1961 League Cup final against Rotherham United. Aston Villa said in a statement, 'Peter McParland, the last surviving member of the 1957 FA Cup-winning team, has passed away. Our thoughts are with his family and loved ones.' His career also included spells with Wolverhampton Wanderers, Plymouth Argyle, Toronto Inter-Roma, Atlanta Chiefs, and a final stint as player-manager at Glentoran, where he led the team to a league title in 1969-70 before retiring in 1971. McParland's passing marks the end of an era in both Northern Ireland and Aston Villa's rich football history.
