Roy Paul

Early career

Paul was born on 18 April 1920 in Ton Pentre, Glamorgan, in the valleys of South Wales, and was one of 12 children. He attended Bronllwyn School in Gelli. Paul left school at 15, and like many boys from the Rhondda Valley he became a miner. While playing football for Ton Boys Club he was spotted by Swansea Town, for whom he signed first as an amateur, and then a month later as a professional. The Swansea captain was Bill Imrie, a former Scotland international. Paul named Imrie as a strong influence in his early career, particularly for instructing him in the fundamentals of good wing-half play. Paul played for Swansea's junior sides, but just as he was approaching the fringes of the first team, the league was suspended due to the outbreak of the Second World War. At the start of the war Paul returned to the mines. He continued to represent Swansea in wartime leagues, and played for the senior team for the first time in 1939. Paul struggled to readapt to mining life, and volunteered for the Marines in 1940. He served as a sergeant physical training instructor, primarily in Devon, though he also spent part of the war in India. When in Devon he played football as a guest for Exeter City, and when in Wales he played wartime football for Swansea. Once the war was over Paul finally made his League debut for Swansea, having lost six years of his career to the war. The Swansea coach in the immediate post-war period was Frank Barson, a notoriously aggressive…

Paul gained 33 caps for Wales. He did not gain any under-age caps, as in his era Wales did not field an under-23 team. He received his first cap in October 1948, in a 3–1 defeat against Scotland. His only international goal came in a 5–1 win against Belgium in November 1949. In October 1955 Paul was part of the Wales team that beat England 2–1, the first Welsh victory against England in 18 years. Six months later Wales faced Ireland in their final match of that season's British Home Championship. Wales were leading 1–0 when a handball by Danny Blanchflower gave Wales a penalty. Paul took the kick, but it was saved by Norman Uprichard. Paul's failure cost Wales victory, as Jimmy Jones equalised in the second half and the match finished 1–1. A draw in the remaining fixture between Scotland and England meant that the miss also denied Wales victory in the tournament. Instead, for the first and only time there was a four-way tie. Paul did not play for Wales again.

Roy Paul played as a half-back, with the exact position varying during his career. At Swansea he was primarily used as a right-half, but when he joined Manchester City manager Les McDowall switched him to the left, a position which Paul preferred despite being right-footed. Internationally, he represented Wales in all three half-back positions over the course of his career. Paul had a reputation as a physically tough player and inspirational captain. Team-mate Ken Barnes described him as a player who was "more about power than guile", and called him a "born leader" who was "brilliant in the air". Paul's approach to captaincy was to ensure that every player gave as much effort as possible, mixing the respect of his colleagues with the occasional attempt to frighten them into action; in the tunnel prior to the 1956 FA Cup Final his last action before leading out his team was to hold up his fist and shout "If we don't fucking win, you'll get some of this". At Manchester City he was occasional penalty taker, but his success rate was not high and he was relieved when Don Revie joined the club and took the responsibility for penalties, commenting that "the only reason I took them was because no-one else fancied it".

After the end of his football career, he became a lorry driver. He died on 21 May 2002 in Treorchy aged 82, following a long illness with Alzheimer's disease, leaving a wife, Beryl, and two children, Robert and Christine. He is buried in Treorchy Cemetery.