Tony Morley
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
William Anthony Morley (b. 26 August 1954 in Ormskirk) was an English football player. A skilful winger, Morley enjoyed the best days of his career at Villa Park. He was seen as a wayward genius but was moulded by manager Ron Saunders into one of the most dangerous players around. He was famed for scoring spectacular goals, in particular one against Everton at Goodison Park which won him the 'Goal of the Season' award for 1980-1.
He was a vital part of the Villa side that won the League Championship in 1980-1 and the European Cup the year after. His brilliant dribble and cross set up Peter Withe for the winning goal against Bayern Munich in the final. His full Villa record was 170(+10 as sub) appearances, 34 goals.
Morley won six caps for England, but his career fell into decline after not being picked for any of their games at the 1982 World Cup. This despite the fact that England boss Ron Greenwood supposedly favoured attacking football. After adding a European Super Cup Winners' medal to his collection, he was transferred from Villa to local rivals West Bromwich Albion.
He later gained a Dutch Cup runners-up medal (1987).
Morley is now a regular on the 'Villa Old Stars' circuit. He also provides colour commentary for radio broadcasts on the Official Aston Villa FC Website.
[edit] Career summary
| Team | Nation | Years | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Preston North End |  |
1969-1976 | 84 | 15 |
| Burnley | |
1976-1979 | 91 | 5 |
| Aston Villa | |
1979-1983 | 137 | 25 |
| West Bromwich Albion | |
1983-1985 | 33 | 4 |
| Birmingham City (loan) | |
1984-1985 | 4 | 0 |
| Seiko |  |
1985-1986 | ? | ? |
| ADO Den Haag |  |
1986-1987 | ? | 13 |
| West Bromwich Albion | |
???? | ? | ? |
| Burnley (loan) | |
???? | ? | ? |
| Tampa Bay Rowdies |  |
???? | ? | ? |
| Hamrun Spartans |  |
???? | ? | ? |
