Raymond Leslie "Ray" Evans (born 20 September 1949) is an English former professional footballer who played as a full-back. He played for Tottenham Hotspur, Millwall, Fulham and Stoke City.[1] He also played for a number of clubs in the United States.
 Evans (right) playing for Tottenham Hotspur in 1974 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Raymond Leslie Evans[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 20 September 1949[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Edmonton, London, England[1] | ||
| Position(s) | Full-back | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1967–1974 | Tottenham Hotspur | 134 | (2) |
| 1975–1976 | Millwall | 74 | (3) |
| 1977 | St. Louis Stars | 18 | (0) |
| 1977–1978 | Fulham | 86 | (6) |
| 1978 | California Surf | 24 | (1) |
| 1979–1982 | Stoke City | 94 | (1) |
| 1982–1983 | Seattle Sounders | 60 | (15) |
| 1983–1986 | Tacoma Stars (indoor) | 85 | (24) |
| 1989 | Seattle Storm | ||
| Total | 575 | (52) | |
| Managerial career | |||
| Tacoma Stars (assistant) | |||
| 2000–2001 | Columbia Basin College | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Career
editEvans was born in Edmonton, London and joined Tottenham Hotspur as an apprentice in May 1965, and signed as a full professional in 1967, making his league debut in March 1969 at Arsenal. He made 181 appearances, including four as substitute, in all competitions for the club from 1969 to 1974 and scored two goals.[2] Evans featured in both legs of the 1974 UEFA Cup final against Feyenoord with Spurs losing 4–2 on aggregate.
He joined Millwall for a fee of £35,000 in January 1975. He helped the Lions win promotion to the Second Division in the 1975–76 season and made 91 appearances for the club in three seasons. During the summer of 1977, Evans played for the St. Louis Stars of the North American Soccer League. He transferred to Fulham in March 1977, where he played 91 for the West London side as they posted three seasons of mid-table form in the Second Division. In 1978, he returned to the United States, where he played for the California Surf. He was selected for the First Team All-Star team in 1978.[3] In August 1979, he returned to England and signed for Stoke City.[1] He played 44 times for Stoke in the 1979–80 season, scoring a penalty against Aston Villa.[1] He played in 36 matches in the 1980–81 season and 26 times in the 1981–82 season. He returned to the United States again, after making 106 appearances for the Potters.[1]
In 1982, he moved permanently to the United States, when he signed with the Seattle Sounders for two seasons.[4][5] In the autumn of 1983, he moved to the newly established Tacoma Stars of the Major Indoor Soccer League. He would play three seasons for Tacoma, before announcing his retirement in May 1986.[6] In 1989, he came out of retirement to play one season in the Western Soccer Alliance with the Seattle Storm.[7]
Coaching career
editWhile with the Tacoma Stars, Evans also served as an assistant coach. He spent two seasons coaching the soccer team of Columbia Basin College in Washington.[8] He has also been a coach of the Three Rivers Soccer Club.[9]
Career statistics
editSource:[10]
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Europe | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Tottenham Hotspur | 1968–69 | First Division | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| 1969–70 | First Division | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 0 | |
| 1970–71 | First Division | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | |
| 1971–72 | First Division | 22 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 37 | 0 | |
| 1972–73 | First Division | 22 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 38 | 1 | |
| 1973–74 | First Division | 40 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 1 | 53 | 3 | |
| 1974–75 | First Division | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 0 | |
| Total | 134 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 25 | 2 | 179 | 4 | ||
| Millwall | 1974–75 | Second Division | 13 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 1 |
| 1975–76 | Third Division | 32 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 39 | 1 | |
| 1976–77 | Second Division | 29 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 39 | 4 | |
| Total | 74 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 11 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 91 | 6 | ||
| St. Louis Stars | 1977 | NASL | 18 | 0 | — | — | — | 18 | 0 | |||
| Fulham | 1976–77 | Second Division | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 0 |
| 1977–78 | Second Division | 39 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 42 | 4 | |
| 1978–79 | Second Division | 35 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 37 | 2 | |
| Total | 86 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 91 | 6 | ||
| California Surf | 1978 | NASL | 24 | 1 | — | — | — | 24 | 1 | |||
| Stoke City | 1979–80 | First Division | 40 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 44 | 1 |
| 1980–81 | First Division | 32 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 0 | |
| 1981–82 | First Division | 22 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 1 | |
| Total | 94 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 105 | 2 | ||
| Seattle Sounders | 1982 | NASL | 31 | 10 | — | — | — | 31 | 10 | |||
| 1983 | NASL | 29 | 5 | — | — | — | 29 | 5 | ||||
| Total | 60 | 15 | — | — | — | 60 | 15 | |||||
| Career Total | 490 | 28 | 20 | 0 | 33 | 4 | 25 | 2 | 568 | 34 | ||
Honours
edit- Tottenham Hotspur
- Millwall
- Football League Third Division third-place promotion: 1975–76
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g Matthews, Tony (1994). The Encyclopaedia of Stoke City. Lion Press. ISBN 0-9524151-0-0.
- ^ Hugman, B. J. (Ed) The PFA Premier & Football League Players' Records 1946–2005 (2005) p198 ISBN 1-85291-665-6 Retrieved 17 August 2008
- ^ The Year in American Soccer – 1978
- ^ 1982 Seattle Sounders stats
- ^ 1983 Seattle Sounders stats
- ^ STARS' RAY EVANS ENDING HIS 21-YEAR PRO SOCCER CAREER Seattle Post-Intelligencer – Friday, 2 May 1986
- ^ 1989 Seattle Storm
- ^ [1] Where are they now? Retrieved 18 August 2008
- ^ Gaschk, Matt (17 July 2014). "Former Seattle and Tottenham defender Ray Evans eager to attend Saturday's friendly". soundersfc.com. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ^ Ray Evans at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
- ^ "uefa cup - 1972". mehstg.com. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
External links
edit- Ray Evans at Post War English & Scottish Football League A–Z Player's Transfer Database
- NASL/MISL stats
- Ray Evans