Jack Powell

Who was Jack Powell?

John "Jack" Powell was a Welsh association footballer who played as a full-back for Newton Heath in the late 1880s.

Born in Ffrwd, near Wrexham, Powell began his football career with Druids in 1879 before transferring to Bolton Wanderers in October 1883. He was forced to leave Bolton in 1885 due to a transgression of FA Cup rules regarding professionals, but not before playing six times for Bolton in the competition. He then signed for Newton Heath in 1886, and played in the club's first major competitive fixture, an FA Cup First Round tie away to Fleetwood Rangers on 30 October 1886; the match finished in a 2–2 draw, but Newton Heath were eliminated after refusing to play extra time. Powell quickly became the club's first-choice right-back and was made club captain in 1887. He played in all but one match in Newton Heath's first season of organised league football in 1888–89, when they were awarded The Combination title despite not all the teams having completed their fixture schedules. The following year, Newton Heath's first season in the Football Alliance, Powell and his fellow full-back John Mitchell switched sides, with Powell taking over at left-back.