Everton great Ray Wilson's 1966 World Cup medal up for auctionWinner's medal expected to bring in £120,000 at Sothebys
Ray Wilson parades the Jules Rimet trophy with Roger hunt in 1966A 1966 World Cup winner’s medal awarded to former Everton star Ray Wilson is to go under the hammer.
It is the second time the medal won by the left-back has come up for auction.
It sold in 2002 for £80,750 when the fullback decided to sell but is expected to go for much more next month at Graham Budd Auctions at Sothebys.
Experts predict the gold medal could sell for as much as £120,000, although that is well below the price paid for other medals from the team that beat West Germany 4-2 in the Wembley final.
Nobby Stiles’s medal was bought by Manchester United for £188,200 in 2010 and one won by Alan Ball sold for £165,000.
The Wilson medal is made of soild gold by Peka, and inscribed inscribed FIFA World Championship Winners, Jules Rimet Cup.
A spokesman for Graham Budd said: “It is expected it will generate a lot of interest.
“I believe the medal will probably stay with a collector in the UK."
1966 World Cup Final at Wembley Stadium July 1966 England 4 v West Germany 2 Captain Bobby Moore holds aloft the Jules Rimet trophy as he sits on the shoulders of his teammates They are L-R: Jack Charlton, Nobby Stiles, Gordon Banks, Alan Ball, Martin Peters, Geoff Hurst, Ray Wilson, George Cohen and Bobby Charlton.
Wilson, who now lives in Slaithwaite, was born at Shirebrook, Derbyshire. His skills as a left-back were first spotted by a scout at Huddersfield and he signed in 1952.
He made his first-team debut after his National Service v Manchester United in 1955 and went on to make a total of 266 League appearances for the Leeds Road clubld.
He also won 30 England caps, a record for the club.
Everton secured his services in 1964 but a torn muscle, however, meant that he missed most of the 1964-65 season at Goodison.
By comparison 1965-66 proved to be the high watermark of his career. Having secured a FA Cup winner’s medal at Wembley, when Everton beat Sheffield Wednesday 3-2, Wilson was selected by Alf Ramsey for the England’s 1966 World Cup squad.
Undoubtedly Ramsey’s first-choice for the No.3 shirt, Ray Wilson played in all six games during England’s 1966 World Cup winning campaign. The semi-final v Portugal marked Wilson’s 50th international cap and at 32 Ray Wilson was the oldest member of the team that triumphed in the extra-time final.
Ray Wilson's World Cup winner's medal from 1966 Wilson’s 63rd and final England cap came in the third-place European Championship play-off in 1968 against USSR.
At club level, Wilson appeared at another F.A. Cup final in 1968 this time on a losing Everton side to West Bromwich Albion. Injuries began to take their toll and he was granted a free transfer by Everton in 1969.
After a season at Oldham and then at Bradford City, he retired in 1971.
Wilson then left the world of football completely and built up a successful undertaker’s business in Huddersfield.
Source: Echo
