Medal Hopes For Family Of Pre-War Star
Bryn Jones before swapping the gold and black of Wolves for the red and white of Arsenal.
Following our success in helping gain a First Division title winners’ medal for Ron Stockin comes a new lead in the pursuit to see another former Wolves player decorated.
Four years on from when the forward was rewarded for the part he played in bringing the League Championship to Molineux in 1954, we have been contacted out of the blue by relatives of Bryn Jones.
A Google search led them to our 2021 piece detailing how a rethink by the game’s authorities had resulted in medals being belatedly and even posthumously struck for players who didn’t previously qualify for them.
The brilliant Welshman was a pre-war legend at Wolves and, after a move to Highbury that caused huge controversy in these parts, played seven games when Arsenal finished top by seven points in 1947-48.
At the time, such a tally of appearances was considered too small a contribution for him to receive a medal but the reappraisal in the last few years means he is now entitled to one, with certain conditions.
That information was hugely interesting to Powys-based Trevor Jones, who read the article for the first time recently and is Bryn’s great nephew.
We communicated again this week with historian Ian Ross, who led the campaign for deserving title winners to be rightfully honoured and who has achieved success on behalf of many old players, including several from the two Manchester clubs and Stockin.
He has informed us, though, that he contacted Arsenal more than four years ago on behalf of the families of seven Gunners title winners but had no reply.
We will now forward the advice he offered – for Bryn’s family to make overtures directly to the Emirates Stadium – to his great nephew.
Jones died in October, 1985, aged 73, having totalled only around 80 games for Arsenal and about 25 for Norwich. He also played 17 times for Wales but enjoyed his best days at Molineux, where he scored 57 goals in 177 matches.
He might well have become a title winner here but second-placed Wolves finished a point behind Arsenal in 1937-38 and were then runners-up to Everton 12 months later as well as beaten FA Cup finalists.
Ron Stockin with the title winners’ medal we helped to secure for him.
Fans demonstrated outside the ground when he was sold to Highbury in 1938 for a then British record transfer fee of £14,000.
Ron Stockin played six games in 1953-54 as Stan Cullis’s side became League champions for the first time and. almost seven decades on, was tracked down by Wolves Heroes at a West Bromwich care home following a lengthy search.
He was filmed by BBC Midlands Today after the club went to the trouble and expense of having a medal struck for him and then travelling across the Black Country to perform the handover.
Now the family of Bryn Jones need Arsenal to go the extra mile as Wolves did.