Bill Rochford

Bill Rochford

Personal information
Full name	William Rochford
Date of birth	(1913-05-27)27 May 1913
Place of birth	New House, County Durham, England
Date of death	9 March 1984(1984-03-09) (aged 70)
Place of death	Bishop Auckland, England
Height	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Playing position	Full-back
Youth career
	Esh Winning
–	Cuckfield
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1931–1946	Portsmouth	138	(1)
1946–1950	Southampton	128	(0)
1950–1951	Colchester United	2	(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.

William "Bill" Rochford (27 May 1913 – 9 March 1984) was an English footballer. A member of the Portsmouth team that won the 1939 FA Cup, he played over 100 matches for Portsmouth and for their south coast rivals, Southampton.

Rochford was born at New House, County Durham into a mining family, and as a youth he played for the Esh Winning junior XI. His family subsequently moved to Cuckfield, West Sussex from where he joined Portsmouth in July 1931.

Rochford (known as "Rockie" throughout his career) made his debut for Portsmouth against Southampton in the Rowland Hospital Cup at The Dell in April 1932. At first, playing at right-back, he made only the occasional first team start for Pompey, who finished regularly in mid-table in the Football League First Division, but by 1934-35 he had become a regular choice and in 1936 he represented the English League. In 1937 he switched to left-back and stayed there, being an ever-present in 1937-38.

His greatest moment for Portsmouth came in the FA Cup, when Pompey, who were struggling in the relegation zone, swept aside high-flying Wolves in the 1939 FA Cup Final running in 4-1 victors. As a result of the suspension of the FA Cup for the duration of World War II, the next FA Cup final was not until 7 years later in 1946, thereby enabling Portsmouth fans to claim that their team has held the Cup for the longest time.

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