# Don Lees

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> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_Lees
> Source revision: 1316842731
> License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

{{short description|Scottish footballer}}
{{distinguish|Don Lee (disambiguation){{!}}Don Lee}}
{{Use British English|date=July 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2024}}
{{Infobox football biography
| name               = Don Lees
| image               = 
| caption             = 
| fullname            = William Lees
| birth_date         =  {{birth-date|1873}}
| birth_place = [Cronberry](/source/Cronberry), Scotland
| death_date         = Not known
| height              = 
| position            = [Centre half](/source/Defender_(association_football)) / [Forward](/source/Forward_(association_football))
| youthyears1         = –
| youthclubs1         = 
| years1  = –         | clubs1  = Cronberry Eglington                   | caps1  =     | goals1  = 
| years2  = 1892–1893 | clubs2  = [Celtic](/source/Celtic_F.C.)                | caps2  = 1   | goals2  = 0
| years3  = 1893–1894 | clubs3  = [Lincoln City](/source/Lincoln_City_F.C.)    | caps3  = 28  | goals3  = 17
| years4  = 1894      | clubs4  = [Celtic](/source/Celtic_F.C.)                | caps4  = 3   | goals4  = 3
| years5  = 1894–1895 | clubs5  = [Lincoln City](/source/Lincoln_City_F.C.)    | caps5  = 24  | goals5  = 7
| years6  = –         | clubs6  = [Barnsley St Peter's](/source/Barnsley_F.C.) | caps6  =     | goals6  = 
| years7  = 1895–1896 | clubs7  = [Darwen](/source/Darwen_F.C._(1870))                | caps7  = 20  | goals7  = 8
| years8  = 1897–1904 | clubs8  = [Barnsley](/source/Barnsley_F.C.){{efn|Barnsley appearances are for Football League matches only, not Midland or Yorkshire Leagues.}} | caps8  = 187 | goals8  = 42
| years9  = 1904–1905 | clubs9  = [Watford](/source/Watford_F.C.)              | caps9  = 6   | goals9  = 2<ref>{{cite book|last=Jones|first=Trefor|year=1996|title=Watford Football Club Illustrated Who's Who|isbn=0-9527458-0-1|page=144}}</ref>
| years10 = 1905      | clubs10 = [Barnsley](/source/Barnsley_F.C.)            | caps10 = 1   | goals10 = 0
| years11 = 1905–     | clubs11 = [Denaby United](/source/Denaby_United_F.C.)  | caps11 =     | goals11 = 
| years12 = –         | clubs12 = South Kirkby                          | caps12 =     | goals12 = 
| years13 = –         | clubs13 = Monk Bretton                          | caps13 =     | goals13 = 
| years14 = –         | clubs14 = South Kirkby                          | caps14 =     | goals14 = 
}}
'''William Lees''' (1873 – after 1905), also known as '''Don''',<ref name=Joyce>{{cite book |last=Joyce |first=Michael |title=Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939 |publisher=SoccerData (Tony Brown) |location=Nottingham |year=2004 |page=155 |isbn=978-1-899468-67-6}}</ref> '''Donald''',<ref name=LCArchive>{{cite web |url=http://www.redimps.com/archive3/index.mv?cat=players&drop=playerdetsdrop&play=lees01 |title=Donald Lees |work=The Lincoln City FC Archive |publisher=Lincoln City F.C. |accessdate=6 April 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120311111254/http://www.redimps.com/archive3/index.mv?cat=players&drop=playerdetsdrop&play=lees01 |archive-date=11 March 2012 |url-status=dead }} Access individual season statistics via Season Stats dropdown menu.</ref> or '''Walter Lees''',<ref name=TheCelticWiki>{{cite web |url=http://www.thecelticwiki.com/page/Lees%2C+Walter |title=Lees, Walter |work=TheCelticWiki |accessdate=6 April 2010}}</ref> was a Scottish professional [footballer](/source/association_football) who scored 74 goals from 260 appearances in [the Football League](/source/the_Football_League) playing for [Lincoln City](/source/Lincoln_City_F.C.), [Darwen](/source/Darwen_F.C._(1870)) and [Barnsley](/source/Barnsley_F.C.).<ref name=Joyce/> He also played in the [Scottish League](/source/Scottish_Football_League) for [Celtic](/source/Celtic_F.C.).<ref name=TheCelticWiki/> He played either as a [forward](/source/forward_(association_football)) or as a [centre half](/source/defender_(association_football)).<ref name=Joyce/>

==Football career==
Lees was born in [Cronberry](/source/Cronberry), then in [Ayrshire](/source/Ayrshire), in 1873.<ref name=Joyce/> He joined [Celtic](/source/Celtic_F.C.) in 1892, and made his debut on 1 October 1892 against [Clyde](/source/Clyde_F.C.) in the [Scottish League](/source/Scottish_Football_League).<ref name=TheCelticWiki/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.celticfc.net/home/fixturesResults/ViewMatch.aspx?matchid=1892-10-01_cly&season=1892 |title=Celtic v Clyde 01/10/1892 |publisher=Celtic F.C |accessdate=6 April 2010 }}{{dead link|date=September 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> Lees moved to England to play for [Lincoln City](/source/Lincoln_City_F.C.), and was ever-present and the club's leading scorer with 17 goals in the [1893–94 Football League](/source/1893%E2%80%9394_Football_League) season,<ref name=LCArchive/> a total which includes a [hat-trick](/source/hat-trick) against [Rotherham Town](/source/Rotherham_Town_F.C._(1878)) in an 8–2 win which remains (as of 2010) the club's record Football League away win.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.redimps.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10440~1361907,00.html |title=We've Met (Rotherham) Before |publisher=Lincoln City F.C. |date=11 February 2010 |accessdate=6 April 2010 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100217144306/http://www.redimps.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0%2C%2C10440~1361907%2C00.html |archivedate=17 February 2010 }}</ref> He rejoined Celtic in May 1894, but accusations that the club had offered illegal inducements to attract him back resulted in [the Football Association](/source/the_Football_Association) preventing Celtic from playing [friendly match](/source/friendly_match)es in England. The consequent financial loss meant Celtic allowed Lees to return to Lincoln in October 1894,<ref name=TheCelticWiki/> by which time he had scored three goals from the first three Scottish League games of the [1894–95 season](/source/1894%E2%80%9395_in_Scottish_football).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.celticfc.net/home/fixturesResults/firstTeam.aspx?season=1894 |title=First Team Fixtures 1894–1895 |publisher=Celtic F.C |accessdate=6 April 2010 }}{{dead link|date=September 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

He remained with Lincoln for the rest of the season,<ref name=LCArchive/> then went on to play in the Football League for [Darwen](/source/Darwen_F.C._(1870)),<ref name=Joyce/> a club in financial difficulties with low morale, where he missed a month of the season when suspended by the club for misconduct.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.darwenfc.com/dcalvy/index.htm |title=1896/97 Season |work=Memories of the Salmoners: Darwen Football Club 1975–1939 |first=D |last=Calvy |publisher=Darwen F.C |accessdate=6 April 2010}}</ref> He then moved on to [Barnsley](/source/Barnsley_F.C.), playing nearly 200 Football League games for the club over six seasons, and also played for [Southern League](/source/Southern_Football_League) club [Watford](/source/Watford_F.C.), before moving into [non-League football](/source/non-League_football) in the [Barnsley](/source/Barnsley) area.<ref name=Joyce/>

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lees, Don}}
Category:1873 births
Category:Year of death missing
Category:Footballers from East Ayrshire
Category:Scottish men's footballers
Category:Men's association football forwards
Category:Celtic F.C. players
Category:Lincoln City F.C. players
Category:Darwen F.C. (1870) players
Category:Denaby United F.C. players
Category:Barnsley F.C. players
Category:Watford F.C. players
Category:Scottish Football League players
Category:English Football League players

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Don Lees](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_Lees) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_Lees?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.
