Walter Otto Davis was a Welsh professional football player who played at centre forward for Millwall for ten years in the 1910s.
Background
Davis was born in Mold, Flintshire, and was one of six brothers. His second name came from a German soldier who was a friend of his father. When he was still a child, his family moved to London, where his father, W.J. Davis, became an alderman in West Ham and chairman of the governors of the Municipal Central Secondary School in Tennyson Road before serving as the mayor in 1920-1921.
Career
He also made five appearances for the Welsh national team After he joined the army, he joined the 2nd Bedfordshire Regiment and was stationed in Gibraltar where he played football for the Army. On leaving the army in 1911, he joined Metrogas, but turned professional with Millwall of the Southern League shortly afterwards.
Davis was a deadly finisher, with exceptional speed and ball control and in the 1912-1913 season, he emerged as a "goalscoring sensation" and soon attracted "fabulous offers" from Football League clubs.
He was the Lions" leading goalscorer in each season he played, and he holds the record as Millwall"s leading goalscorer in the Southern League. Davis was a wonderful dribbler with a fine body swerve, but also had a fierce shot from almost any distance.
He scored again against Bradford City in Round Two, before going out to yet another club from the First Division, Sheffield United. The goal he scored against Bradford was considered by many to be the best ever scored at The Den and was described by the national papers as a "wonder goal".
He received the ball from a throw-in around the half-way line, sidestepped his marker, beat both full-backs and then slipped the ball past the keeper into the Netto.
Davis was called up by Wales, making his debut in a 1–0 victory against Ireland on 18 January 1913. He retained his place for the next four matches, scoring a goal from 30 yards against England at Bristol on 17 March. During World War I, Davis served in Italy where he incurred injuries to his legs.
During the war he occasionally turned out for Millwall, including in a match against Clapton Orient in which he scored a hat-trick wearing army boots.
Davis was forced to retire from football early in 1919 as a result of an injury to his knee and took up employment as a groundsman with Chelmsford, before working as a labourer in the London Docks. He was found drowned in Bow Creek on 20 May 1937 in mysterious circumstances as he was a strong swimmer.
The coroner"s jury recorded an open verdict. Davis made five appearances for Wales in international matches, as follows:.