Billy Dean

Billy Dean first began to take swimming seriously at the age of seven and when he was only ten he won the Royal Humane Society’s Medallion. He began his water polo career playing for Manchester Swan and Salford, and won his first cap for England when still a teenager. In 1909, when his family moved to Hyde, Dean became one of the stars of the Hyde Seal club that dominated English water polo at the time, playing at right-forward. He formed a prolific goal scoring partnership with George Wilkinson which made a major contribution to the club’s success, as Hyde Seal won the international championship of France three times, then English championship nine times and were the Northern champions for 21 successive years. Dean played 18 times for England and captained the team on six occasions. He was also an excellent soccer player and was on the books of Manchester United as a goalkeeper for two seasons. He developed a successful business in Hyde and at the time of his death he was the managing director of the electrical engineering firm, Dean & Noble.