Johnny Williams made 419 appearances for Watford It was his dependability that gave Johnny Williams an almost exclusive hold on the left-back position for a decade and ensured only eight players have made more first-team appearances for Watford in the club’s history. Williams’ death at the age of 73 was announced by the Hornets last Friday and the Watford Observer’s former assistant editor and long-serving club correspondent Oliver Phillips has reflected on the Vicarage Road career of the defender who played 419 games during his time at the club. Oliver said: “Johnny was the least fanfared of Watford’s top appearance makers. The irony was that every spring, successive managers would pencil in a wish list, which included a new left-back, but not until ten years later when manager Mike Keen brought in Bobby Downes and Keith Pritchett did Johnny lose his place.