John Powell (March 25, 1860 - March 16, 1947) was a Welsh association footballer who played as defender for Newton Heath in the late 1880s. 
Powell was in  Wrexham was born and began his football career in 1879 with the Druids, with whom he won the Welsh Cup three times and reached the final twice. In October 1883, he joined the Bolton Wanderers, becoming the first Welsh player to move to England as part of a professional football career; however, the professionalism was not legalized until July 1885, and he had to leave the club after 21 months. After moving to Manchester to work at the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway's wagon factory in Newton Heath as a fitter, he joined the company's football team and played in their first major competitive game, an FA Cup

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