Ernst Ocwirk

Ernst Ocwirk (7 March 1926 – 23 January 1980) was an Austrian football player and coach. He played as midfielder mainly for FK Austria Wien in Austria and U.C. Sampdoria Genua in Italy. He was also a player of the Austrian national football team. He is regarded as one of the greatest Austrian footballers of all time.

Ernst Ocwirk

Ocwirk in 1953
Personal information
Date of birth	(1926-03-07)7 March 1926
Place of birth	Vienna, Austria
Date of death	23 January 1980(1980-01-23) (aged 53)
Place of death	Klein-Pöchlarn, Austria
Height	1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Playing position	Midfielder
Youth career
	FC Stadlau
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1942–1947	Floridsdorfer AC	83	(3)
1947–1956	Austria Wien	209	(31)
1956–1961	Sampdoria	154	(37)
1961–1962	Austria Wien	15	(5)
Total		461	(76)
National team
1945–1962	Austria	62	(6)
Teams managed
1962–1965	Sampdoria
1965–1970	Austria Wien
1970–1971	1. FC Köln
1971–1973	Admira Wacker
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Nicknamed Clockwork by the British for his midfield consistency, as well as the nickname being suggested by his surname, he is often cited as the last of the old-fashioned attacking centre-halves; he was known for his aesthetic and technical style of playing, his heading ability, excellent timing (both in offensive and defensive tasks) and his passing range; particularly his long passing ability. The fans loved him for his modest and fair personality. The international media of the era saw Ocwirk as "the best centerhalf in the world". He is considered one of the greatest central midfielders of all time.

Club career

Ocwirk began his career as a striker. He joined his first club, the local FC Stadlau, in 1938. He then played for Floridsdorfer AC, where he was spotted by former Austrian international Josef Smistik, who moved Ocwirk to centre midfield. Smistik tried to bring him to his former team, Rapid Wien, but it was FK Austria who won the race and signed him in 1947. With Austria he won five Austrian League championships and three domestic cups.

1956 he went to Sampdoriaand was the second Austrian footballer ever to play in Seria A after Engelbert König. Ocwirk played five seasons at the Genova club. He also became the captain. In 1961 he returned to FK Austria and played there his last season. He was winning in 1961–62.

Ocwirk was chosen in Austria's Team of the Century in 2001.

International career

Ocwirk played 62 caps matches and scored six goals for Austria. He made his debut in 1945 and played at the 1948 Olympic Games in London. At the 1954 World Cup he was captain of Austria and played in all five of his team matches. He scored two goals during the tournament: one in the memorable quarter-final against hosts Switzerland, and the 3–1 in the third-place match against reigning champions Uruguay.

International statistics

Appearances and goals by national team and year

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Austria	1945	2	0
	1947	1	1
	1948	8	0
	1949	7	0
	1950	7	1
	1951	6	0
	1952	6	0
	1953	5	1
	1954	10	2
	1955	6	1
	1956	3	0
	1962	1	0
Total		62	6

Scores and results list Austria's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Ocwirk goal.

List of international goals scored by Ernst Ocwirk

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	9 November 1947	Prater Stadion, Vienna, Austria	Italy	2-0	5-1	Friendly match
2	19 March 1950	Prater Stadion, Vienna, Austria	Switzerland	1-0	3-3	Svehla-Cup
3	27 September 1953	Prater Stadion, Vienna, Austria	Portugal	1-0	9-1	Friendly match
4	26 June 1954	Stade Olympique de La Pontaise, Lausanne, Switzerland	Switzerland	4-3	7-5	1954 FIFA World Cup
5	3 July 1954	Hardturm, Zürich, Switzerland	Uruguay	3-1	3-1	1954 FIFA World Cup
6	19 May 1955	Prater Stadion, Vienna, Austria	Scotland	1-3	1-3	Friendly match

Coaching career

After retiring from playing, Ocwirk became a manager. Sampdoria was the first team he coached from 1962 to 1965. He also managed 1. FC Köln one year whre he reached final of the DFB Cup. Before the time in Germany he managed his former club FK Austria Wien. After his year in Germany he trained VfB Admira Wacker Mödling.

Death

He died in January 1980 of multiple sclerosis in Klein-Pöchlarn, Lower Austria.

Honours

Austria Wien

• Austrian Football Bundesliga: 1949, 1950, 1953, 1962, 1963
• Austrian Cup: 1948, 1949, 1962

Austria

• FIFA World Cup third place: 1954

Individual

• FIFA World Cup All-Star Team: 1954

Ernst Ocwirk Media

• 

  Ocwirk playing for Sampdoria in 1956

• 

  Ocwirk's grave at Vienna's Zentralfriedhof

Other websites

• FIFA
• Profile – FK Austria
• Player profile – Austria Archive
• UEFA
• Ernst Ocwirk at National-Football-Teams.com

Awards
Preceded by Walter Zeman	Austrian Sportsman of the Year 1951	Succeeded by Othmar Schneider