John Simpson (footballer, born 1933)

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John Simpson
Personal information
Full name John Lionel Simpson
Date of birth 5 October 1933
Place of birth Appleby, England
Date of death 7 December 1993(1993-12-07) (aged 60)
Place of death Gillingham, England
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1954–1957 Netherfield ? (?)
1957 Lincoln City[1] 5 (0)
1957–1972 Gillingham[2] 571 (0)
1972 → Margate (loan) ? (?)
1972 Maidstone United ? (?)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

John Lionel Simpson (5 October 1933 – 7 December 1993) was an English football goalkeeper. He spent fifteen years playing for Gillingham, for whom he holds the all-time record for the most matches played in the Football League.

Career[]

Simpson began his professional career with Lincoln City, having been spotted playing for Netherfield in the Lancashire Combination but only managed five first-team appearances for the Sincil Bank club before Gillingham snapped him up in the summer of 1957 for just £750. For the next fifteen years he was the Gills' first-choice goalkeeper, helping them win the Fourth Division championship in the 1963–64 season, during which he let in just 30 goals, a club record which stood until 1995–96. In 1972, after a club record 571 Football League appearances, he left the professional game to see out his career with non-league Maidstone United, but in 1975 he returned to Priestfield Stadium to play for Gillingham's reserves due to an injury crisis.[2]

After his retirement he ran a newsagent's close to Priestfield Stadium. He died in 1993, aged 60.[2] His record tally of 571 league appearances for Gillingham remains intact to this day, fellow goalkeeper Ron Hillyard's career having been ended by injury just 8 matches short of the record, although Hillyard made more appearances than Simpson in all competitions.

References[]

  1. ^ Lincoln City all-time players' records
  2. ^ a b c Triggs, Roger (2001). The Men Who Made Gillingham Football Club. Tempus Publishing Ltd. p. 295. ISBN 0-7524-2243-X.

External links[]

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