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George Gray (footballer, born 1894)

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George Gray
Personal information
Full name George Robert Gray[1]
Date of birth (1894-01-04)4 January 1894[1]
Place of birth South Hylton, England
Date of death 1972 (aged 77–78)
Place of death Sunderland, England
Height 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)[2]
Position(s) Wing half
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
New Riddick Colliery
191?–1914 Seaham Harbour
1914–1919 Gillingham 16 (0)
1919–1920 Hartlepools United 26 (1)
1920–1922 Swansea Town 39 (1)
1922–1923 Bury 0 (0)
1923–1924 Northampton Town 11 (0)
1924 Durham City 2 (0)
Clydebank
Yoker Athletic
Rushden Town
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

George Robert Gray (4 January 1894 – 1972) was an English professional footballer during the early years of the twentieth century. He played in the Football League for Swansea Town, Northampton Town and Durham City. He spent a season in the Southern League with Gillingham, was on the books of Bury without playing for their first team, had a trial with Scottish League club Clydebank, and played North-Eastern League football for Seaham Harbour and Hartlepools United. After his playing career ended he had a lengthy career as a trainer.

Personal life

Gray was born in South Hylton, County Durham, in January 1894,[2] the son of Crosby Gray, a shipwright, and his wife, Isabella.[3] By 1911, his father had died and the 17-year-old Gray was working as a craneboy in the shipyards.[4] He married Vera Lister in 1923.[5] Their son, also a George Gray,[6] played League football as a half back for Grimsby Town, Swindon Town and Darlington in the 1950s.[7] Gray died in Sunderland in 1972.[2][8]

Playing career

Gray played local football for New Riddick Colliery and North-Eastern League football for Seaham Harbour before signing for Gillingham,[1] for which he made 16 Southern League appearances without scoring before competitive football was abandoned for the duration of the First World War.[9] He served in the Army during the war,[2] and when demobilised returned to County Durham in October 1919 and signed for Hartlepools United.[10] He went on to score once from 26 North-Eastern League matches and make one appearance in the FA Cup.[11]

In September 1920, Gray signed for Swansea Town of the Third Division South.[2] He made his Football League debut playing at right half away to Northampton Town on 25 September[1] – one of five men tried in that position in the first few weeks of the season[12] – but established himself in the team at left half and missed only three matches over the rest of the campaign.[1] In 1921–22, he did not appear until the new year, but did help the team reach the last 16 of the FA Cup.[1] He left Swansea at the end of the season for Second Division club Bury, where he spent a year without first-team football before returning to the Southern Section with Northampton Town.[2] He was unwell at the start of the 1923–24 season,[13] and although he played in the reserves,[14] he did not make his first-team debut until late December, standing in for the rested Frank Newton.[15] He kept his place for the next match, and made nine more appearances as injury cover before the half-back line was rearranged to accommodate the return of regular centre-half Edmund Wood.[1][16] An unsuccessful trial with Durham City in October 1924, during which he played twice in the Third Division North as a centre forward, put an end to his Football League career.[2] He had a trial with Scottiah League club Clydebank, and played for Junior club Yoker Athletic before returning to England with Rushden Town.[2]

Career as a trainer

He then began a long career as a trainer, with clubs including Bury, Clydebank, Barrow,[17] and South Shields.[18] The 1939 Register records him living in Sunderland and working as a framesmith's striker.[19][20] When the Sunderland club resumed playing wartime football at their Roker Park ground, Gray acted as trainer on a voluntary basis, and after the war he was appointed full-time.[21] In July 1950, he treated West Indian cricketer Sonny Ramadhin after he was injured during a tour match against Durham,[22] and acted as trainer to the England team when they played Wales at Sunderland's Roker Park ground in November.[23][24] He remained in post until 1951, and then took full-time charge of the treatment room and did some scouting.[25]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g "Gray, GR (George)". English National Football Archive. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Dykes, Garth (2010). Durham City FC in the Football League. Nottingham: SoccerData. pp. 30–31. ISBN 978-1-905891-42-9.
  3. ^ "George Gray". Census Returns of England and Wales, 1901. RG13/4708 56 – via Ancestry Library Edition.
  4. ^ "George Gray". Census Returns of England and Wales, 1911. RG14/30258 447 – via Ancestry Library Edition.
  5. ^ "George R Gray". England and Wales Marriage Registration Index, 1837–2005 – via FamilySearch.org.
  6. ^ "In Grimsby's first team". Hull Daily Mail. 14 October 1950. p. 6.
    Argus (5 February 1952). "Wearsider had a hand in Cup success". Sunderland Echo. p. 9.
  7. ^ Hugman, Barry J., ed. (1998). The PFA Premier & Football League Players' Records 1946–1998. Queen Anne Press. p. 218. ISBN 978-1-85291-585-8.
  8. ^ "Index entry". FreeBMD. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
  9. ^ "George Gray". Gillingham FC Scrapbook. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
  10. ^ "No title". Yorkshire Post. 10 October 1919. p. 18. Hartlepools United have secured the signature of C.H. Hafekost, who played inside right for Darlington in the Victory League, and also a right half in G.R. Gray, of Gillingham, just demobilised.
  11. ^ "George Gray". In The Mad Crowd. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
  12. ^ "Third League snaps. Five right halves". Derby Daily Telegraph. 6 November 1920. p. 4.
  13. ^ "The Cobblers make no change for match at Brighton. Gray unwell". Daily Echo. Northampton. 30 August 1923. p. 5.
  14. ^ "Southern League. Northampton Reserves v. Coventry City Reserves". Daily Echo. Northampton. 6 October 1923. p. 5.
  15. ^ Flag kick (27 December 1923). "The Cobblers' return game with Swindon". Daily Echo. Northampton. p. 5.
  16. ^ "The Cobblers' return game with Southend United". Daily Echo. Northampton. 22 March 1924. p. 5.
  17. ^ "Barrow F.C.". Lancashire Daily Post. 8 August 1935. p. 5.
  18. ^ J.H.J. (8 July 1939). "All sorts of sport". Shields Evening News. p. 6.
  19. ^ "George R Gray". 1939 England and Wales Register – via Ancestry Library Edition.
  20. ^ "190. Smiths and Skilled Forge Workers". A Dictionary of Occupational Terms Based on the Classification of Occupations used in the Census of Population, 1921. Ministry of Labour. 1927. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
  21. ^ "George Gray". Sunderland Echo. 4 July 1945. p. 7.
  22. ^ "Ramadhin strains knee". Nottingham Journal. 27 July 1950. p. 3.
  23. ^ Argus (14 November 1950). "Billy Watson to play for England". Sunderland Echo. p. 9.
  24. ^ "England match no. 260 – Wales – 15 November 1950 – Match summary and report". England Football Online. Chris Goodwin & Glen Isherwood. 26 November 2018. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
  25. ^ Argus (6 May 1952). "Busier still behind the scenes. Roker record tribute to George Gray". Sunderland Echo. p. 11.
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