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List of Darlington F.C. players

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Darlington Football Club, an English association football club based in Darlington, County Durham, was founded in 1883. They entered the FA Cup for the first time in 1885–86,[1] were founder members of the Northern League in 1889,[2] turned professional in 1908 and joined the North Eastern League,[1] which they won in 1913 and 1921.[2] The latter win preceded election to the Football League as members of its newly formed Third Division North.[1] Runners-up in their first season, Darlington were Northern Section champions three years later, thus winning promotion to the Second Division. Their 15th-place finish in 1926 remains their best League performance, and they were relegated back to the Third Division the following year. After 68 years of continuous membership, they were relegated from the Football League in 1988–89. Having made an immediate return as Conference champions, they remained in the League until 2010, when they again dropped into the Conference.[2] After Darlington failed to exit administration in a manner acceptable to the Football Association, that body treated it as a new club, required it to change its name (to Darlington 1883), and placed its team in the Northern League, the ninth tier of English football, for the 2012–13 season.[3] Five years later, the FA approved the club's request to resume its traditional name.[4]

The club's first team have competed in numerous nationally organised competitions, and all players who have played in 100 or more such matches, either as a member of the starting eleven or as a substitute, are listed below. Each player's details include the duration of his Darlington career, his typical playing position while with the club, and the number of games played and goals scored in domestic league matches and in all senior competitive matches. Where applicable, the list also includes the national team for which the player was selected, and the number of senior international caps he won.

Introduction

Of the more than 150 men who made 100 or more appearances in nationally organised league competition for Darlington, Alan Walsh and Jerry Best are first and second in the club's all-time scorers list. Davie Brown scored a club record 39 league goals in a single season, from 40 matches in 1924–25 as Darlington were promoted to the Second Division for the only time in their history.[5][6] Frank Gray, Ken Hale and Billy Horner went on to manage the club, while Craig Liddle and Neil Maddison had several spells as caretaker manager.[7]

Other players took part in significant matches in the history of the club. On the opening day of the 1921–22 season, Tommy Winship crossed for Bill Hooper to score Darlington's first Football League goal, against Halifax Town; the goal came so quickly that the Northern Echo reported how Hooper could "in all probability, lay claim to the honour of being the first player to score a goal in the Northern Section of the Third Division".[6] Hughie Dickson scored the second with a penalty kick to make the score 2–0,[8] and George Malcolm, the club's first Football League captain, and Tommy Greaves also played in the match.[6][9] Dan Cassidy scored the last-seconds winner to defeat Stockport County in the inaugural Northern Section Cup final in 1934.[10] Dave Carr and Keith Morton scored two of the goals that earned Darlington a draw with Chelsea, League champions only three seasons earlier, in the fourth round of the 1958–59 FA Cup, and Carr scored again as Darlington won the replay 4–1 to progress to the last 16 of the competition for only the second time in their history.[11] Ray Yeoman captained the team to promotion from the Fourth Division in 1965–66,[12] and Ian Miller was captain and Paul Arnison, Liam Hatch and Sam Russell also played as Darlington won the 2011 FA Trophy Final.[13]

Ten men listed here – goalkeeper Mark Prudhoe, defenders Ron Greener, Liddle, Kevan Smith and John Peverell, midfielders Andy Toman, Alan Sproates and David McLean, and forwards Walsh and Colin Sinclair – were voted by supporters into a "Dream Team" as part of the 2003 Farewell to Feethams celebrations, when the club left its long-time home. The eleventh man, Marco Gabbiadini, played only 98 times for Darlington. Ron Ferguson's goal that eliminated Sheffield Wednesday from the 1976–77 FA Cup was chosen best goal ever scored at the ground.[14]

Key

  • The list is ordered first by number of appearances in total, then by number of League appearances, and then if necessary by date of debut.
  • Appearances as a substitute are included.
  • Statistics are correct up to and including the end of the 2019–20 season. Where a player left the club permanently after this date, his statistics are updated to his date of leaving.
Positions key
Pre-1960s 1960s–
GK Goalkeeper
FB Full back DF Defender
HB Half-back MF Midfielder
FW Forward
Player
Players marked * were registered for the club as at the date specified above.
Players with name in italics and marked † were on loan from another club for the duration of their Darlington career. The loaning club is noted in the Notes column, and sourced to Neil Brown's Player Database,[15] to the English National Football Archive, or individually.
Position
Playing positions are listed according to the tactical formations that were employed at the time. Thus the change in the names of defensive and midfield positions reflects the tactical evolution that occurred from the 1960s onwards.[16][15]
Club career
Club career is defined as the first and last calendar years in which the player appeared for the club in any of the competitions listed below.
League appearances and League goals
League appearances and goals comprise those in the Football League (1921–1989 and 1990–2010), the Football Conference (1989–1990 and 2010–2012) and the National League (2016–present). Appearances in the 1939–40 Football League season, abandoned after three matches because of the Second World War, are excluded.[G 1]
Total appearances and Total goals
Total appearances and goals comprise those in the Football League (including play-offs), Football Conference, National League, FA Cup, Football League Third Division North Cup, Football League Cup, Associate Members' Cup/Football League Trophy, FA Trophy and Conference League Cup. Matches in wartime competitions are excluded.[G 1]
International selection
Countries are listed only for players who have been selected for international football. Only the highest level of international competition is given, except where a player competed for more than one country, in which case the highest level reached for each country is shown.

Players with 100 or more appearances

Head of a bald white man facing a BBC microphone.
Craig Liddle made more than 300 appearances for Darlington, and was caretaker manager during their last season under the Darlington F.C. name.[3][17]
Bulky middle-aged white man in sports clothing.
Mark Prudhoe won the 1989–90 Football Conference and 1990–91 Fourth Division titles with Darlington.[18]
White man in football clothing on a grass field.
Sean Gregan returned to Darlington as player-coach in 2012, 16 years after leaving for Preston North End.[19]
Heavily-built white man in football clothing, apparently training.
After Andy Collett's playing career ended through injury, he stayed on with Darlington as goalkeeping coach.[20]
White man doing football training.
Mark Convery was man of the match in Darlington's last match in the Football League, against Dagenham & Redbridge on 8 May 2010.[21]
Bearded white man wearing goalkeeping gloves, pictured during a football match.
After Darlington's 2010 relegation to the Conference, Sam Russell returned for a third spell with the club.[22] He was in goal, as Darlington won the 2011 FA Trophy Final.[13]
Head and shoulders of smiling white man
Ian Miller captained Darlington's 2011 FA Trophy-winning team.[13]
Table of players, including playing position, club statistics and international selection
Player Pos Club career League Total International selection Refs
Apps Goals Apps Goals
Ron Greener DF 1955–1967 439 5 490 6 —
John Peverell DF 1961–1972 419 13 465 14 —
Brian Henderson FB 1952–1964 423 3 463 3 —
Kevan Smith DF
  • 1979–1985
  • 1989–1993
 382 19 440 22 —
Hughie Dickson HB / FB 1919–1934 402 37 440 46 —
Billy Dunn GK 1945–1956 340 0 359 0 —
Ken Furphy HB 1953–1962 316 6 349 8 —
Alan Sproates MF 1965–1974 315 17 346 19 —
Clive Nattress DF
  • 1972–1980
  • 1985
 303 15 346 15 —
David McLean MF 1979–1986 294 46 337 52 English schools [23]
Craig Liddle DF 1998–2005 285 17 322 21 — [L 1]
Neil Wainwright MF
  • 2000
  • 2001–2008
  • 2012
 264 28 292 30 — [L 2]
Alan Walsh FW 1978–1984 251 87 279 100 —
Bill Rutherford HB 1952–1959 251 3 269 4 —
Tony Moor GK 1965–1972 239 0 268 0 —
Jimmy Waugh HB 1927–1933 236 10 252 11 —
Jimmy Cochrane DF 1975–1980 223 5 257 6 —
Steven Gaughan MF
  • 1992–1996
  • 1997–1999
 218 18 252 19 —
Joe Davison FB 1947–1954 240 7 249 8 —
Glenn Naylor FW
  • 1995
  • 1996–2003
 213 47 248 54 — [L 3]
Tommy Greaves FB 1921–1927 227 1 245 1 —
Phil Brumwell MF
  • 1995–2000
  • 2000–2002
 199 1 238 4 —
Billy Horner DF 1969–1975 218 5 236 5 —
Lance Robson FW
  • 1960–1964
  • 1968–1970
 213 66 235 72 — [a]
Ryan Valentine FB
  • 2002–2006
  • 2008–2009
 210 4 227 4  Wales U21 [24]
Brian Atkinson MF 1996–2002 193 12 224 15  England U21 [25]
Colin Sinclair FW 1971–1976 203 59 223 65  Scotland youth [26]
Derek Craig DF 1975–1980 187 10 214 16 —
Andy Crosby DF 1993–1998 181 3 211 4 —
Mark Prudhoe GK 1989–1993 180 0 209 0 —
Les O'Neill MF 1965–1970 180 35 201 43 —
Simon Shaw DF 1992–1998 176 12 199 14 England semi-pro [27]
Sam Russell GK
  • 2002
  • 2004–2007
  • 2010–2012
 173 0 196 0 — [L 1]
Dick Strang HB 1933–1938 171 2 196 3 —
Garry MacDonald FW 1984–1989 162 35 196 47 —
Clark Keltie MF
  • 2002–2008
  • 2012
 176 9 194 11 —
Keith Morton FW 1955–1961 171 49 194 55 —
George Malcolm HB 1919–1925 166 7 189 7 —
Ken Hale FW 1968–1972 173 25 188 28 —
Joe Rayment MF 1959–1965 173 31 187 35 —
Matt Clarke DF
  • 2002–2006
  • 2006
 171 13 186 13 — [L 4]
John Eves FB 1946–1952 176 1 184 1 —
Adam Reed DF
  • 1991–1995
  • 1997
  • 1998–2002
 160 3 184 3 — [L 5]
Andy Toman MF 1989–1993 155 17 183 22 —
Joe Hodgson HB 1934–1939 160 2 181 2 —
Michael Oliver MF 1996–2000 151 14 179 15 —
Dan Cassidy HB / FW 1927–1937 165 15 178 19 —
Brian Keeble DF 1965–1969 154 2 176 2 —
Martin Joyce FB 1921–1927 166 0 175 0 —
Gary Morgan DF 1985–1989 146 3 175 3 —
Norman Parsley HB 1945–1952 161 14 174 14 —
Mark Hine MF 1986–1990 149 14 174 17 England semi-pro [28]
Stephen Thompson MF / FW 2013–2020 149 34 174 41 —
Tommy Varty FW 1945–1950 162 32 173 33 — [a]
Joe Jacques HB 1965–1969 154 5 173 6 —
Gary Himsworth MF
  • 1993–1996
  • 1999–2000
 142 9 171 11 —
Tommy Winship FW 1919–1926 146 17 170 21 —
Mark Barnard DF 1995–1999 143 4 170 5 —
Tom Alderson FW
  • 1933–1936
  • 1938–1939
 151 46 169 60 —
Tom Kelly HB / FB 1938–1951 157 3 169 3 —
Ian Miller MF
  • 2007
  • 2007–2011
 149 9 168 10 — [L 6]
Fred Hopkinson HB 1928–1933 158 10 167 10 —
Jim Milner FW 1957–1961 149 27 167 28 —
Roy Brown FB 1947–1956 158 20 164 22 —
Fred Barber GK 1983–1986 135 0 163 0 —
Sean Gregan DF 1991–1996 136 4 162 5 —
Geoff Barker DF 1971–1975 151 6 161 6 —
Terry Galbraith DF / MF 2013–2020 135 15 159 17 —
Bill Hooper FW 1920–1926 141 60 157 64 —
Trevor Atkinson HB 1963–1968 139 3 156 3 —
Billy Robinson HB 1922–1927 143 0 155 0 —
Jimmy Lawton FW
  • 1961–1965
  • 1968–1969
 142 63 155 71 —
Brian Albeson DF 1967–1971 136 2 154 2  England youth [29]
Jimmy Willis DF 1988–1991 128 7 151 8 —
Phil Lloyd DF 1984–1987 127 3 150 5 —
Barry Conlon FW
  • 2001–2004
  • 2006
 134 45 148 48  Republic of Ireland U21 [30]
Herbert Brown FB 1928–1932 139 7 145 7 —
Peter Carr DF 1968–1972 135 1 147 1 —
Les McJannet FB 1988–1992 125 6 147 11 —
David Crosson DF 1976–1980 128 2 146 2 —
Dave Carr FW 1957–1962 132 50 145 57 —
George Stevens FW 1920–1925 130 38 145 42 —
Andy Collett GK 1999–2003 125 0 145 0 —
Alan Kamara DF 1980–1983 134 1 144 1 —
Harry Clark FW 1950–1957 141 27 143 27 —
Paul Ward MF 1985–1988 124 9 143 11 —
Matty Appleby DF
  • 1993–1994
  • 1994–1996
  • 2005–2006
 125 8 142 12 — [L 7]
Steve Tupling MF
  • 1984–1987
  • 1992
 122 8 142 10 —
Eric Young MF 1974–1978 130 15 141 15  England youth [31]
Harry Bell HB 1955–1959 126 19 141 23 —
Dennis Wann MF 1976–1979 121 13 141 15 —
John Stone DF 1976–1979 120 14 141 15 —
John Borthwick FW 1989–1992 117 34 141 40 —
Alan Harding MF 1970–1973 129 37 140 38 —
Allan Gauden MF 1968–1972 127 39 140 43 —
Jimmy Seal FW 1976–1979 122 19 140 22 —
Billy Coulthard FB 1934–1937 119 0 137 0 —
Steve Mardenborough MF 1990–1993 123 19 136 21 —
Robbie Painter FW / MF 1993–1996 115 28 136 34 —
George McGeachie MF 1964–1966 119 9 135 10 —
Alan Roberts MF 1985–1988 119 19 135 19 —
Paul Heckingbottom DF 1999–2002 115 5 135 6 — [L 2]
Billy Eden FW
  • 1928–1929
  • 1932–1935
 119 31 134 36 —
Ian Clark MF 2001–2005 119 26 134 27 —
Peter Graham MF 1970–1973 119 44 131 45 —
Steve Holbrook MF 1972–1977 116 12 131 13 English schools [32]
Peter Robinson DF 1985–1988 112 5 130 7 England semi-pro [33]
Neil Maddison MF 2001–2006 115 4 129 4 —
John Stalker FW 1979–1982 116 36 128 38 —
Tom Halliday FB / HB 1929–1933 118 2 127 3 English schools [34]
Ron Ferguson FW 1976–1980 114 18 127 22 —
David Cork FW 1989–1992 105 23 127 31 —
Tommy Ward FW 1948–1953 119 32 125 34 —
Phil Owers GK
  • 1973–1975
  • 1976–1980
 114 0 125 0 —
Norman Lees DF 1971–1976 120 5 124 5 —
Mark Hooper FW 1924–1927 116 43 124 43 —
Jackie Maltby FW 1961–1965 114 32 124 36 —
Jerry Best FW 1933–1936 109 67 124 80 —
Ernie Devlin FB 1954–1957 115 1 122 1 —
Eddie Rowles FW 1975–1977 103 21 122 25 —
Don Burluraux MF 1972–1975 112 13 120 13 —
Pat Cuff GK 1980–1983 110 0 120 0 English schools [35]
John Towers FW / HB 1935–1946 107 22 120 27 —
Kevin Todd FW 1983–1985 102 23 120 26 — [L 7]
Bobby Baxter FW / FB
  • 1959–1961
  • 1969–1970
 106 31 119 33 —
Ray Yeoman MF 1964–1967 104 2 118 2 —
Alan White DF
  • 2007–2009
  • 2010
  • 2013–2015
 99 4 118 8 — [L 8]
Richard Hodgson MF 2000–2003 98 6 117 10 —
George Mulholland DF 1960–1963 106 0 116 0 —
Lee Ellison FW
  • 1990–1994
  • 1998–1999
 100 20 115 23 —
Cliff Mason FB 1952–1955 107 0 114 0 —
Barry Lyons MF 1976–1979 97 10 114 12 —
Andy Greig GK 1919–1924 95 0 114 0 —
Gordon Cattrell MF 1973–1976 102 5 112 6 English schools [36]
Martin Burleigh GK
  • 1974–1975
  • 1977–1979
 101 0 112 0 —
Darren Roberts FW 1996–1999 96 33 112 38 —
Ian Hamilton MF 1979–1982 103 19 110 19 —
Bobby Simpson FW 1936–1947 96 14 110 15 —
Maurice Wellock FW 1929–1932 104 71 109 74 English schools [37]
Jimmy McKinnell HB 1926–1929 101 1 109 1 —
Sandy Cochrane FW 1926–1929 100 24 109 25 —
Mark Convery MF
  • 2001–2005
  • 2009–2010
 97 3 109 4 —
Peter Johnson DF 1983–1985 89 2 108 2 —
Davie Brown FW 1923–1926 97 74 107 77 —
Steve Foster DF 2007–2010 92 2 107 3 —
Ray Spencer HB 1958–1961 97 5 106 7 English schools [38]
Andy Mitchell FW 1929–1932 99 32 105 33 —
Dickie Davis FW 1954–1957 93 32 105 35 English schools [39]
David Preece GK 1997–1999 91 0 104 0 —
Liam Hatch FW
  • 2008–2009
  • 2010–2012
  • 2014
 85 22 104 29 England semi-pro [L 9][40]
Dave Hawker MF
  • 1980–1982
  • 1984
 95 2 103 3 —
Frank Gray DF 1989–1992 85 8 103 9  Scotland [41]
Paul Arnison DF 2009–2012 89 3 101 4 —
Paul Emson MF 1988–1991 82 12 100 12 —

Players with fewer appearances

Main articles: List of Darlington F.C. players (25–99 appearances) and List of Darlington F.C. players (1–24 appearances)

Notes

  1. ^ a b Content sourced to the English National Football Archive because of typo or inconsistency in Tweddle (2000).

Player statistics include games played while on loan from:

  1. ^ a b Middlesbrough
  2. ^ a b Sunderland
  3. ^ York City
  4. ^ Bradford City
  5. ^ Blackburn Rovers
  6. ^ Ipswich Town
  7. ^ a b Newcastle United
  8. ^ Luton Town
  9. ^ Peterborough United

References

General sources

  • Joyce, Michael (2004). Football League Players' Records 1888 to 1939. Nottingham: SoccerData. ISBN 978-1-899468-67-6.
  • Tweddle, Frank (2000). The Definitive Darlington F.C. Nottingham: SoccerData. ISBN 978-1-899468-15-7.

Sources for appearances and goals

  1. ^ a b

Specific

  1. ^ a b c "History in brief". Darlington F.C. Archived from the original on 17 December 2010.
  2. ^ a b c "Darlington". Football Club History Database. Richard Rundle. Retrieved 7 August 2014.
  3. ^ a b Willis, Joe (21 June 2012). "Quakers lose FA appeal over drop into Northern League". Darlington & Stockton Times. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
  4. ^ Coney, Steven (4 April 2017). "Football Association approve Darlington's wishes to revert to historic Darlington FC name". The Non-League Paper. Retrieved 1 June 2017.
  5. ^ "Club honours and records". Darlington F.C. 7 July 2009. Archived from the original on 25 July 2011.
  6. ^ a b c "Darlington FC 125th Anniversary 1–41". The Northern Echo. Darlington. 25 April 2009. p. 2. Retrieved 31 December 2014 – via NewsBank.
  7. ^ "Darlington: Manager history". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 31 December 2014.
    "Darlington put squad up for free". BBC Sport. 8 May 2009. Retrieved 31 December 2014.
    "Darlington part company with manager Steve Staunton". BBC Sport. 21 March 2010. Retrieved 31 December 2014.
  8. ^ "Darlington v. Halifax Town". Yorkshire Post. 29 August 1921. p. 4.
  9. ^ Tweddle (2000), p. 23.
  10. ^ "Northern Section Cup Final. Stockport beaten". Manchester Guardian. 2 May 1934. p. 3. Then, when the referee had his watch in his hand, Cassidy dribbled through the Stockport defence, and he had no sooner shot the ball into the net than the whistle sounded for the finish of the match.
  11. ^ "Chelsea fight back". Manchester Guardian. 27 January 1958. p. 20.
    "Darlington's hour of glory". Manchester Guardian. 30 January 1958. p. 4.
    Amos, Mike (29 January 2008). "The day Greener's Darlington made FA Cup clowns of Chelsea". The Northern Echo. Darlington. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
  12. ^ "Darlington FC 125th Anniversary 42–83". The Northern Echo. Darlington. 25 April 2009. p. 4. Retrieved 31 December 2014 – via NewsBank.
  13. ^ a b c Stoddart, Craig (9 May 2011). "Senior moment means delight for Darlington". Darlington & Stockton Times. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
  14. ^ "Looking back at the past". Farewell to Feethams Online. Darlington Supporters Trust. Archived from the original on 18 January 2005.
    "Stars come out for party". Evening Gazette. Middlesbrough. 1 May 2003. Retrieved 9 March 2014.
  15. ^ a b "Darlington: 1946/47–1988/89 & 1990/91–2009/10". Post War English & Scottish Football League A–Z Player's Database. Neil Brown. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
  16. ^ Joyce (2004), pp. 6–291.
  17. ^ Brown, Steve (24 January 2012). "Future is bright at Darlington, says Craig Liddle". The Journal. Newcastle. Retrieved 12 November 2015.
  18. ^ Stoddart, Craig (17 May 2010). "Glory days so clear in Prudhoe's mind". The Northern Echo. Darlington. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
  19. ^ Wilkinson, Andrew (14 October 2010). "Chris Moore returns to Darlington". The Gazette. Middlesbrough. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
    Stoddart, Craig (4 June 2012). "Darlington make six new signings". The Northern Echo. Darlington. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
  20. ^ "Collett adapting slowly". The Northern Echo. Darlington. 12 August 2004. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
  21. ^ Stoddart, Craig (10 May 2010). "Darlington 0 Dagenham & Redbridge 2". The Northern Echo. Darlington. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
  22. ^ "Goalkeeper Sam Russell extends Darlington stay". BBC Sport. 9 June 2011. Retrieved 12 November 2015.
  23. ^ "David McLean". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  24. ^ "Ryan Valentine". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  25. ^ "Brian Atkinson". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  26. ^ "Colin Sinclair". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  27. ^ "Simon Shaw". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  28. ^ Metcalf, Rupert (3 March 1995). "England leave it late". The Independent. London. Retrieved 1 June 2017.
  29. ^ "Brian Albeson". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  30. ^ "Barry Conlon". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  31. ^ "Eric Young". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  32. ^ "Steve Holbrook". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  33. ^ "Peter Robinson". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  34. ^ Joyce (2004), p. 112.
  35. ^ "Pat Cuff". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  36. ^ "Gordon Cattrell". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  37. ^ Joyce (2004), p. 275.
  38. ^ "Ray Spencer". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  39. ^ "Dickie Davis". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  40. ^ "Liam Hatch". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
  41. ^ "Frank Gray". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
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