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Notts Alumni

43 articles in this category

  1. Joe Jones ·
    Whilst some players are able to drag a team to the next level, others are able to stop a team from falling into the previous one, inspiring their team mates and excelling where others are failing. A rare shining light during two of Notts County's darkest seasons, Glynn Hurst's goals helped keep the Magpies safe when they were at their lowest ebb, when "previous level" meant "non-league" and possibly "extinction". The Barnsley-born player, much like a lower-league Dimitar Berbatov, delighted
    • 2 comments
    • 5,149 views
  2. Joe Jones ·
    Born on the 12th October 1981 in Dublin, Ireland, Thompson began his football career with his local team River Valley Rangers, before joining Home Farm FC, a club famed for its illustrious youth system. During his time there, he was called up to the Irish Under-16 team, and helped the Boys in Green to a first UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship, defeating the mighty Italy in Scotland. At the age of seventeen, he signed for Forest, another team with a strong youth system, and b
    • 3 comments
    • 4,656 views
  3. Joe Jones ·
    Young people often follow in their parents' footsteps. A person's behaviour, opinions and actions will doubtlessly filter through to their children, and the same can be said about a person's career - as they have inside knowledge of their chosen field, this will influence the son or daughter, and the likelihood of them entering the same field is high. This is also the case in football, with professional players' kids often getting into the sport, where they can benefit from the parent's knowledg
    • 6 comments
    • 4,486 views
  4. Joe Jones ·
    The youth academy is many a football club's pride and joy. There is nothing quite like seeing local youngsters working their way through the ranks, from the youth team up into the first team. Notts County's academy has seen some good local players in the starting eleven in recent years, most recently Haydn Hollis, Fabian Speiss and Greg Tempest. One thing that Notts County cannot offer at the moment, however, is top flight or European football, and sometimes, an exceptionally talented playe
    • 4 comments
    • 3,763 views
  5. Joe Jones ·
    Notts County has seen plenty of star players grace the Meadow Lane pitch over the years, from the vintage icons of the early 20th century like Billy Flint through to the ones still professionally active such as Kasper Schmeichel and Alan Judge. However, one player is in the annals thanks to a prestigious statistic, confirming his status as one of the club's all-time greats for decades to come. That man is Les Bradd, Notts County's all-time leading goalscorer. Born in Buxton, Derbyshire
    • 5 comments
    • 4,160 views
  6. Joe Jones ·
    Every Notts fan, young and old, will know about, or at least have heard of, Jimmy Sirrel. The Glaswegian is undisputably the greatest manager in the history of Notts County. Once asked who was the best player in his legendary team of the early 1980s, he nominated his goalkeeper, giving the following reason: "In my opinion, the goalkeeper is the number one man in your team. You start with a point, and if he doesn't lose a goal, you get that. So if you score one, you've won." The goalkeeper h
    • 4 comments
    • 9,554 views
  7. Joe Jones ·
    The 1960s. A truly exciting time to be in Britain. After the post-war hardship and belt-tightening of the 1950s, the 60s were the decade of social change in Britain. Contraception became available, fashion became more risque, hedonism, optimism and the feeling of being able to change the world was on the agenda for many youngsters. On the footballing side, England officially became the greatest team in the world in 1966. George Best was thrilling crowds (and ladies) on and off the pitc
    • 5 comments
    • 5,352 views
  8. Joe Jones ·
    As we know all too well, a footballer's credentials for his club do not always translate into international recognition. And the England squad is littered with such examples over the years. Take Matt Le Tissier. One of the most talented players the nation has ever produced, he simply wasn't given the chance to do for the Three Lions what he did with Southampton. Likewise Chris Sutton, one half of the SAS strike partnership at Blackburn Rovers, was not really considered by England and only w
    • 5 comments
    • 9,882 views
  9. Joe Jones ·
    Much is being made recently of the Jamie Vardy phenomenon, that is looking at the non-league for players who are late bloomers and may just have what it takes to flourish at the top, but really it's something that has been going on for years and years. Take Andy Legg, for example. Born in Neath on 28 July 1966, he did not join the professional ranks until 1988, at the age of 22. As a teenager, Legg attended Glan Afan Comprehensive School in Port Talbot. After he left, he worked for the
    • 2 comments
    • 4,143 views
  10. Joe Jones ·
    Arthur Mann was born in Falkirk, Scotland on 23 January 1948 and began his footballing career at Heart of Midlothian in 1967. A versatile player who could line up in both defence and midfield, he played for Hearts in the 1968 Scottish Cup Final, although he ended up on the losing side as Dunfermline won 3-1. It was not long before his talents were spotted across the border and he moved to Manchester City for Β£65,000, then a record for a Scottish defender transferring to an English side
    • 2 comments
    • 5,457 views
  11. Chris ·
    Born on May 27, 1981 in Birmingham, England, Benjamin James Davies, a Welsh football coach and former professional player, played as a right back and midfielder between 2000 and 2021.Β  Davies began his career with the youth system at Stoke City aged 15 before joining Walsall's youth setup in 1999. He had spells with Kidderminster Harriers and Chester City, where he won a Football Conference championship medal in 2004.Β  During his time at Chester, he was made club captain.Β  Da
    • 15 comments
    • 3,228 views
  12. Joe Jones ·
    Football is a sport of many styles, many methods, many tactics, many demographics. It’s one of the most inclusive sports in the world, which adds to its global appeal. You can carve out a career if you’re a skinny 5’5’’ tactician and you can become a star if you’re a 6’6’’ giant built like a brick outhouse. You can be elegant and refined, or you can be uncompromising and sturdy. Lionel Messi, Nobby Styles, Yaya Toure and Peter Crouch have all been capped multiple times for their respec
    • 6 comments
    • 9,560 views
  13. Joe Jones ·
    The one-club man. Uncommon even in the olden days, such an entity is now rarer than a unicorn. Though there have been some in recent years - Jamie Carragher, Francesco Totti - they are a dying breed, although you do get some who spend 99 percent of their pro career at one club and then have one final payday elsewhere - nobody could begrudge Steven Gerrard his swansong at LA Galaxy, for example. One example of a fully-fledged bona fide one-club man at Notts County is Brian Stubbs. Born on 8
    • 3 comments
    • 6,132 views
  14. Joe Jones ·
    Football, as we all know, is the global game. From the beaches of Tahiti to the tundras of the Arctic circle, the language of football is understood everywhere. As a result, the number of air miles involved in the game is staggering, as players, teams and fans travel all around the world for the sake of football. A study by online moving platform Movinga ranked the footballers who have clocked up the most air miles in terms of transfers (and therefore, relocations), and a very familiar
    • 2 comments
    • 3,861 views
  15. Joe Jones ·
    As Notts County alumni go, David "Dave" Watson has to go down as one of the most well-travelled players with one of the most comprehensive careers to have donned the black and white stripes. Born in Stapleford on 5 October 1946, Watson worked as an electrician before getting his footballing break with the Magpies in 1966. Watson made 26 appearances for Notts over two seasons before being signed by Rotherham United, then under the management of future Scotland and Manchester United mana
    • 1 comment
    • 4,293 views
  16. Joe Jones ·
    When Don Masson was a child, he knew then that all he ever wanted to was to play football. Born on 26 August 1946 in the Aberdeenshire town of Banchory, he'd spend hours kicking a tennis ball against the wall and would refuse to go back to school if his mother did not play football with him when he came home for his lunch break. Masson's talent and hard work paid off when he was scouted by Middlesbrough, the 12-year-old kid impressing for his school football team. As he grew up he also
    • 4 comments
    • 5,731 views
  17. Joe Jones ·
    Born in Hayle, Cornwall, on 8 July 1896, Donald Cock learned the footballing ropes with youth club Camborne Boys Brigade and then played for the football team of Gwynne's Foundry, a London engineering business. The centre-forward hailed from a footballing family, being the younger brother of England international Jack Cock, while his other brother Herbert was also a footballer. As a man born in the late 1800s, Cock was unfortunate to come of age when the Great War broke out, and so his
    • 2 comments
    • 3,892 views
  18. Joe Jones ·
    A key member of the Notts County side that enjoyed a swift climb to the top flight of English football, Gary Lund was born on 13 September 1964 in Cleethorpes. He began his career at local club Grimsby Town and made his debut in September 1983, shortly after his 19th birthday, against Barnsley. Reminiscing about his debut, the forwardΒ  told independent GTFC site The Fishy: "I replaced the injured Kevin Drinkell (I think) and came close to scoring when I hit the bar. I was substituted w
    • 4 comments
    • 6,116 views
  19. Joe Jones ·
    Born in the Maryhill area of Glasgow on 24 September 1970, Gary McSwegan came through the ranks at Rangers, one of the city's - and indeed the country's - top clubs, joining as a child and becoming a professional in 1986, aged just 16. Although McSwegan struggled for game time at Ibrox, he nonetheless helped the club to one of its standout results of its history, scoring against Marseille - one of the marquee European clubs at the time - in the 1992-93 Champions League, a trophy which the F
    • 4 comments
    • 5,526 views
  20. Joe Jones ·
    Born in Kilmarnock on 28 December 1954, Iain McCulloch began his footballing journey by coming through the ranks at local club Hurlford United. He impressed with the Ford and in 1973 was scouted and signed by the big club in the region, Kilmarnock FC, where he spent five years. A versatile player who could play on the wing and up front, he made 115 appearances and scored 14 goals for Killie. In April 1978, McCulloch became Notts County's then record signing when the Magpies parted ways
    • 1 comment
    • 8,403 views
  21. Chris ·
    Born on October 22, 1970, in Barking, England, Ian Richardson was a former professional footballer and caretaker manager.Β  He played as a midfielder or centre-half in 260 games in the Football League for Birmingham City and Notts County, where he spent most of his professional career. Before embarking on his football career, Richardson worked as a meat-porter at Smithfield Market in London, where he learned to work hard and work well with others.Β  He played football part-time, showca
    • 15 comments
    • 3,893 views
  22. Joe Jones ·
    Alongside perhaps film and music, football is the biggest entertainment industry in the world. Megastars such as Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar are known across the planet, with replica t-shirts sporting their names worn in every nation. It wasn't always like this, however. Just a few decades ago, many of the best footballers in the world often had second jobs to make ends meet, and they could go down the local pub without much of a fuss being made. John "Jackie" Sewell was
    • 3 comments
    • 3,220 views

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