Sad Loss (Part Two)

Very sadly, we are living in a time when hearing about deaths and reading obituaries during a global pandemic has become all too commonplace.

Amongst the deaths in 2020 (not all caused by coronavirus of course) have been several footballers who have graced the Southern League.

Liverpool-born FRED DAVIES had a fine playing career as a goalkeeper with Wolves, Cardiff City and Bournemouth.

He stayed in football after retirement, assisting John Bond at Bournemouth, Swansea, Birmingham and Shrewsbury.

But he is best remembered for the success he had late in his career when, at 54, he succeeded Bond at Shrewsbury, who then won the 1993/94 Division Three title in his first season.

Davies (right) was initially installed as caretaker boss in August 1993 by then Town chairman Ray Bailey, who did not want to tempt fate by announcing that he had made the appointment more permanent.

He did not officially confirm Davies' appointment until Town had beaten Chester to the title in April 1994, putting Davies among the longest-serving and most successful caretaker bosses in football history.

Although Shrewsbury have been promoted three times since, their 1994 triumph was only the club's second and most recent title.

Davies also took Town to Wembley for the first time in April 1996, when Shrewsbury lost 2-1 to Rotherham United in the Auto Windscreens Shield final.

But he was sacked following relegation back to English football's fourth tier in May 1997, after which he spent two seasons in charge of Southern League Weymouth.

Davies managed the Terras between 1997 and 1999 and successfully guided the club to the Division One South title in the 1997/98 season.

He died in September after being diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis.

TOMMY ROBSON is best remembered for playing over 500 times for Peterborough United but is also recalled with fondness for his time spent with Nuneaton Borough and Stamford in non-League football.

He was born in Gateshead and played for Newcastle United as a junior but was released in 1959 and joined Northampton Town as a 15-year-old.

He went on to play 74 times for the Cobblers, scoring 20 goals from the left wing.

Robson (left), who represented England at youth level, helped Northampton to win promotion to the First Division and ended that campaign as joint top scorer for the Cobblers.

The following season he joined Chelsea for £30,000 but never settled at the West London club due to ill health.

In 1967 he re-joined Newcastle and he appeared in most of the Magpies’ games during the 1967/68 season.

After 48 games for the Geordies, his next stop was Peterborough, where he spent 13 seasons, becoming the club's record appearance maker, playing in 559 competitive games.

He left League football in the summer of 1981 and was signed by his former Northampton team-mate Graham Carr for Nuneaton Borough.

They had just been relegated from the Alliance Premier League back into the Southern League.

But with Robson`s help, they won the Southern League Midland title and returned to the APL at the first attempt, with Robson scoring 17 league goals and being named player of the year by supporters at the age of 38.

He left Manor Park the following season and continued to play by turning out for then-United Counties League side Stamford.

And in 1984, two months short of his 40th birthday, he helped the Daniels to a second FA Vase Final appearance at Wembley – four years since their first.

However, this time they were defeated 3-2 by Essex Senior League side Stansted.

He was still playing in the Peterborough League for Brotherhoods in his 50s and he would regularly turn out for Posh legends.

And in October 2008, Robson became the first-ever inductee to the Peterborough United `Hall of Fame`.

But in September 2019, he was diagnosed with motor neurone disease and he died in October 2020, aged 76.

The passing of BRIAN O`DONNELL (right) was recently announced towards the early part of the month at just 63 years of age after a battle with cancer.

Glasgow-born, his football career began at the opposite end of Great Britain, with Bournemouth.

He was released at the end of his apprenticeship though and was signed by Bristol Rovers in 1976.

But again, he failed to make an appearance for the Gas and moved `down under` to Australia and played for Blacktown City Demons for almost 5 years.

In January 1982, he returned to England and re-joined Bournemouth, this time managing 14 League appearances before joining Torquay United in October 1982.

He played 19 times for the Gulls before returning to Australia and another stint with Blacktown City, twice being named player of the year.

He returned to England in 1986 and embarked on his non-League travels as a player with the likes of Bath City, Basingstoke Town, Bashley, Dorchester Town, Poole Town and Salisbury City, all mainly in the Southern League

After retiring from playing, he managed Bournemouth Sports from 1993 to 1999, twice finishing runners-up in the Dorset Combination - the first of those in a thrilling race in 1995 when they were 8 points clear at the top after their final game but could only watch on as Hamworthy Engineering won their three games in hand to pip them to the title.

He went on to manage Bournemouth Poppies, Poole Town, Dorchester Town and Frome Town.

More latterly he was director of football and then a board member at Dorchester.

RICHIE BARKER`S passing at the age of 80 was announced in October.

Barker`s playing days began in the Southern League Division One with Burton Albion in 1960.

He spent seven years with the Brewers, helping them to promotion to the Premier Division, scoring a club record 159 goals before joining Derby County in 1967 as one of Brian Clough's first signings, having played with and for Clough`s assistant Peter Taylor at Burton.

He played 31 times in 1967/68 scoring 12 goals and after scoring just twice in 14 in 1968/69 he was sold to Notts County in December 1968.

He enjoyed a far more successful career with the Magpies, scoring 20 goals in 1969/70 and 13 in 1970/71 helping Jimmy Sirrel's side win the Fourth Division title.

After falling out of favour at Meadow Lane he ended his playing career with a season at Peterborough United before moving into coaching.

Barker enjoyed a long and successful coaching and managerial career which began with Shrewsbury Town working alongside his former Derby team-mate Alan Durban.

Durban left for Stoke City in December 1978 and Barker took over as manager for nine months before taking up the position of assistant manager to John Barnwell at Wolverhampton Wanderers, who he helped to lift the League Cup in 1980.

In the summer of 1981 Durban left for Sunderland and he recommended Barker for the job and the Stoke board duly went with his advice and appointed Barker.

However, it was a tough season for Stoke as they battled against relegation finishing just two places above the drop zone and Barker was eventually sacked in December 1983.

He spent a year out of the game before making a return to former club Notts County and then managed Greek side Ethnikos Piraeus and Egyptian giants Zamalek with whom he helped win the African Cup of Champions Clubs in 1986.

He returned to England and became assistant manager at Sheffield Wednesday and later helped his former player Paul Bracewell at Halifax Town.

In addition, he served West Bromwich Albion as chief scout.

HUGH MORROW was another to recently die at the age of 90.

He was a winger who was well-respected wherever he played.

Born in Larne, Northern Ireland, he started out with West Bromwich Albion.

He progressed to make 5 first-team appearances for the then-Second Division Baggies, scoring 2 goals.

He joined Lockheed Leamington before National Service interrupted his career and then, in the summer of 1952, whilst still in the RAF, he signed for Nuneaton Borough, then in the Birmingham League.

After moving to the Birmingham League, Morrow scored 10 goals in 1952/53 and then an outstanding 22 in 53/54.

However, at the start of the 1954/55 season, Nuneaton suffered a blow when Morrow re-joined Leamington.

In the summer of 1956, Morrow joined Third Division (South) side Northampton Town.

He made 30 appearances for the Cobblers, scoring 3 goals, but was one of several players who were enticed to neighbouring Southern League Premier Division club Kettering Town, who had won the championship in 56/57 under the legendary Tommy Lawton.

The former England centre-forward had left to manage Notts County and Morrow was signed by his replacement Harold Mather, who was subsequently replaced by another ex-England star, Jack Froggatt, in January 1958.

Morrow was in the Poppies team that were relegated in 1959/60 and the side that won an immediate return the following season.

Morrow joined then-West Midlands (Regional) League side Tamworth at the start of the 1966/67 season as a player and was appointed player-manager the following season after the Lambs had reached the First Round proper of the FA Cup for the first time.

His greatest achievement was taking the club to the Second Round Proper of the FA Cup with a 2-1 win over Torquay United at The Lamb which was followed by defeat at of Gillingham.

He was sacked as manager in October 1971 after 314 games.

Although TOMMY CARROLL`S (left) career began back in his homeland of Ireland with Shelbourne, it wasn`t until he moved to England in 1964 to sign for Southern League Premier Division club Cambridge City that he made the step up in to the Football League.

He helped City finish in the top ten in successive seasons and had the unusual honour of being selected to play for the Republic of Ireland whilst being with a non-League club in the first ever under-23 game in 1966.

In the summer of 1966, Bill McGarry, then-manager of Second Division Ipswich Town, paid £1,500 to take him away from Milton Road.

He helped the Tractor Boys win promotion to the First Division and played 117 times before falling out with new manager Bobby Robson and being sold to Birmingham City in 1971 for £20,000.

By this time, the right-back had already been capped several times for Ireland as a full international, making it a full set as he was also capped as an amateur.

He made 38 appearances for Birmingham and took his cap-tally to 17, before returning `home` to manage his former club Shelbourne for most of the 1975/76 season.

In December 1976 he was appointed player-manager of Athlone Town in succession to his former Birmingham team-mate Trevor Hockey.

He died in August aged 77 in Dublin, just before his 78th birthday.

ROGER THORNDALE died in May at the age of 80.

He is Cheltenham Town's all-time record appearance holder, having made over 700 appearances for the Robins between 1960 and 1975.

The right-back originally joined then-Southern League club Cheltenham as a 15-year-old in 1955 and finally left Whaddon Road in the mid-1980s having managed the reserve team for several seasons and was later made a life vice-president.

Thorndale represented Gloucestershire under-18s before signing for Cheltenham as a `professional` in 1958.

He made his first-team debut against Kettering Town in the Southern League Premier Division in April 1960 and the following season became a first-team regular.

He was a member of the team that were relegated in 61/62 and the side that won promotion back to the Premier Division in 63/64.

He enjoyed two benefit matches for the club, the first against Derby County in 1966 and the second against Hereford United in 1974.

Thorndale received offers to join other clubs, but he stayed loyal with Cheltenham.

He was appointed player-manager of the reserves when they entered the West Midlands (Regional) League in 1975 and continued to serve the club for a number of years, taking charge of the first team as caretaker manager for two games in season 1981/82.