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{{short description|English footballer}}
{{Infobox football biography 2
{{Use British English|date=July 2013}}
| playername = Geoff Smith
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2023}}
{{Infobox football biography
| name = Geoff Smith
| image =
| image =
| fullname = Geoffrey Smith
| fullname = Geoffrey Smith
| dateofbirth = {{birth date|1928|3|14|df=y}}
| birth_date = {{birth date|1928|3|14|df=y}}
| cityofbirth = [[Cottingley, Bradford|Cottingley]]
| birth_place = [[Cottingley, Bradford]], England
| death_date = {{death date and age|2013|10|19|1928|3|14|df=y}}
| countryofbirth = [[England]]
| death_place = [[Keighley]], England
| height =
| height =
| position = [[Goalkeeper (association football)|Goalkeeper]]
| position = [[Goalkeeper (association football)|Goalkeeper]]
| youthyears1 = | youthclubs1 = St Anne's Church
| youthyears1 = | youthclubs1 = St Anne's Church
| youthyears2 = | youthclubs2 = Keighley Central Club
| youthyears2 = | youthclubs2 = Keighley Central Club
| years1 = | clubs1 = [[Nelson F.C.|Nelson]] | caps1 = | goals1 =
| years1 = | clubs1 = [[Nelson F.C.|Nelson]] | caps1 = | goals1 =
| years2 = | clubs2 = [[Rossendale United F.C.|Rossendale United]] | caps2 = | goals2 =
| years2 = | clubs2 = [[Rossendale United F.C.|Rossendale United]] | caps2 = | goals2 =
| years3 = 1952–1959 | clubs3 = [[Bradford City A.F.C.|Bradford City]] | caps3 = 253 | goals3 = 0
| years3 = 1952–1959 | clubs3 = [[Bradford City A.F.C.|Bradford City]] | caps3 = 253 | goals3 = 0
}}
}}
'''Geoffrey "Geoff" Smith''' (born 14 March 1928) is an [[England|English]] former professional [[association football|footballer]] who played 253 league games for [[Bradford City A.F.C.|Bradford City]] as a [[Goalkeeper (association football)|goalkeeper]], including 200 consecutive appearances. When he retired, he held club records for the number of [[shutout#Association football|clean sheets]] in a season and total clean sheets.
'''Geoffrey Smith''' (14 March 1928 – 19 October 2013) was an English professional [[association football|footballer]] who played 253 league games for [[Bradford City A.F.C.|Bradford City]] as a [[Goalkeeper (association football)|goalkeeper]], including 200 consecutive appearances. When he retired, he held club records for the number of [[shutout#Association football|clean sheets]] in a season and total clean sheets.


Smith was born in [[Cottingley, Bradford]] and moved to nearby [[Keighley]]. His first trial at Bradford City was unsuccessful but after playing amateur football for [[Lancashire Combination|Lancashire Combination League]] sides [[Nelson F.C.|Nelson]] and [[Rossendale United F.C.|Rossendale United]], he was signed by Bradford's new manager [[Ivor Powell]] in 1952. He played seven seasons with City playing in every league game between the final game of the [[1953–54 in English football|1953–54 season]] and October 1958. He eventually retired in 1959. After his footbll career, Smith and his wife ran two different off-licences for the remainder of their working life.
Smith was born in [[Cottingley, Bradford]], [[West Riding of Yorkshire]], moved to nearby [[Keighley]] with his family before serving in [[Malayan Union|Malaya]] in the British Army at the end of his teens. His first trial at Bradford City was unsuccessful but after playing amateur football for [[Lancashire Combination|Lancashire Combination League]] sides [[Nelson F.C.|Nelson]] and [[Rossendale United F.C.|Rossendale United]], he was signed by Bradford's new manager [[Ivor Powell]] in 1952. He was at Bradford City for seven seasons and played in every league game between the final match of the [[1953–54 in English football|1953–54 season]] and October 1958. He eventually retired in 1959. After his football career, Smith and his wife ran two different off-licences for the remainder of their working life.


==Early life==
==Early life==
Smith was born in [[Cottingley, Bradford|Cottingley]] on the outskirts of [[Bradford]], [[England]] on 14 March 1928. He had a brother Jack.<ref name="markham">{{cite book |last=Markham |first=David |title=The legends of Bradford City |publisher=Breedon Books Sport |year=2007 |pages=174–175 |isbn=978-1-85983-572-2}}</ref> During his childhood, their family moved to [[Keighley]], where Smith first played [[association football|football]] for St Anne's Church. Aged 18, Smith was called up to the army in 1946. He served in an infantry united in [[Malaya]] for two years until he returned to Keighley.<ref name="Keeper's catch"/>
Smith was born in [[Cottingley, Bradford|Cottingley]] on the outskirts of [[Bradford]], [[West Riding of Yorkshire]], on 14 March 1928. He had a brother Jack<ref name="markham">{{Harvnb|Markham|2007|pages=174–175}}</ref> and during their childhood, the Smith family moved to [[Keighley]], where Smith first played [[association football|football]] for St Anne's Church. At the age of 18, Smith was called up to the army. He served in an infantry unit in [[Malayan Union|Malaya]] for two years before he returned to Keighley.<ref name="Keeper's catch"/>


==Football career==
==Football career==
===Amateur career===
Smith resumed his football career back at home with Keighley Central Club. A [[Goalkeeper (association football)|goalkeeper]], he was still playing for Keighley Central in 1948, when he was offered a trial with his local side [[Bradford City A.F.C.|Bradford City]], who were at the time a [[Football League Third Division North|Third Division North]] side. His trial was unsuccesful and he was released.<ref name="frost">{{cite book |last=Frost |first=Terry |title=Bradford City A Complete Record 1903–1988 |publisher=Breedon Books Sport |year=1988 |pages=139 |isbn=0907969380}}</ref> Instead, Smith joined [[Lancashire Combination|Lancashire Combination League]] side [[Nelson F.C.|Nelson]].<ref name="markham"/><ref name="frost"/> He was still living in Keighley, and travelled to Nelson by bus with his brother Jack, who had previously played for [[Leeds United A.F.C.|Leeds United]] but had been released when [[Frank Buckley (footballer)|Major Frank Buckley]] took over as manager. Smith played for Nelson for three years but initially gave up the game when the club could no longer afford to pay him. He was not long out of the game before he signed [[Rossendale United F.C.|Rossendale United]], a member of the Lancashire Combination's Second Division. Smith said the journey by bus was a difficult one so he bought a motorbike. However, like Nelson, Rossendale could not afford to pay him, and after another two years, Smith gave up the game once again.<ref name="markham"/>


===Bradford City===
===Early career===
Smith resumed his football career back at home with Keighley Central Club. A [[Goalkeeper (association football)|goalkeeper]], he was still playing for Keighley Central in 1948 when he was offered a trial with his local [[Football League]] side [[Bradford City A.F.C.|Bradford City]], who were at the time in the [[Football League Third Division North|Third Division North]]. His trial was unsuccessful and he was released.<ref name="frost">{{Harvnb|Frost|1988|page=139}}</ref> Instead, Smith joined [[Lancashire Combination|Lancashire Combination League]] side [[Nelson F.C.|Nelson]].<ref name="markham"/><ref name="frost"/> He was still living in Keighley, and travelled to Nelson by bus with his brother Jack, who had previously played for [[Leeds United F.C.|Leeds United]] but had been released when [[Frank Buckley (footballer)|Major Frank Buckley]] took over as manager and instead also joined Nelson.<ref name="markham"/> Smith played for Nelson for three years<ref name="markham"/> at a time when the club were competing at the top of the Lancashire Combination and sought re-election back into the Football League.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nelsonfc.co.uk/feat/ed21/nelson_fc_19311982_220500/index.shtml |title=Nelson FC: 1931–1982 |date=17 May 2005 |access-date=8 September 2010 |publisher=Nelson F.C. |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716084847/http://www.nelsonfc.co.uk/feat/ed21/nelson_fc_19311982_220500/index.shtml |archive-date=16 July 2011 }}</ref> However, Smith initially gave up the game when Nelson could no longer afford to pay him. He was not long out of the game before he signed [[Rossendale United F.C.|Rossendale United]], a member of the Lancashire Combination's Second Division. Smith said the journey by bus was a difficult one so he bought a motorbike. However, like Nelson, Rossendale could not afford to pay him, and after another two years, Smith gave up the game once again.<ref name="markham"/>
In December 1952, new Bradford City manager [[Ivor Powell]] invited Smith back to City for another trial and played for the reserves against [[Gainsborough Trinity F.C.|Gainsborough Trinity]] and [[Notts County F.C.|Notts County]].<ref name="markham"/><ref name="frost"/> This time, Smith's trial was successful and Bradford City – still a Third Division North side – signed him on amateur forms.<ref name="frost"/> He had played only seven games for the reserves in the [[Midland Football League|Midland League]] and was still unpaid when Smith was given his first-team debut against [[Scunthorpe United F.C.|Scunthorpe United]] on 17 January 1953 replacing [[Brendan McManus]].<ref name="markham"/><ref name="frost"/> He remained in the side for the remainder of the season, playing 19 games, before he signed part-time professional terms in July 1953,<ref name="frost"/> having previously worked part-time as a lorry driver. He had been earning [[pound sterling|£]]4 10[[Shilling (United Kingdom)|s]] (£4.50) per week as a lorry driver, but the club did not want him driving around the country and offered him £10 per week plus a £4 win bonus. To supplement his playing contract, the club gave Smith a job looking after their [[Valley Parade]] ground.<ref name="markham"/>


===Bradford City===
During the mid-season break, McManus left City to join [[Frickley Athletic F.C.|Frickley Athletic]]. Instead, Powell signed [[Jimmy Gooch]] from [[Preston North End F.C.|Preston North End]] as his replacement. Gooch took over as first-choice goalkeeper at the start of the [[1953-54 in English football|1953–54 season]] playing the first 20 games.<ref name="markham"/> Smith was called up to the first-team in November for a 1–1 draw with [[Hartlepool United F.C.|Hartlepools United]].<ref name="frost 248">{{cite book |last=Frost |title=Bradford City A Complete Record 1903–1988 |pages=248–249}}</ref> He kept his place in the side and played all but two games during the remainder of the season, coming back into the team for the final league game of the season against [[Gateshead F.C.|Gateshead]] as City finished fifth.<ref name="markham"/><ref name="frost 248"/>
In December 1952, on the advice of Smith's friend Roy Brook, who was in Bradford's second team, new Bradford City manager [[Ivor Powell]] invited Smith back to City for another trial and he played for the reserves against [[Gainsborough Trinity F.C.|Gainsborough Trinity]] and [[Notts County F.C.|Notts County]].<ref name="markham"/><ref name="frost"/> This time, Smith's trial was successful and Bradford City – still a Third Division North side – signed him on amateur forms.<ref name="frost"/> Smith had played only seven games for the reserves in the [[Midland Football League (1889)|Midland League]] and was still unpaid when he was given his first-team debut against [[Scunthorpe United F.C.|Scunthorpe United]] on 17 January 1953 coming into the side for [[Brendan McManus]],<ref name="markham"/><ref name="frost"/> whom Smith said was "having a rough time".<ref name="markham"/> It was not a good start for Smith, with City losing 4–0, but he followed this with a [[shutout#Association football|clean sheet]] in his second game against [[Stockport County F.C.|Stockport County]]<ref>{{Harvnb|Frost|1988|pages=246–247}}</ref> and kept his place in the side for the remainder of the season, playing 19 games, before he signed part-time professional terms in July 1953.<ref name="frost"/> He had previously worked part-time as a lorry driver, earning £4 10s (£4.50) working 48 hours per week as a lorry driver, but the club did not want him driving around the country and offered him £10 per week plus a £4 win bonus. To supplement his playing contract, the club gave Smith a job looking after their [[Valley Parade]] ground.<ref name="markham"/>


During the mid-season break, McManus left City to join [[Frickley Athletic F.C.|Frickley Athletic]]. Instead, Powell signed [[Jimmy Gooch (footballer)|Jimmy Gooch]] from [[Preston North End F.C.|Preston North End]] as his replacement. Gooch, aged 32, was more experienced than Smith and so took over as first-choice goalkeeper at the start of the [[1953–54 in English football|1953–54 season]] playing the first 20 games.<ref name="markham"/> Smith was called up to the first-team in November for a 1–1 draw with [[Hartlepool United F.C.|Hartlepools United]].<ref name="frost 248">{{Harvnb|Frost|1988|pages=248–249}}</ref> He remained in the side and played all but two games for the rest of the season, coming back into the team for the final league game of the season against [[Gateshead F.C.|Gateshead]] as City finished fifth.<ref name="markham"/><ref name="frost 248"/> He kept 11 clean sheets, which included equalling a club best five in consecutive matches as City won a record nine straight games,<ref name="frost 248"/><ref>{{Harvnb|Frost|1988|page=350}}</ref> during which they conceded just one goal.<ref name="frost 248"/>
Gooch left City after just one season to join [[Watford F.C.|Watford]] leaving Smith to take over the "number one" shirt.<ref name="markham"/> For the next four seasons, Smith, who became a full-time professional, played every single first-team game for City which eventually led to him playing 200 consecutive league appearances<ref name="frost"/> – it was a run that coincided with one of 246 league and [[FA Cup]] games by [[defender (football)#Full back|full back]] [[George Mulholland (footballer)|George Mulholland]].<ref name="markham">{{cite book |last=Markham |title=The legends of Bradford City |page=137}}</ref> However, for three seasons, City could not match the fifth place gained in 1953–54 and they remained a Third Division North side.<ref>{{cite book |last=Frost |title=Bradford City A Complete Record 1903–1988 |pages=250–257}}</ref> In 1957–58, under Powell's replacement as manager [[Peter Jackson (footballer born 1905)|Peter Jackson]], City came third place but missed out on the title by nine points to Scunthorpe United.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Football League 1988–1988 The Official Illustrated History |first=Bryon |last=Butler |publisher=Macdonald Queen Anne Press |date=1987 |isbn=0-356-15072-0 |page=11}}</ref> During the season, Smith set a new club record of 18 [[shutout#Association football|clean sheets]], one which was later equalled by Steve Smith and [[Eric McManus]].<ref name="frost"/>


Gooch left City after just one season to join [[Watford F.C.|Watford]] leaving Smith to take over the "number one" shirt.<ref name="markham"/> For the next four seasons, Smith, who became a full-time professional, played every single first-team game for City which eventually led to him making 200 consecutive league appearances<ref name="frost"/> – it was a run that coincided with one of 246 league and [[FA Cup]] games by [[Defender (association football)#Full back|full back]] [[George Mulholland (footballer)|George Mulholland]].<ref>{{Harvnb|Markham|2007|page=137}}</ref> However, for three seasons, City could not match the fifth place gained in 1953–54 and they remained a Third Division North side.<ref>{{Harvnb|Frost|1988|pages=250–257}}</ref> In 1957–58, under Powell's replacement as manager [[Peter Jackson (footballer born 1905)|Peter Jackson]], City finished in third place but missed out on the title by nine points to Scunthorpe United.<ref>{{Harvnb|Butler|1987|page=11}}</ref> During the season, Smith set a new club record of 18 clean sheets, one which was later equalled by [[Steve Smith (footballer born 1957)|Steve Smith]] and [[Eric McManus]].<ref name="frost"/>
The following season, Smith's run of consecutive games came to an end against [[Reading F.C.|Reading]] in October 1958.<ref name="frost"/> His number of consecutive appearances is third on the club's list behind Mulholland's 231 games and [[Charlie Bicknell]].<ref name="frost 377">{{cite book |last=Frost |title=Bradford City A Complete Record 1903–1988 |page=377}}</ref> He played 26 further games in the [[1958–59 in English football|1958–59 season]], which proved to be his final season for City,<ref name="frost"/> as the club finished 11th in the newy-formed [[Football League Third Division|Third Division]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Frost |title=Bradford City A Complete Record 1903–1988 |pages=258–259}}</ref> When the season finished, he had played a total of 270 games for the club, 253 of which came in the league,<ref name="frost"/> keeping a club record 70 clean sheets.<ref name="markham"/><ref name="frost 377"/> His record stood until it was broken by [[Paul Tomlinson]] in the 1990s.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bradfordcityfc.premiumtv.co.uk/page/BantamsGreats/0,,10266~687443,00.html |title=Ivor Powell – Manager 1952–1955 |accessdate=2008-01-05 |publisher=Bradford City A.F.C.}}</ref> When Smith retired, he and Mulholland, the club granted them each a benefit sum of money rather than the proceeds of a special match.<ref name="frost"/>


The following season, Smith's run of consecutive games came to an end against [[Reading F.C.|Reading]] in October 1958,<ref name="frost"/> with Jim McCusker coming into the side to replace him for two games.<ref name="frost 258">{{Harvnb|Frost|1988|pages=258–259}}</ref> Smith's number of consecutive appearances is third on the club's list behind Mulholland's 231 games and [[Charlie Bicknell (footballer)|Charlie Bicknell]].<ref name="frost 377">{{Harvnb|Frost|1988|page=377}}</ref> He played 26 further games in the [[1958–59 in English football|1958–59 season]],<ref name="frost"/> in which the club finished 11th in the newly formed [[Football League Third Division|Third Division]].<ref name="frost 258"/> The season proved to be Smith's final season for City as he decided to retire aged 31.<ref name="frost"/> His last game was a 2–1 defeat, once again versus Reading, on 28 February 1959.<ref name="frost 258"/> When the season finished, Smith had played a total of 270 games for the club, 253 of which came in the league,<ref name="frost"/> keeping a club record 70 clean sheets.<ref name="markham"/><ref name="frost 377"/> His record stood until it was broken by [[Paul Tomlinson]] in the 1990s.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bradfordcityfc.co.uk/page/BantamsGreats/0,,10266~687443,00.html |title=Ivor Powell – Manager 1952–1955 |access-date=28 August 2010 |publisher=Bradford City A.F.C. |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100914200242/http://www.bradfordcityfc.co.uk/page/BantamsGreats/0%2C%2C10266~687443%2C00.html |archive-date=14 September 2010 }}</ref> When Smith retired, the club granted him and Mulholland each a sum of money rather than the proceeds of a [[Benefit (sports)|benefit match]].<ref name="frost"/>
After his career, Smith said of his first manager Powell: "He was a good player, but a hard task master and used to sort you out on the field if there was anything wrong. Unfortunately he expected you to be the same standard as him."<ref name="markham"/>


==Personal life==
==Personal life==
Smith met his wife Margaret at a ceilidh at St Anne's Social Club, in Keighley, in 1944, when they were both teenagers. They married after Smith returned from his two years in the army on 26 August 1950 at Holy Trinity Church, in Keighley. Together, they had two daughters.<ref name="Keeper's catch">{{cite news |url=http://www.keighleynews.co.uk/news/8353449.Keeper___s_catch_has_lasted_for_60_years/ |title=Keeper's catch has lasted for 60 years |date=2010-08-26 |accessdate=2010-08-28 |publisher=''Keighley News'' |first=Miran |last=Rahman}}</ref> Smith had been a motor mechanic before his football career, and after he retired from playing, he and his wife ran an off-licence store in [[Cross Roads, West Yorkshire|Cross Roads]] for 25 years and a newsagents in Keighley for another five years.<ref name="Keeper's catch"/>
Smith met his wife Margaret at a ceilidh at St Anne's Social Club, in Keighley, in 1944, when they were both teenagers. They married after Smith returned from his two years in the army on 26 August 1950 at Holy Trinity Church, in Keighley. Together, they had two daughters.<ref name="Keeper's catch">{{cite news |url=http://www.keighleynews.co.uk/news/8353449.Keeper___s_catch_has_lasted_for_60_years/ |title=Keeper's catch has lasted for 60 years |date=26 August 2010 |access-date=28 August 2010 |newspaper=Keighley News |first=Miran |last=Rahman}}</ref> Smith had been a motor mechanic before his football career, and after he retired from playing, he and his wife ran an off-licence store in [[Cross Roads, West Yorkshire|Cross Roads]] for 25 years and a newsagents in Keighley for another five years. Smith played [[bowls]] and golf in his retirement,<ref name="Keeper's catch"/> playing for Skipton Vets in the former sport.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/archive/2003/08/08/Bradford+District+Archive/8011074.Bowls__Dowgillsigns_in_bumper_week/ |title=Bowls: Dowgillsigns in bumper week |date=8 August 2003 |access-date=26 November 2011 |newspaper=Telegraph & Argus}}</ref>

Smith died on 19 October 2013.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thetelegraphandargus.co.uk/sport/sportbcfc/10756545.Smith_was_king_of_Bradford_City_clean_sheets/|title=Geoff Smith was king of Bradford City clean sheets|date=23 October 2013|access-date=23 October 2013|author=Miran Rahman|publisher=Telegraph & Argus}}</ref>


==Career statistics==
==Career statistics==
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|-
|-
!rowspan="2"|Club
!rowspan="2"|Club
!rowspan="2"|Division
!rowspan="2"|Season
!rowspan="2"|Season
!colspan="2"|League
!colspan="2"|League
!colspan="2"|FA Cup
!colspan="2"|[[FA Cup]]
!colspan="2"|Total
!colspan="2"|Total
|-
|-
Line 51: Line 57:
|-
|-
|valign="center"|'''[[Nelson F.C.|Nelson]]'''
|valign="center"|'''[[Nelson F.C.|Nelson]]'''
|[[Lancashire Combination]]
|
|
|||||||||||
|||||||||||
|-
|-
|valign="center"|'''[[Rossendale United F.C.|Rossendale United]]'''
|valign="center"|'''[[Rossendale United F.C.|Rossendale United]]'''
|[[Lancashire Combination|Lancashire Combination Second Division]]
|
|
|||||||||||
|||||||||||
|-
|-
|rowspan="8" valign="center"|'''[[Bradford City A.F.C.|Bradford City]]'''
|rowspan="8" valign="center"|'''[[Bradford City A.F.C.|Bradford City]]'''<ref name="frost"/>
|rowspan="6" valign="center"|[[Football League Third Division North|Third Division North]]
|1952–53
|1952–53
|19||0||0||0||19||0
|19||0||0||0||19||0
Line 77: Line 86:
|46||0||4||0||50||0
|46||0||4||0||50||0
|-
|-
|[[Football League Third Division|Third Division]]
|1958–59
|1958–59
|26||0||4||0||30||0
|26||0||4||0||30||0
|-
|-
!Total
!colspan="2"|Total
!253!!0!!17!!0!!270!!0
!253!!0!!17!!0!!270!!0
|-
|-
! colspan="2" | Career totals
!colspan="3"|Career totals
!253!!0!!17!!0!!270!!0
!253!!0!!17!!0!!270!!0
|}
|}
Line 89: Line 99:
==References==
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{reflist}}

;Bibliography
{{Refbegin}}
*{{citation |title=The Football League 1888–1988 The Official Illustrated History |first=Bryon |last=Butler |publisher=Macdonald Queen Anne Press |year=1987 |isbn=0-356-15072-0}}
*{{citation |last=Frost |first=Terry |title=Bradford City A Complete Record 1903–1988 |publisher=Breedon Books Sport |year=1988 |isbn=0-907969-38-0}}
*{{citation |last=Markham |first=David |title=The legends of Bradford City |publisher=Breedon Books Sport |year=2007 |isbn=978-1-85983-572-2}}
{{Refend}}

{{Good article}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Geoff}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Geoff}}
[[Category:1928 births]]
[[Category:1928 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:2013 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Cottingley, Bradford]]
[[Category:People from Cottingley, Bradford]]
[[Category:English footballers]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from the City of Bradford]]
[[Category:The Football League players]]
[[Category:Footballers from West Yorkshire]]
[[Category:English men's footballers]]
[[Category:Men's association football goalkeepers]]
[[Category:Nelson F.C. players]]
[[Category:Rossendale United F.C. players]]
[[Category:Bradford City A.F.C. players]]
[[Category:Bradford City A.F.C. players]]
[[Category:English Football League players]]
[[Category:Keighley Central F.C. players]]
[[Category:20th-century English sportsmen]]

Latest revision as of 15:10, 21 December 2024

Geoff Smith
Personal information
Full name Geoffrey Smith
Date of birth (1928-03-14)14 March 1928
Place of birth Cottingley, Bradford, England
Date of death 19 October 2013(2013-10-19) (aged 85)
Place of death Keighley, England
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Youth career
St Anne's Church
Keighley Central Club
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
Nelson
Rossendale United
1952–1959 Bradford City 253 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Geoffrey Smith (14 March 1928 – 19 October 2013) was an English professional footballer who played 253 league games for Bradford City as a goalkeeper, including 200 consecutive appearances. When he retired, he held club records for the number of clean sheets in a season and total clean sheets.

Smith was born in Cottingley, Bradford, West Riding of Yorkshire, moved to nearby Keighley with his family before serving in Malaya in the British Army at the end of his teens. His first trial at Bradford City was unsuccessful but after playing amateur football for Lancashire Combination League sides Nelson and Rossendale United, he was signed by Bradford's new manager Ivor Powell in 1952. He was at Bradford City for seven seasons and played in every league game between the final match of the 1953–54 season and October 1958. He eventually retired in 1959. After his football career, Smith and his wife ran two different off-licences for the remainder of their working life.

Early life

[edit]

Smith was born in Cottingley on the outskirts of Bradford, West Riding of Yorkshire, on 14 March 1928. He had a brother Jack[1] and during their childhood, the Smith family moved to Keighley, where Smith first played football for St Anne's Church. At the age of 18, Smith was called up to the army. He served in an infantry unit in Malaya for two years before he returned to Keighley.[2]

Football career

[edit]

Early career

[edit]

Smith resumed his football career back at home with Keighley Central Club. A goalkeeper, he was still playing for Keighley Central in 1948 when he was offered a trial with his local Football League side Bradford City, who were at the time in the Third Division North. His trial was unsuccessful and he was released.[3] Instead, Smith joined Lancashire Combination League side Nelson.[1][3] He was still living in Keighley, and travelled to Nelson by bus with his brother Jack, who had previously played for Leeds United but had been released when Major Frank Buckley took over as manager and instead also joined Nelson.[1] Smith played for Nelson for three years[1] at a time when the club were competing at the top of the Lancashire Combination and sought re-election back into the Football League.[4] However, Smith initially gave up the game when Nelson could no longer afford to pay him. He was not long out of the game before he signed Rossendale United, a member of the Lancashire Combination's Second Division. Smith said the journey by bus was a difficult one so he bought a motorbike. However, like Nelson, Rossendale could not afford to pay him, and after another two years, Smith gave up the game once again.[1]

Bradford City

[edit]

In December 1952, on the advice of Smith's friend Roy Brook, who was in Bradford's second team, new Bradford City manager Ivor Powell invited Smith back to City for another trial and he played for the reserves against Gainsborough Trinity and Notts County.[1][3] This time, Smith's trial was successful and Bradford City – still a Third Division North side – signed him on amateur forms.[3] Smith had played only seven games for the reserves in the Midland League and was still unpaid when he was given his first-team debut against Scunthorpe United on 17 January 1953 coming into the side for Brendan McManus,[1][3] whom Smith said was "having a rough time".[1] It was not a good start for Smith, with City losing 4–0, but he followed this with a clean sheet in his second game against Stockport County[5] and kept his place in the side for the remainder of the season, playing 19 games, before he signed part-time professional terms in July 1953.[3] He had previously worked part-time as a lorry driver, earning £4 10s (£4.50) working 48 hours per week as a lorry driver, but the club did not want him driving around the country and offered him £10 per week plus a £4 win bonus. To supplement his playing contract, the club gave Smith a job looking after their Valley Parade ground.[1]

During the mid-season break, McManus left City to join Frickley Athletic. Instead, Powell signed Jimmy Gooch from Preston North End as his replacement. Gooch, aged 32, was more experienced than Smith and so took over as first-choice goalkeeper at the start of the 1953–54 season playing the first 20 games.[1] Smith was called up to the first-team in November for a 1–1 draw with Hartlepools United.[6] He remained in the side and played all but two games for the rest of the season, coming back into the team for the final league game of the season against Gateshead as City finished fifth.[1][6] He kept 11 clean sheets, which included equalling a club best five in consecutive matches as City won a record nine straight games,[6][7] during which they conceded just one goal.[6]

Gooch left City after just one season to join Watford leaving Smith to take over the "number one" shirt.[1] For the next four seasons, Smith, who became a full-time professional, played every single first-team game for City which eventually led to him making 200 consecutive league appearances[3] – it was a run that coincided with one of 246 league and FA Cup games by full back George Mulholland.[8] However, for three seasons, City could not match the fifth place gained in 1953–54 and they remained a Third Division North side.[9] In 1957–58, under Powell's replacement as manager Peter Jackson, City finished in third place but missed out on the title by nine points to Scunthorpe United.[10] During the season, Smith set a new club record of 18 clean sheets, one which was later equalled by Steve Smith and Eric McManus.[3]

The following season, Smith's run of consecutive games came to an end against Reading in October 1958,[3] with Jim McCusker coming into the side to replace him for two games.[11] Smith's number of consecutive appearances is third on the club's list behind Mulholland's 231 games and Charlie Bicknell.[12] He played 26 further games in the 1958–59 season,[3] in which the club finished 11th in the newly formed Third Division.[11] The season proved to be Smith's final season for City as he decided to retire aged 31.[3] His last game was a 2–1 defeat, once again versus Reading, on 28 February 1959.[11] When the season finished, Smith had played a total of 270 games for the club, 253 of which came in the league,[3] keeping a club record 70 clean sheets.[1][12] His record stood until it was broken by Paul Tomlinson in the 1990s.[13] When Smith retired, the club granted him and Mulholland each a sum of money rather than the proceeds of a benefit match.[3]

Personal life

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Smith met his wife Margaret at a ceilidh at St Anne's Social Club, in Keighley, in 1944, when they were both teenagers. They married after Smith returned from his two years in the army on 26 August 1950 at Holy Trinity Church, in Keighley. Together, they had two daughters.[2] Smith had been a motor mechanic before his football career, and after he retired from playing, he and his wife ran an off-licence store in Cross Roads for 25 years and a newsagents in Keighley for another five years. Smith played bowls and golf in his retirement,[2] playing for Skipton Vets in the former sport.[14]

Smith died on 19 October 2013.[15]

Career statistics

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Club Division Season League FA Cup Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Nelson Lancashire Combination
Rossendale United Lancashire Combination Second Division
Bradford City[3] Third Division North 1952–53 19 0 0 0 19 0
1953–54 24 0 0 0 24 0
1954–55 46 0 5 0 51 0
1955–56 46 0 3 0 49 0
1956–57 46 0 1 0 47 0
1957–58 46 0 4 0 50 0
Third Division 1958–59 26 0 4 0 30 0
Total 253 0 17 0 270 0
Career totals 253 0 17 0 270 0

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Markham 2007, pp. 174–175
  2. ^ a b c Rahman, Miran (26 August 2010). "Keeper's catch has lasted for 60 years". Keighley News. Retrieved 28 August 2010.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Frost 1988, p. 139
  4. ^ "Nelson FC: 1931–1982". Nelson F.C. 17 May 2005. Archived from the original on 16 July 2011. Retrieved 8 September 2010.
  5. ^ Frost 1988, pp. 246–247
  6. ^ a b c d Frost 1988, pp. 248–249
  7. ^ Frost 1988, p. 350
  8. ^ Markham 2007, p. 137
  9. ^ Frost 1988, pp. 250–257
  10. ^ Butler 1987, p. 11
  11. ^ a b c Frost 1988, pp. 258–259
  12. ^ a b Frost 1988, p. 377
  13. ^ "Ivor Powell – Manager 1952–1955". Bradford City A.F.C. Archived from the original on 14 September 2010. Retrieved 28 August 2010.
  14. ^ "Bowls: Dowgillsigns in bumper week". Telegraph & Argus. 8 August 2003. Retrieved 26 November 2011.
  15. ^ Miran Rahman (23 October 2013). "Geoff Smith was king of Bradford City clean sheets". Telegraph & Argus. Retrieved 23 October 2013.
Bibliography
  • Butler, Bryon (1987), The Football League 1888–1988 The Official Illustrated History, Macdonald Queen Anne Press, ISBN 0-356-15072-0
  • Frost, Terry (1988), Bradford City A Complete Record 1903–1988, Breedon Books Sport, ISBN 0-907969-38-0
  • Markham, David (2007), The legends of Bradford City, Breedon Books Sport, ISBN 978-1-85983-572-2