George_Kirby_(footballer)
George Kirby (footballer)
English footballer and manager
George Kirby (20 December 1933 – 24 March 2000[3][4]) was an English footballer and manager.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | (1933-12-20)20 December 1933 | ||
| Place of birth | Liverpool, England | ||
| Date of death | 24 March 2000(2000-03-24) (aged 66) | ||
| Place of death | Elland, England[1] | ||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)[2] | ||
| Position(s) | Centre forward | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1952–1959 | Everton | 26 | (9) |
| 1959–1960 | Sheffield Wednesday | 3 | (0) |
| 1960–1962 | Plymouth Argyle | 93 | (38) |
| 1962–1964 | Southampton | 63 | (28) |
| 1964 | Coventry City | 18 | (10) |
| 1964–1965 | Swansea Town | 26 | (8) |
| 1965–1967 | Walsall | 75 | (25) |
| 1967–1968 | New York Generals | 47 | (23) |
| 1968–1969 | Brentford | 5 | (1) |
| 1969 | Worcester City | ||
| Managerial career | |||
| 1970–1971 | Halifax Town | ||
| 1971–1973 | Watford | ||
| 1974–1975 | ÍA | ||
| – | in Kuwait | ||
| 1977–1978 | ÍA | ||
| 1978–1981 | Halifax Town | ||
| 1980 | ÍA | ||
| 1982 | ÍA | ||
| 1990 | ÍA | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
![[icon]](./File:Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg){kind=small} | This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (July 2013) |
Kirby was born in Liverpool. He was a centre forward who played for Everton, Sheffield Wednesday, Plymouth Argyle,[5] Southampton, Walsall, Swansea City, Coventry City, New York Generals and Brentford.[3][6] His career lasted from 1952 to 1969 during which he made 309 Football League appearances and scored 119 goals.
His first post in management was at Halifax Town, initially as coach to Alan Ball Senior and then in 1970 as first team manager. He spent only one full season in charge, giving the club their most successful ever campaign just missing out on promotion to the old second division. He started the 1971–72 season by leading Halifax to a 2–1 Watney Cup victory over a full strength Manchester United side, which included George Best, Denis Law and Bobby Charlton. Just a week later Kirby left Halifax to take charge at Watford where he remained until May 1973. At Watford, injuries, boardroom unrest, and a shortage of luck and money, conspired to produce two terrible winters consisting of one humiliation and very nearly a second.
He later moved to Iceland where he managed one of the country's leading clubs; Íþróttabandalag Akraness (ÍA)[7][8]
In 1978, he left Akranes and returned to Halifax. Kirby inspired the team to another famous victory over Mancunian rivals; this time it was the turn of Malcolm Allison's Manchester City, who fell to a single Paul Hendrie goal in an FA Cup 3rd round tie in January 1980. His second spell with the Yorkshire club ended in June 1981 after a string of poor results saw his team finish second bottom of the old 4th division.
- "George Kirby". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
- Knight, Brian (1989). Plymouth Argyle: A Complete Record 1903–1989. Derby: Breedon Books. p. 86. ISBN 0-907969-40-2.
- Riddle, Andy (2001). Plymouth Argyle: 101 Golden Greats. Westcliff-on-Sea: Desert Island Books. pp. 101–102. ISBN 1-874287-47-3.
- "KIRBY - SCOURGE OF HIGH FLYERS". halifaxcourier.co.uk. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
- "Home Page". www.pafc.co.uk. Archived from the original on 5 September 2012.
- Þjálfarar ÍA 1951 - 2007 - Íþróttabandalag Akraness Archived 15 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine
- Meynell, Johnny (1999). Halifax Town From Ball to Lillis; A Complete Record. Desert Island Books. ISBN 1-87428-726-0.
- The Watford Football Club Illustrated Who's Who by Trefor Jones