Alan Campbell (Scottish footballer)

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Alan Campbell
Personal information
Full name Alan James Campbell[1]
Date of birth (1948-01-21) 21 January 1948 (age 76)[1]
Place of birth Arbroath, Scotland
Height 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)[2]
Position(s) Midfielder
Youth career
Arbroath Lads' Club
1964–1965 Charlton Athletic
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1965–1970 Charlton Athletic 198 (28)
1970–1976 Birmingham City 175 (11)
1976–1980 Cardiff City 167 (2)
1980–1982 Carlisle United 31 (2)
1982–1986 Redditch United
1986–1989 Olton Royale
International career
1970 Scotland U23 1 (0)
Managerial career
1989–1992 Highgate United (assistant manager)
1992 Highgate United
1992–1993 Stratford Town (assistant manager)
1993 Stratford Town
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Alan James Campbell (born 21 January 1948) is a Scottish former professional footballer who played as a central midfielder. He made 571 appearances in the English Football League for Charlton Athletic, Birmingham City, Cardiff City and Carlisle United,[3] including over 100 in the First Division for Birmingham City.[4] He was capped for Scotland at youth and under-23 level.[5] He went on to play and manage in non-League football around the Birmingham area.[4]

Career[edit]

Born in Arbroath,[4] Campbell began his career in England with Charlton Athletic, joining the club at the age of 15. The club were only able to sign Campbell on amateur terms, creating a fake job for him at a sporting goods store and paying his accommodation plus £5 a week.[5] He initially suffered from homesickness in London, even returning to Scotland briefly after two weeks at the club, but soon settled and was part of the Charlton youth side that reached the semi-final of the FA Youth Cup. In 1965, Bob Stokoe was appointed manager of the club and handed Campbell his professional debut in the Second Division, on the opening day of the 1965–66 season in a 4–2 defeat to Bolton Wanderers, at the age of 17.[5] He went on to play over 200 times for Charlton[3] before joining Birmingham City in 1970.[4]

Campbell spent six seasons at St Andrews, appearing in over 200 matches in all competitions, scoring 14 goals in the process. He was a midfield ever-present in the promotion winning side of 1971/72 in all competitions, (the only member of the squad to achieve this milestone) as Birmingham finished second in the old Division 2 to win promotion to Division 1 for the first time since 1965, reaching the FA Cup Semi-Final in the same season, only to lose 3–0 to eventual winners Leeds United F.C.

Campbell remained a key squad member for Birmingham for the next three seasons in Division 1, reaching a second FA Cup semi-final in 1974/75 narrowly missing out on a Wembley appearance as Birmingham were defeated 1-0 after a replay against Fulham F.C.

The following season 1975/76, after the departure of manager Freddie Goodwin (footballer, born 1944), Campbell struggled for selection, making his last appearance in an FA Cup tie at Portsmouth F.C. in January 1976, and was sold later that year to Cardiff City F.C.

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "Alan Campbell". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  2. ^ Rollin, Jack, ed. (1980). Rothmans Football Yearbook 1980–81. London: Queen Anne Press. p. 114. ISBN 0362020175.
  3. ^ a b "Alan Campbell". Post War English & Scottish Football League A–Z Player's Database. Neil Brown. Retrieved 29 June 2018.
  4. ^ a b c d Matthews, Tony (1989). Birmingham City: A Complete Record (1st ed.). Derby: Breedon Books. pp. 79, 399. ISBN 0 907969 48 8.
  5. ^ a b c Groome, Olly (24 September 2015). "Yesterday's heroes: Alan Campbell". Charlton Athletic F.C. Archived from the original on 26 September 2015. Retrieved 28 July 2016.
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