Harry Dowd

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Harry Dowd
Personal information
Full name Henry William Dowd
Date of birth (1938-07-04)4 July 1938
Place of birth Salford, England
Date of death 7 April 2015(2015-04-07) (aged 76)
Position(s) Goalkeeper
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1961–1970 Manchester City 181 (1)
1969–1970Stoke City (loan) 3 (0)
1970–1974 Oldham Athletic 121 (0)
Northwich Victoria
Total 305 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Henry William Dowd (4 July 1938 – 7 April 2015) was an English football goalkeeper who played for Manchester City, Stoke City and Oldham Athletic.

Career[edit]

At the start of his career Dowd combined amateur football playing for ICI Blackley with a job as a plumber. On 10 January 1958 he signed for Manchester City as an amateur, and turned professional two years later. In December 1961 he made his debut in a 4–1 defeat to Blackburn Rovers, deputising for the injured Bert Trautmann. In the 1961–62 season he established himself as first choice goalkeeper, making 34 appearances. In February 1964, Dowd broke his finger[1] in a game against Bury. Unable to continue playing in goal, he moved to centre-forward, where he scored the equalising goal.

During Manchester City's championship winning 1967–68 season, Dowd lost his first team place through injury to Ken Mulhearn, and made only seven first team appearances therefore missing out on a League Championship Medal under the rules then in place. He regained his place the following season, and played on the winning side in the 1969 FA Cup final, where Manchester City beat Leicester City 1–0.

In the 1969–70 season, Dowd lost his first team place again, this time to Joe Corrigan and so the spent two months on loan at Stoke City being used as cover for Gordon Banks, making three appearances for the "Potters". His final Manchester City appearance was against Sheffield Wednesday in the final match of 1969–70, and in December 1970 he was transferred to Oldham Athletic, where he played 111 times. Dowd died on 7 April 2015 at the age of 76.[2]

Career statistics[edit]

Source:[3]

Club Season Division League FA Cup League Cup Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Manchester City 1961–62 First Division 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0
1962–63 First Division 27 0 3 0 4 0 34 0
1963–64 Second Division 32 1 1 0 6 0 39 1
1964–65 Second Division 21 0 2 0 1 0 24 0
1965–66 Second Division 38 0 8 0 1 0 47 0
1966–67 First Division 25 0 1 0 2 0 28 0
1967–68 First Division 7 0 0 0 2 0 9 0
1968–69 First Division 27 0 7 0 0 0 34 0
1969–70 First Division 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0
Total 181 1 22 0 16 0 219 1
Stoke City (loan) 1969–70 First Division 3 0 0 0 0 0 3 0
Total 3 0 0 0 0 0 3 0
Oldham Athletic 1970–71 Fourth Division 24 0 0 0 0 0 24 0
1971–72 Third Division 40 0 1 0 2 0 43 0
1972–73 Third Division 37 0 0 0 1 0 38 0
1973–74 Third Division 20 0 4 0 2 0 26 0
Total 121 0 5 0 5 0 131 0
Career Total 305 1 27 0 21 0 353 1

Honours[edit]

Manchester City

References[edit]

Specific
  1. ^ Most sources state the injury as a broken finger, but some (such as Clayton) say it was a shoulder injury
  2. ^ "Man City team-mates pay tribute to legend Harry Dowd after he passes away". MEN. 7 April 2015. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
  3. ^ Harry Dowd at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
General
  • James, Gary (2006). Manchester City - The Complete Record. Derby: Breedon. ISBN 1-85983-512-0.
  • Clayton, David (2002). Everything under the blue moon: the complete book of Manchester City FC - and more!. Edinburgh: Mainstream publishing. ISBN 1-84018-687-9.