John Fairbrother Explained

John Fairbrother
Fullname:John Fairbrother
Birth Date:12 February 1941
Birth Place:Cricklewood, England
Position:Centre forward
Youthclubs1:Bennetts End
Youthyears2:1958–1959
Youthclubs2:Luton Town
Years1:1959–1963
Clubs1:Watford
Caps1:40
Goals1:19
Years2:1963–1965
Clubs2:Worcester City
Goals2:51
Years3:1965–1968
Caps3:72
Goals3:37
Years4:1968–1971
Caps4:140
Goals4:56
Years5:1971–1973
Clubs5:Mansfield Town
Caps5:85
Goals5:38
Years6:1973–1974
Clubs6:Torquay United
Caps6:15
Goals6:3
Years7:1974–1976
Clubs7:Bath City
Goals7:31
Years8:1976–1978
Clubs8:Barnet
Caps8:83
Goals8:40
Years9:1978–19??
Clubs9:Hemel Hempstead
Clubs10:Berkhamsted Town
Clubs11:Leverstock Green

John Fairbrother (born 12 February 1941) is an English former footballer who played as a centre forward. He scored 153 goals from 352 appearances in the Football League playing for Watford, Peterborough United, Northampton Town, Mansfield Town and Torquay United. He also played in the Southern League for Worcester City, Bath City and Barnet, and continued his non-league football career with Hemel Hempstead, Berkhamsted Town and Leverstock Green. He continued playing with Garston veterans into his early 50s.

Life and career

Fairbrother was born in 1941 in Cricklewood, London, and moved to Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, in 1953. He played youth football in the Hemel area and spent the 1958–59 season with Luton Town's junior side before moving to Watford. He scored four goals on his debut for Watford's reserves and signed professional forms immediately afterwards.[1] He was prolific in the reserves,[2] but did not make his senior debut until October 1960, when he scored in a 5–2 loss to Derby County in the League Cup. His first appearance in the Third Division came on 12 November against Hull City, and he scored his first Football League goal a week later in a 1–1 draw with Reading. He played increasingly regularly in the 1961–62 season, but his progress was interrupted when he broke a leg during a match in February 1962, just before his 21st birthday. Watford confirmed immediately that he would be retained for the following season and would be kept on first-team wages during his recovery.[3] He scored five goals in the first four matches of 1962–63, but soon dropped out of the side, and finished the season with 22 goals from 45 matches in all competitions over his three-year Watford career.[4]

After two seasons with Worcester City, during which he scored 51 Southern League goals, and 87 in all competitions,[5] Fairbrother joined Peterborough United for a £5000 fee. Worcester did not want to sell, and their supporters' club offered to pay £2000 towards keeping him, but the player was determined to return to the Football League.[6] He spent three months short of three seasons with the Third Division club, and top scored in the second and third.[7]

In February 1968, Fairbrother began three and a half years with Northampton Townone-and-a-half in the Third Division and two in the fourthduring which he was a first-team regular, top-scored in all three complete seasons, and was ever-present in 1969–70 with 56 appearances,[4] which included an FA Cup fifth round match in which Fairbrother had two chances to open the scoring for Northampton. The first chance was a one-on-one with the keeper but Fairbrother was fouled on the edge of penalty area. The second chance came after Stepney pushed the ball onto the post but the angle was to narrow for Fairbrother to score. George Best scored six goals in Manchester United's 8–2 win.[8] Mansfield Town signed Fairbrother a month into their 1971–72 season in the Third Division, at which point they had not scored a league goal at home. That state of affairs continued until 18 December when, in their tenth home league match of the season, after a Football League record 833 goalless minutes, Fairbrother's headed goal tied the scores with Plymouth Argyle; Mansfield still lost the match, and went on to be relegated.[9] He top-scored both that season and the next; in 1972–73, he had 17 league goals by Christmas, but managed only 3 more in the second half of the season as Mansfield narrowly failed to gain promotion.[4] [9] Fairbrother's Football League career ended with an unproductive season with Torquay United in the Fourth Division.[4]

Fairbrother made 65 appearances in all competitions in his first season with Bath City and scored 41 goals, of which 20 came in the Southern League Premier Division; he added a further 11 league goals in 1975–76.[10] He then moved on to Barnet, where in his first season he top-scored with 22 league goals, won the club's Player of the Year award, and helped Barnet win the Southern League Division One South title.[11] He was again top scorer in league competition in 1977–78, but Jimmy Greaves had one more in all competitions.[12] He made his last Barnet appearance on 9 December 1978,[13] and finished off his career back in the Hemel area with Hemel Hempstead, Berkhamsted Town and Leverstock Green.[2] [14]

Fairbrother worked for a family building firm in the Hemel area before retiring.[15]

Notes and References

  1. New players: John Fairbrother . Official Journal . Watford Association Football Club . 10 October 1959 . 10.
  2. Web site: Players: Ellington to Folivi . Watford Football Club archive 1881–2017 . Trefor Jones . 27 November 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190812015136/http://watfordfcarchive.com/downloads/players/+Ellington-Folivi.pdf . 12 August 2019.
  3. News: Watford retain John Fairbrother . Coventry Evening Telegraph . 13 February 1962 . 34.
  4. Web site: Player search: Fairbrother, J (John) . English National Football Archive . 5 January 2021 . subscription.
  5. Web site: Worcester City all time player statistics . Worcester City FC Archive . https://web.archive.org/web/20110708091717/http://wcfcarchive.bravehost.com/atpla.htm#GoalStats . 8 July 2011.
  6. News: Worcester's aim is 'big names' . Dick . Norman . Sports Argus . Birmingham . 29 May 1965 . 7.
    News: Nostalgia: Wolves legend Norman Deeley wowed Worcester City . Andy . Mitchell . Worcester News . 11 March 2019 . 4 January 2021.
  7. Web site: 1966/67 playing records . Up The Posh . Chris Wilkinson . 13 November 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171201041129/http://www.uptheposh.com/seasons/79/playing/ . 1 December 2017.
    Web site: 1967/68 playing records . Up The Posh . Chris Wilkinson . 13 November 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171201033912/http://www.uptheposh.com/seasons/80/playing/ . 1 December 2017.
  8. News: Georgie the six-goal genius . John . Heilpern . The Observer . London . 8 February 1970 . 28.
  9. Web site: History: 1970–1979 . Martin . Shaw . Paul . Taylor . Mansfield Town F.C. . 19 May 2016 . 5 January 2021.
    News: Stags retro: Fairbrother ends record-breaking goal drought . Mansfield and Ashfield Chad . 2 November 2016 . 5 January 2021.
  10. Web site: 1974–75 . Bath City FC Archive . 5 January 2021.
    Web site: 1975–76 . Bath City FC Archive . 5 January 2021.
  11. Web site: Dan Sweeney Player of the Year 2017–18 . The Reckless Guide to Barnet FC . Tony Hammond . 14 July 2018 . 5 January 2021.
    Web site: Season stats 1976–1977 . Downhill Second Half . 5 January 2021.
  12. Web site: Season stats 1977–1978 . Downhill Second Half . 5 January 2021.
  13. Web site: Player profile: Johnny Fairbrother . Downhill Second Half . 5 January 2021.
  14. Web site: Tudors Club History . Tudor Times . 5 January 2021.
  15. News: Where Are They Now? Northampton's 1969–70 side who faced George Best in the FA Cup . Adam . Ellis . The League Paper . 28 September 2016 . 5 January 2021.