Alan Humphreys (born 18 November 1939) is a former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper for

Shrewsbury Town Shrewsbury Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of English football. The club plays its home games at the New Meadow, having mo ...

Leeds United Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire in England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of England's football league system, and plays its home matches at Elland Road S ...

Mansfield Town Mansfield Town Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in the town of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Stags', they ...

and

Chesterfield Chesterfield may refer to: Places Canada * Rural Municipality of Chesterfield No. 261, Saskatchewan * Chesterfield Inlet, Nunavut United Kingdom * Chesterfield, Derbyshire, a market town in England ** Chesterfield (UK Parliament constitue ...

in the 1950s and 1960s.

Playing career

Humphreys was born on 18 November 1939 in

Chester Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...

, England. He began his professional career at Shrewsbury Town in 1956, where he made 32 appearances in three seasons and built a reputation of being one of the best young goalkeepers in the lower divisions. In February 1960, he joined a declining Leeds United side that was relegated to the

Second Division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...

at the end of the 1959–60 season. He had an unhappy time at Leeds, losing confidence, and

Don Revie Donald George Revie OBE (10 July 1927 – 26 May 1989) was an England international footballer and manager, best known for his successful spell with Leeds United from 1961 until 1974, which immediately preceded his appointment as England manage ...

brought in the experienced

Tommy Younger Thomas Younger (10 April 1930 – 13 January 1984) was a Scottish footballer who played as a goalkeeper for Hibernian, Liverpool, Falkirk, Leeds United, Stoke City and the Scotland national team. Career Born in Edinburgh, Scotland, Younger s ...

and later

Gary Sprake Gareth Sprake (3 April 1945 – 18 October 2016) was a Welsh professional footballer. A goalkeeper, he played for Leeds United and Birmingham City and also won 37 caps for Wales. Sprake became known during his career as a brilliant goalkeeper ...

to fill the goalkeeping position. Humphreys left Leeds in August 1962 for non-league football before returning to league action with Mansfield Town in 1964–65 and later with Chesterfield.

References

1939 births Living people English men's footballers Footballers from Chester Men's association football goalkeepers Shrewsbury Town F.C. players Leeds United F.C. players Mansfield Town F.C. players Chesterfield F.C. players English Football League players {{England-footy-goalkeeper-1930s-stub