Barry Alfred Siddall (born 12 September 1954) is an English former professional

football goalkeeper Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ca ...

. When he retired from the game he had 614 appearances to his name over a 21-year career in the

Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...

, playing for numerous clubs. He played for 13 different Football League clubs:

Bolton Wanderers Bolton Wanderers Football Club () is a professional football club based in Horwich, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in . The club played at Burnden Park for 102 years from 1895 after moving from their original home at Pike's ...

Sunderland Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...

Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. The River Skerne flows through the town; it is a tributary of the River Tees. The Tees itself flows south of the town. In the 19th century, Darlington underwen ...

Port Vale Port Vale Football Club are a professional football club based in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England, which compete in . Vale are the only English Football League club not to be named after a place; their name being a reference to the valley o ...

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Located on the North West England, northwest coast of England, it is the main settlement within the Borough of Blackpool, borough also called Blackpool. The town is by the Irish Sea, betw ...

Stoke City Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...

Tranmere Rovers Tranmere Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. The team compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1884 as Belmont Football Club, they adop ...

Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...

Stockport County Stockport County Football Club are a professional association football, football club in Stockport, England, who compete in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1883 as Heaton Norris Rovers, they wer ...

Hartlepool United Hartlepool United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Hartlepool, County Durham, England. The team competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. They were founded in 1908 as Hartle ...

Carlisle United Carlisle United Football Club ( , ) is a professional association football club based in Carlisle, Cumbria, England. The team compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. They have played their home games at Brunton Par ...

, Chester City and

Preston North End Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional football club in Preston, Lancashire, England, who currently play in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league syste ...

. He won

promotion Promotion may refer to: Marketing * Promotion (marketing), one of the four marketing mix elements, comprising any type of marketing communication used to inform or persuade target audiences of the relative merits of a product, service, brand or i ...

out of 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 ...

, Third Division, and

Fourth Division Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'' (1972 film), a Sovie ...

, and also played in the First Division.

Career

Siddall was educated at

The Whitby High School The Whitby High School is a co-educational secondary foundation school, situated in Whitby, a suburb of Ellesmere Port, Cheshire, England. Admissions It is maintained by the Cheshire West and Chester Local Education Authority. The school educ ...

, Ellesmere Port; where he was spotted by a Bolton

scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement **Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom **Scouts BSA, sectio ...

, together with Paul Jones and

Neil Whatmore Neil Whatmore (born 17 May 1955) is an English former footballer who played as a striker. He made 449 appearances in the Football League and scored 150 goals, playing for Bolton Wanderers, Birmingham City, Oxford United, Burnley and Mansfield ...

. He began his career with

, turning professional in January 1972 after a two-year apprenticeship. In four years with the

Burnden Park Burnden Park was the home of English football club Bolton Wanderers who played home games there between 1895 and 1997. As well as hosting the 1901 FA Cup Final replay, it was the scene in 1946 of one of the greatest disasters in English footba ...

club he made 137 league appearances.

Jimmy Armfield James Christopher Armfield, (21 September 1935 – 22 January 2018) was an English professional football player and manager who latterly worked as a football pundit for BBC Radio Five Live. He played the whole of his Football League career at B ...

's "Trotters" won the Third Division title in the 1972–73 season, and finished mid-table in the

in 1973–74 and 1974–75. Under the stewardship of

Ian Greaves Ian Denzil Greaves (26 May 1932 – 2 January 2009) was an English association football, football player and manager. He was born in Crompton Urban District, Crompton, Lancashire. He won a Football League Championship, League Championship meda ...

, they went on to finish fourth in 1975–76, one point behind

promoted Promotion may refer to: Marketing * Promotion (marketing), one of the four marketing mix elements, comprising any type of marketing communication used to inform or persuade target audiences of the relative merits of a product, service, brand or i ...

West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pla ...

. In September 1976, he moved north-east to join

for a £80,000 fee, with the aim of replacing retiring club legend

Jimmy Montgomery Jimmy Montgomery BEM (born 9 October 1943) is an English retired footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He made a record 627 appearances for his hometown club Sunderland with 537 of these appearances being in the league, after joining the cl ...

. He made 167 league appearances for

Jimmy Adamson James Adamson (4 April 1929 – 8 November 2011) was an English professional footballer and football manager. He was born in Ashington, Northumberland. He made 486 appearances for Burnley ranking him sixth in their all-time appearance lis ...

's "Black Cats". The

Roker Park Roker Park was a football ground in Roker, Sunderland, England, which was the home of Sunderland A.F.C. from 1898 to 1997, before the club moved to the Stadium of Light. Its final capacity was around 22,500, with only a small part being seated; ...

outfit were

relegated In sports leagues, promotion and relegation is a process where teams are transferred between multiple divisions based on their performance for the completed season. Leagues that use promotion and relegation systems are often called open leagues. ...

out of the First Division in 1976–77, and came close to winning promotion in 1977–78 and 1978–79, before they regained their top-flight status with a second-place finish under the stewardship of

Ken Knighton Kenneth Knighton (born 20 February 1944) is an English former footballer, coach and manager. He is most well known for his spell as manager at Sunderland during which time the club was promoted to the First Division, and he also managed Footb ...

in 1979–80; they finished just one point behind champions

Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city lies on the River Soar and close to the eastern end of the National ...

. He was

loan In finance, a loan is the lending of money by one or more individuals, organizations, or other entities to other individuals, organizations, etc. The recipient (i.e., the borrower) incurs a debt and is usually liable to pay interest on that d ...

ed out to

during the 1980–81 season, who were managed by his former Sunderland boss Billy Elliott; Siddall played eight

games at

Feethams Feethams is a cricket and former football grounds in Darlington, England. The cricket ground has hosted Durham CCC matches. The football ground was the home of Darlington F.C. for from 1883 to 2003 until the club moved into another ground, ...

. Now managed by

Alan Durban William Alan Durban (born 7 July 1941) is a Welsh former international footballer and manager, whose career was at its peak between the 1970s and 1990s. He played in the Football League for Cardiff City, Derby County and was player-manager of ...

, Sunderland avoided relegation by one place and two points in 1981–82. In August 1982, Siddall signed for John McGrath's Fourth Division

, and went on to make 81 league appearances for the "Valiants" in a two spell. The first choice keeper in the 1982–83 promotion campaign, he was sidelined for three months after sustaining a knee injury in a 3–1 win over

Bristol City Bristol City Football Club is a professional football club based in Bristol, England, which compete in the , the second tier of English football. They have played their home games at Ashton Gate since moving from St John's Lane in 1904. The ...

at Ashton Gate on 27 December 1982;

Neville Southall Neville Southall (born 16 September 1958) is a Welsh former international footballer. He has been described as one of the best goalkeepers of his generation and won the FWA Footballer of the Year award in 1985. He joined Bury from Winsford U ...

was signed on loan to take his place. Teammate and club legend

Phil Sproson Phillip Jess Sproson (born 13 October 1959) is an English former association football, footballer who played as a defender (association football), central defender. He played in 500 matches (426 in the league) for Port Vale F.C., Port Vale and ...

named Siddall as the club's best goalkeeper of the 1980s. However, he handed in his notice at

Vale Park Vale Park is a football stadium in Stoke-on-Trent, England. It has been the home ground of Port Vale F.C. since 1950. The ground has seen its capacity go up and down, its peak being 42,000 in 1954 against Blackpool, although a club record 49, ...

in October 1983 following a

contract A contract is a legally enforceable agreement between two or more parties that creates, defines, and governs mutual rights and obligations between them. A contract typically involves the transfer of goods, services, money, or a promise to tran ...

dispute, and was loaned to Sam Ellis's

. Despite only spending the one month at

Bloomfield Road Bloomfield Road is a single-tier football stadium in Blackpool, Lancashire, England, which has been the home of Blackpool F.C. since 1901. It is the third stadium in the club's existence, the previous two being Raikes Hall Gardens and the ...

, during his seven league games for the "Seasiders", Blackpool were the victors in six of them, which assisted in their finishing sixth in the Fourth Division. He ended the 1983–84 season with 45 appearances for Port Vale, though could not prevent the club suffering relegation out of the Third Division. He was in goal for Vale against Blackpool in a 1–1 draw on 18 September 1984, but his return to Bloomfield Road was an unhappy one as he injured his ankle. He featured just 12 times in the 1984–85 season, as new boss

John Rudge John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

preferred Chris Pearce. Siddall was loaned out to Vale's

rivals A rivalry is the state of two people or groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each participant o ...

in January 1985, and the move was made permanent two months later. He played 15 First Division games at the end of the 1984–85 season, though could not prevent

Bill Asprey William Asprey (born 11 September 1936) is an English former football player and manager. A defender, he made 418 league appearances in a 15-year career in the Football League. He then had a 25-year career as a coach. He spent 1953 to 1965 at ...

's "Potters" from being relegated in last place. He featured in just five Second Division games at the

Victoria Ground The Victoria Ground was the home ground of Stoke City from 1878 until 1997, when the club relocated to the Britannia Stadium after 119 years. At the time of its demolition it was the oldest operational ground in the Football League. History ...

in the 1985–86 campaign, as new boss

Mick Mills Michael Dennis Mills MBE (born 4 January 1949) is an English former footballer who played for Ipswich Town, Southampton and Stoke City. He managed Stoke City, Colchester United and Birmingham City. During his career he achieved Ipswich Town's ...

preferred Peter Fox. He was also loaned out to

Frank Worthington Frank Stewart Worthington (23 November 1948 – 22 March 2021) was an English footballer who played as a forward. Worthington was born into a footballing family in Shelf, near Halifax, West Riding of Yorkshire. Both of his parents had played ...

and

Billy McNeill William McNeill (2 March 1940 – 22 April 2019) was a Scottish football player and manager. He had a long association with Celtic, spanning more than sixty years as a player, manager and club ambassador. McNeill captained Celtic's 'Lisbon Lio ...

during the season, keeping goal in 12 Fourth Division games at

Prenton Park Prenton Park is a large outdoor seated association football stadium in Birkenhead, England. It is the home ground of Tranmere Rovers, as well as Liverpool's women and reserves teams. The ground has had several rebuilds, with the most recent o ...

and playing six First Division games during his time at

Maine Road Maine Road was a football stadium in Moss Side, Manchester, England, that was home to Manchester City F.C. from 1923 to 2003. It hosted FA Cup semi-finals, the Charity Shield, a League Cup final and England matches. Maine Road's highest atte ...

. In 1986, Siddall returned to Blackpool, this time on a permanent basis. Sam Ellis was still in charge of the Bloomfield Road club, now a division higher, and Siddall went on to make 37 appearances during the 1986–87 season, as the club finished ninth in the Third Division. He was also first-choice during 1987–88, making 38 appearances, but in 1988–89 he was dropped a couple of times in favour of his deputies, Gary Kelly and

Vince O'Keefe James Vincent O'Keefe (born 2 April 1957) is an English former professional footballer. He played as a goalkeeper for a number of Football League clubs between 1974 and 1993, making over 400 appearances. Blackpool O'Keefe had two loan stints a ...

. He still made 35 starts in the league, however, but was sold at the end of the season to

. Siddall went on the books of six clubs in four years:

Mossley Mossley (/ˈmɒzli/) is a town and civil parish in Tameside, Greater Manchester, England, in the upper Tame Valley and the foothills of the Pennines, southeast of Oldham and east of Manchester. The historic counties of Lancashire, Cheshire ...

(where he played four

Northern Premier League The Northern Premier League is an English football league that was founded in 1968. It has four divisions: the Premier Division (which stands at level 7 of the English football league system), Division One East, Division One West and Divisio ...

Premier Division games),

, Chester City,

and Lincoln City. Leaving the

in 1993, he later played for

Northwich Victoria {{Infobox UK place , static_image_name = Northwich - Town Bridge.jpg , static_image_caption = Town Bridge, the River Weaver and the spire of Holy Trinity Church , official_name = Northwich , country ...

, Horwich R.M.I. and

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2001 population of 73,021. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River Bru ...

. He was signed by

Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. Since 2011, the first te ...

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...

Barry Fry Barry Francis Fry (born 7 April 1945) is an English former football player and manager. A winger, Fry was an apprentice at Manchester United in his youth, and had brief spells with Bolton Wanderers, Luton Town and Leyton Orient, before he reti ...

on the mid-season

transfer Transfer may refer to: Arts and media * ''Transfer'' (2010 film), a German science-fiction movie directed by Damir Lukacevic and starring Zana Marjanović * ''Transfer'' (1966 film), a short film * ''Transfer'' (journal), in management studies ...

-deadline day in March 1995. He played a total of 614 Football League and two

Conference A conference is a meeting of two or more experts to discuss and exchange opinions or new information about a particular topic. Conferences can be used as a form of group decision-making, although discussion, not always decisions, are the main p ...

games throughout his career, before becoming a freelance goalkeeping

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

Style of play

Former Port Vale teammate

Robbie Earle Robert Fitzgerald Earle MBE (born 27 January 1965) is an English-born Jamaican former international footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. He played 578 league games in senior club football, scoring 136 goals. A former youth playe ...

praised Siddall's assurance, and stated that he was "a confident guy who didn't suffer fools gladly".

Post-retirement

Upon retiring, Siddall worked for the

Post Office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional serv ...

Kirkham, Lancashire Kirkham (originally Kirkam-in-Amounderness) is a town and civil parish in the Borough of Fylde in Lancashire, England, midway between Blackpool and Preston ( west of Preston) and adjacent to the smaller town of Wesham. It owes its existence to ...

Career statistics

Source: :A. The "Other" column constitutes appearances and goals in the

Anglo-Scottish Cup The Anglo-Scottish Cup was a tournament arranged for teams in the English and Scottish football leagues during the summer for several years during the 1970s. It was created in 1975 as a new incarnation of the Texaco Cup, with a similar format t ...

and

Football League Trophy The English Football League Trophy, known for sponsorship purposes as the Papa Johns Trophy after restaurant chain Papa John's Pizza, is an annual English association football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL Leag ...

Honours

Bolton Wanderers *

Football League Third Division The Football League Third Division was the third tier of the English football league system in 1920–21 and again from 1958 until 1992. When the FA Premier League was formed, the division become the fourth tier level. In 2004, following the f ...

: 1972–73 Sunderland *

Football League Second Division The Football League Second Division was the second level division in the English football league system between 1892 and 1992. Following the foundation of the FA Premier League, the Football League divisions were renumbered and the third ti ...

second-place promotion: 1979–80 Port Vale *

Football League Fourth Division The Football League Fourth Division was the fourth-highest division in the English football league system from the 1958–59 season until the creation of the Premier League prior to the 1992–93 season. Whilst the division disappeared in name ...

third-place promotion: 1982–83

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Siddall, Barry 1954 births Living people People from Ellesmere Port Footballers from Cheshire English men's footballers English expatriate men's footballers Men's association football goalkeepers Bolton Wanderers F.C. players Sunderland A.F.C. players Darlington F.C. players Vancouver Whitecaps (1974–1984) players Port Vale F.C. players Blackpool F.C. players Stoke City F.C. players Tranmere Rovers F.C. players Manchester City F.C. players Stockport County F.C. players Hartlepool United F.C. players West Bromwich Albion F.C. players Mossley A.F.C. players Carlisle United F.C. players Chester City F.C. players Preston North End F.C. players Lincoln City F.C. players Northwich Victoria F.C. players Leigh Genesis F.C. players Burnley F.C. players Birmingham City F.C. players Expatriate men's soccer players in Canada English Football League players North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players Northern Premier League players National League (English football) players English expatriate sportspeople in Canada Association football goalkeeping coaches