Colin Harrison (born 18 March 1946 in

Pelsall Pelsall is a village in the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, West Midlands, England. Forming part of the borough's border with Staffordshire, Pelsall is located 4 miles north of central Walsall, midway between the towns of Bloxwich and Brownhil ...

) is an English former

football 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 c ...

full back. He is best remembered for his time at

Walsall Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands County, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located north-west of Birmingham, east ...

where he held the record for the most

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 ...

appearances made by any one player at the club until Jimmy Walker beat it.

Career

A product of the Walsall youth system, he signed for the club on amateur terms in June 1961 before turning professional on 13 November 1963. His league debut came in September 1964 against

Southend United Southend United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, England. As of the 2022–23 season, the team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of English football. Southend are known as ...

and in his early days at the club he was employed as a

Utility player In sports, a utility player is one who can play several positions competently. Sports in which the term is often used include association football, American football, baseball, rugby union, rugby league, softball, ice hockey, and water polo. The ...

before settling into the role of full back. He established himself as first choice in that position for a number of years until suffering an injury in 1979 which saw him miss all but one of the league games in the 1979-80 season though he did make two substitute appearances also. He returned for 19 league appearances the following season and made his final appearance in a game against

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 September 1981. He also acted as trainer of the reserves around this time. Harrison made in total either 467 or 473 league appearances depending on the source consulted. He left the club in 1982 and continued playing in the non-league with

Rushall Olympic Rushall Olympic Football Club is an English football club based in Rushall, a former mining village now forming part of the northern suburbs of Walsall. The team plays in the . History Early years Although football had been played in the villa ...

for a number of seasons before retiring.Colin Harrison
at

Walsall F.C. Walsall Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Walsall, West Midlands, England. The team competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club's nickname, "The Saddlers", reflects ...

official site Harrison's record for most Walsall appearances in all competitions was overhauled by

Jimmy Walker James John Walker (June 19, 1881November 18, 1946), known colloquially as Beau James, was mayor of New York City from 1926 to 1932. A flamboyant politician, he was a liberal Democrat and part of the powerful Tammany Hall machine. He was forced t ...

in January 2012.Wacka Celebrations at Next Home Game
As of January 2012 however he still holds the league appearances record for the club.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harrison, Colin 1946 births Living people English footballers Association football defenders Walsall F.C. players English Football League players Rushall Olympic F.C. players People from Pelsall