John O'Donnell (25 March 1897 – 1952) was an English professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

Career

Born in

Gateshead Gateshead () is a large town in northern England. It is on the River Tyne's southern bank, opposite Newcastle upon Tyne, Newcastle to which it is joined by seven bridges. The town contains the Gateshead Millennium Bridge, Millennium Bridge, Sage ...

County Durham County Durham ( ), officially simply Durham,UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. is a ceremonial county in North East England.North East Assembly �About North East E ...

, on 25 March 1897, O'Donnell, like so many other footballers from the

North East The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...

, started his career playing for his local colliery team (in his case, Felling).

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 ...

soon signed him, and he earned a reputation as a hard-tackling full-back. Everton paid around £3,000 for him soon afterwards, a fee that was rare for a defender. The move didn't work out, however, and

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 ...

bought him for a similar price. O'Donnell joined the Seasiders in late 1930, making his debut for the club on 20 December, in a home game against Grimsby Town. For the next two seasons he became a regular in the back line as Blackpool tried desperately to retain their recently achieved First Division status. O'Donnell's move coincided with a time of trouble for the Blackpool defence. By the end of the 1930-31 season, the club had conceded 125 goals, followed by 102. Disciplinary problems followed O'Donnell. It was reported on three occasions that the club had suspended him for various matters. Eventually it was mutually agreed to terminate his contract, and O'Donnell played out the remainder of his career in the lower leagues, notably with

Wigan Athletic Wigan Athletic Football Club () is an English professional association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England. The team competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1932, ...

. After just three months with Wigan, O'Donnell moved across the Irish Sea to join Dublin side Dolphin in the League of Ireland.Ryan, Seán, and Stephen Burke. The Book of Irish Goalscorers: (Republic of Ireland International, Inter-league, European Club and League of Ireland Goalscorers 1921-1987). Dundrum, Co. Dublin: Irish Soccer Co-op, 1987.

References

* * 1897 births 1952 deaths Footballers from Gateshead Men's association football defenders English men's footballers Darlington F.C. players Everton F.C. players Blackpool F.C. players Hartlepool United F.C. players Wigan Athletic F.C. players English Football League players {{England-footy-defender-1890s-stub