John Arnold Fielding (2 September 1939 – 1 August 2022) 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 ...

who played as a winger 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 ...

for

Brentford Brentford is a suburban town in West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the Thames, west of Charing Cross. Its economy has diverse company headquarters buildings whi ...

Southport Southport is a seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. At the 2001 census, it had a population of 90,336, making it the eleventh most populous settlement in North West England. Southport lies on the Irish ...

and

Grimsby Town Grimsby Town Football Club is a professional football club based in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, England, that in the 2022–23 season will compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system, following the victory in ...

. He later had a long career in

non-League football Non-League football describes football leagues played outside the top leagues of a country. Usually, it describes leagues which are not fully professional. The term is primarily used for football in England, where it is specifically used to de ...

and also played in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

Playing career

Early years

right winger A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

, Fielding began his career as an amateur at Everton. Following four seasons at

Goodison Park Goodison Park is a football stadium in the Walton area of Liverpool, England. It has been the home stadium of Premier League club Everton F.C. since its completion in 1892. Located in a residential area 2 miles (3 km) north of Liverpool ...

, he transferred to

Lancashire Combination The Lancashire Combination was a football league founded in the North West of England in 1891–92. It absorbed the Lancashire League in 1903. In 1968 the Combination lost five of its clubs to the newly formed Northern Premier League. In 1982 it ...

First Division club

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, ...

. A record of nearly a goal every other game between September 1959 and March 1961 earned Fielding a £500 transfer to

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 ...

club

. He broke into the team on a regular basis during the 1961–62 season, scoring 13 goals in 48 appearances. He went even better the 1962–63 season, with 11 goals in 32 appearances, before departing the club in March 1963. Fielding scored made 86 appearances and scored 24 goals for Southport.

Brentford

On 26 March 1963, Fielding transferred to Fourth Division high-flyers

for a £7,000 fee. He had impressed manager Malky McDonald with his performance while a Southport player at

Griffin Park Griffin Park was a football ground in Brentford in the London Borough of Hounslow, England. It was the home ground of Brentford F.C. from its opening in September 1904 to August 2020. The ground is in a predominantly residential area and was ...

in a 3–3 draw earlier in the season. After the return fixture, McDonald tabled a big-money offer. Fielding made seven appearances in what remained of the 1962–63 season to help the Bees over the line to the Division Four championship. He made semi-regular appearances in the

Third Division In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Association football *Belgian Thir ...

and made 31 appearances, before fully breaking into the team in the 1964–65 season, when he made 42 appearances and scored 10 league goals. After making just 9 appearances in the first half of the 1965–66 season, Fielding left the Bees in December 1965. He made 93 appearances and scored 21 goals during years at Griffin Park.

Grimsby Town

Fielding joined Third Division club

in December 1965. Though not a regular pick for the team, he managed eight goals in 31 appearances before departing in 1967.

Port Elizabeth City

Fielding moved to

in 1967, where he linked up with former Brentford teammate

Matt Crowe Matthew Jackson Crowe (4 July 1932 – June 2017) was a Scottish professional footballer who played as a wing half. Active throughout Scotland, England and South Africa, Crowe made nearly 300 career appearances. Career Born in Bathgate, Crowe p ...

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

club Port Elizabeth City. He had a successful 1967 season, winning the league championship. Fielding departed the club at the end of the 1968 season.

Return to Southport

Fielding returned to Third Division club Southport in November 1968 and made a first team appearance in a

Lancashire Senior Cup The Lancashire County Football Association Cup (commonly known as the Lancashire Senior Cup) is a football knockout tournament involving teams from Lancashire, England. It is a County Cup competition of the Lancashire County Football Association ...

match on 3 January 1969. In February 1969, he departed to join

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 ...

on trial.

Return to Wigan Athletic

Fielding returned to Wigan Athletic in 1969 for a second spell with the now high-flying

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 ...

club. He made 49 appearances and scored eight goals during the 1969–70 season and helping the Latics to a second-successive runners-up finish in the league. He departed at the end of the season.

Non-League football

Fielding wound down his career with spells at Northern Premier League clubs

Altrincham Altrincham ( , locally ) is a market town in Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, south of the River Mersey. It is southwest of Manchester city centre, southwest of Sale and east of Warrington. At the 2011 Census, it had a population o ...

, Ellesmere Port Town, South Liverpool and

Runcorn Runcorn is an industrial town and cargo port in the Borough of Halton in Cheshire, England. Its population in 2011 was 61,789. The town is in the southeast of the Liverpool City Region, with Liverpool to the northwest across the River Mersey. ...

. Work commitments led to his retirement from football in 1976.

Personal life

While an amateur with Everton, Fielding served an

apprenticeship Apprenticeship is a system for training a new generation of practitioners of a Tradesman, trade or profession with on-the-job training and often some accompanying study (classroom work and reading). Apprenticeships can also enable practitioners ...

as a

plumber A plumber is a tradesperson who specializes in installing and maintaining systems used for potable (drinking) water, and for sewage and drainage in plumbing systems.

with Arthur Peat.

Career statistics

Honours

Wigan Athletic *

Lancashire FA Challenge Trophy The Lancashire Football Association Challenge Trophy is an English football competition for senior non-league clubs who are members of the Lancashire County Football Association. The trophy was first played for in 1885, when it was known as the L ...

: 1959–60 Port Elizabeth City *

: 1967

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fielding, John 1939 births 2022 deaths British plumbers Footballers from Liverpool English men's footballers Men's association football wingers Wigan Athletic F.C. players Southport F.C. players Brentford F.C. players Grimsby Town F.C. players Port Elizabeth City F.C. players Altrincham F.C. players Ellesmere Port Town F.C. players South Liverpool F.C. players Runcorn F.C. Halton players Northern Premier League players English Football League players National Football League (South Africa) players English expatriate men's footballers English expatriate sportspeople in South Africa