John Vincent Mansfield (born 13 September 1946) is an English former
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 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 ...
as a
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 ...
for
Colchester United.
Career
Born in
Colchester
Colchester ( ) is a city in Essex, in the East of England. It had a population of 122,000 in 2011. The demonym is Colcestrian.
Colchester occupies the site of Camulodunum, the first major city in Roman Britain and its first capital. Colches ...
, Mansfield signed for hometown club
Colchester United as an apprentice,
breaking into the first team in 1964 the day before his 18th birthday on 12 September in a 3–0 defeat to
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 ...
at
Layer Road
Layer Road was a Football League stadium in Colchester, England. It was only used for football matches and was the home ground of Colchester United before being replaced by the Colchester Community Stadium. The stadium held spectators and was ...
.
He scored his first goal for the club on 10 May 1966 in a 1–0 victory at
Southport.
Mansfield was involved in 34
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 ...
games between his debut in 1964 and his final game in 1968,
a 1–0 home defeat to
Workington
Workington is a coastal town and civil parish at the mouth of the River Derwent on the west coast in the Allerdale borough of Cumbria, England. The town was historically in Cumberland. At the 2011 census it had a population of 25,207.
Loca ...
in the
League Cup on 4 September.
He had scored three goals for the club
with his final goal scored on 3 December 1966 in a 4–0 away win against
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 ...
.
After leaving Colchester following his final appearance, he went on to join non-league outfits
Brentwood Town
Brentwood Town Football Club is a football club based in Brentwood, Essex, England. They are currently members of the and play at the Brentwood Centre Arena.
History
A Brentwood Football Club was established in the 19th century, and played ...
and
Chelmsford City.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mansfield, John
1946 births
Living people
Footballers from Colchester
English men's footballers
Men's association football midfielders
Colchester United F.C. players
Brentwood Town F.C. players
Chelmsford City F.C. players
English Football League players