Leonard Geard (born 12 February 1934) is an English retired 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 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 ...

as a wing half.

Career

A wing half, Geard began his career in the youth system at

Fulham Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea. The area faces Wandsworth ...

, but departed in March 1953, without making a first team appearance. Geard transferred to Fulham's West London rivals

, but due to having to undertake his National Service, he was unable to make his professional debut until 27 April 1955, in a 1–1 Third Division South draw with Crystal Palace. He made a further three appearances during the 1955–56 season, before being released at the end of the campaign. Geard dropped into

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 signed for Southern League club

Kettering Town Kettering Town Football Club is a football club based in Burton Latimer, Northamptonshire, England. They are currently members of and play at Latimer Park in Burton Latimer. Kettering were the first club to wear sponsorship on their shirts in ...

, with whom he won the 1956–57 division title.

Career statistics

Honours

Kettering Town * Southern League: 1956–57

References

1934 births Footballers from the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham People from Hammersmith English men's footballers Brentford F.C. players English Football League players Fulham F.C. players Kettering Town F.C. players Men's association football wing halves Southern Football League players Living people {{England-footy-midfielder-1930s-stub