Michael Harrison (born 21 December 1952) is an English former 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 made 19 appearances 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 ...

playing for

Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. Since 2011, the first te ...

and

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 ...

. He played as a

centre half In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

Playing career

Harrison was born in

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ; postal abbreviation Leics.) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East Midlands, England. The county borders Nottinghamshire to the north, Lincolnshire to the north-east, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire t ...

. When he left school in 1968 he joined

as an apprentice, turning professional two years later. He captained Birmingham's youth team, and made his debut as an 18-year-old, deputising for Dave Robinson in a 4–1 win at

Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city lies on the River Soar and close to the eastern end of the National ...

on 16 January 1971. He kept his place for the next game in the absence of

Roger Hynd John Roger Shankly Hynd (2 February 194218 February 2017) was a Scottish professional footballer who played as a centre half. He started his playing career at Rangers, for whom he played in the 1967 European Cup Winners' Cup Final, before mov ...

, and played once more the following season in place of

Stan Harland Stanley Clarence Harland (19 June 1940 – 30 August 2001) was an English football centre half. Career Born in Liverpool, Harland's football career began at local club New Brighton. It was from here that he attracted interest from Everton wh ...

. In the 1972 close season Harrison joined

, where he spent one season and played 18 games in all competitions. His next club was

Yeovil Town Yeovil Town may refer to: * Yeovil Town F.C., an English football team based in Yeovil, Somerset * Yeovil Town L.F.C. Bridgwater United Women's Football Club are an English women's association football club based in Bridgwater, Somerset who wer ...

of the Southern League. In the 1974–75 season, his second with the club, Harrison was named Player of the Year. The following season, under

player-manager A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the sq ...

Stan Harland whom Harrison had understudied at Birmingham, the club achieved a "runners-up double" in the Southern League and the Southern League Cup, success which prompted invitation into the 1976–77

Anglo-Italian Semiprofessional Tournament The Anglo-Italian Cup ( it, Coppa Anglo-Italiana, also known as the Anglo-Italian Inter-League Clubs Competition and from 1976 to 1986 as the Alitalia Challenge Cup, Talbot Challenge Cup or Gigi Peronace Memorial) is a defunct European football ...

, to play against Italian

Serie C The Serie C () is the third-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie B and Serie A. The Lega Italiana Calcio Professionistico (Lega Pro) is the governing body that runs the Serie C. The unification of the Lega Pro ...

teams. Harrison was again named Player of the Season. In all competitions, he made 304 appearances for Yeovil Town over a six-year career.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harrison, Mike 1952 births Living people Footballers from Leicester English men's footballers Men's association football defenders Birmingham City F.C. players Southend United F.C. players Yeovil Town F.C. players English Football League players Southern Football League players