Peter Darke (21 December 1953 – 1 October 2021) was an English

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 full back. He began his career as an apprentice with

Plymouth Argyle Plymouth Argyle Football Club is a professional football club based in the city of Plymouth, Devon, England. As of the 2021–22 season, the team are competing in League One, the third tier of English football. They have played at Home Park, ...

, having been spotted playing for Exeter Schoolboys. He made his debut in August 1971 at the age of 17, and went on to make 107 appearances in all competitions during his six years at

Home Park Home Park is a football stadium in Plymouth, England. The ground has been the home of Football League One club Plymouth Argyle since 1901.

, scoring two goals. He spent time on loan with

Exeter City Exeter City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Exeter, Devon, England. The team play in , the third tier of the English football league system. Known as "the Grecians", the origin of their nickname is subject to ...

during the 1976–77 season before joining

Torquay United Torquay United Football Club is a professional football club based in Torquay, Devon, England. The team currently compete in the , the fifth tier of English football. They have played their home matches at Plainmoor since 1921 and are nicknamed ...

in 1977. He retired from the professional game two years later, and went on to play

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 ...

for

Minehead Minehead is a coastal town and civil parish in Somerset, England. It lies on the south bank of the Bristol Channel, north-west of the county town of Taunton, from the boundary with the county of Devon and in proximity of the Exmoor National P ...

, Saltash United and Liskeard Athletic. He later worked as a salesman in Exeter. He died in

Torquay Torquay ( ) is a seaside town in Devon, England, part of the unitary authority area of Torbay. It lies south of the county town of Exeter and east-north-east of Plymouth, on the north of Tor Bay, adjoining the neighbouring town of Paignton ...

on 1 October 2021.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Darke, Peter 1953 births 2021 deaths Footballers from Exeter English men's footballers Men's association football fullbacks Plymouth Argyle F.C. players Exeter City F.C. players Torquay United F.C. players Saltash United F.C. players Saltash United F.C. managers English Football League players