Charles Raymond Hancock (16 February 1925 – 20 April 2007) was an English

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

goalkeeper. He was

Ken Hancock Kenneth Paul Hancock (born 25 November 1937) is an English former football goalkeeper. He is the younger brother of Ray Hancock. He made 442 league appearances in a 15-year career in the Football League. He began his professional career at P ...

's elder brother. He played for Port Vale between 1948 and 1956, and later turned out for

Northwich Victoria {{Infobox UK place , static_image_name = Northwich - Town Bridge.jpg , static_image_caption = Town Bridge, the River Weaver and the spire of Holy Trinity Church , official_name = Northwich , country ...

. He was Vale's regular custodian as the club finished second in the Third Division North in 1952–53.

Career

Hancock played for Abbey Hulton United and Bury before joining Port Vale in May 1948. He made three Third Division South appearances in the 1948–49 campaign, but manager Gordon Hodgson kept him behind

George Heppell George Heppell (2 September 1916 – 20 July 1993) was an English football goalkeeper who made 213 league and cup appearances for Port Vale either side of World War II. His father-in-law, Albert Pearson, and great-grandson, Tom Conlon, both al ...

and Ray King in the first team pecking order. Hancock, now aged 27, was selected by manager Freddie Steele as the club's first team goalkeeper in the 1952–53 season, as Vale posted a second-place finish in the Third Division North. However, King regained his first team spot in the 1953–54 season, as Vale won the league title and reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup – Hancock featured just once all season. He played one Second Division game in 1954–55 and featured twice in 1955–56. Having made 53 appearances in all competitions for the "Valiants" he departed Vale Park when he was transferred to

in the summer of 1956.

Personal life

Hancock married wife Joan, a school teacher, in 1949. He worked at Masons Textiles in Leek, Staffordshire for many years.

Career statistics

Source:

Honours

Port Vale * Football League Third Division North: 1953–54

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hancock, Ray 1925 births 2007 deaths Footballers from Stoke-on-Trent English men's footballers Men's association football goalkeepers Bury F.C. players Port Vale F.C. players Northwich Victoria F.C. players English Football League players