John Simpson (27 October 1918 – 21 June 2000) was an English-born

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 ...

who played as a left back in

The Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in Association football around the wor ...

in the 1940s and 1950s. After playing as an amateur for

Hull City Hull City Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England, that compete in the . They have played home games at the MKM Stadium since moving from Boothferry Park in 2002. The club's t ...

reserves, he started his league career with

Huddersfield Town Huddersfield Town Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The team have played home games at the Kirklees Stadium since moving from Leeds Road in 1994. Th ...

and then moved to

York City York City Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of York, North Yorkshire, England. As of the 2022–23 season, the team compete in the National League, at the fifth tier of the English football league sys ...

, first playing for them in 1947–48. He went on to play over 200 games for the Minstermen. He retired through injury in 1954. During the war, John was in the Army Physical Training Corps and guested for Plymouth Argyle, Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic,

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

Leyton Orient Leyton Orient Football Club is a professional football club based in Leyton, East London, England, who compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. They are the second oldest football club in London to play at a profession ...

Aldershot Aldershot () is a town in Hampshire, England. It lies on heathland in the extreme northeast corner of the county, southwest of London. The area is administered by Rushmoor Borough Council. The town has a population of 37,131, while the Alder ...

and

Leeds United Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire in England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of England's football league system, and plays its home matches at Elland Road ...

. After a spell out of the game, he spent 9 years coaching at

before moving to

Hartlepool United Hartlepool United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Hartlepool, County Durham, England. The team competes in EFL League Two, League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. They were founded i ...

as coach. In April 1970 he was appointed manager of Football League Fourth Division side Hartlepool, and he remained as manager until March 1971. In 1971, he joined Cambridge United United and helped them to 2 promotion successes. In summer 1977, he was appointed physiotherapist at

. He retired in May 1983 after a testimonial game against

.York City F.C. match programme. 9 May 1983. p. 4-5.

References

1918 births English men's footballers Footballers from Kingston upon Hull 2000 deaths Men's association football fullbacks English Football League players Bridlington Trinity F.C. players Huddersfield Town A.F.C. players York City F.C. players Grantham Town F.C. players English football managers English Football League managers Hartlepool United F.C. managers People from Hedon York City F.C. non-playing staff {{England-footy-defender-1910s-stub