Reginald Flewin (28 November 1920 – 24 May 2008) 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 ...

who played as a central defender for his hometown club

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 ...

. Flewin signed a professional contract with Portsmouth on his 17th birthday in 1937, and made his senior debut for the club against

Grimsby Town Grimsby Town Football Club is a professional football club based in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, England, that in the 2022–23 season will compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system, following the victory in t ...

in April 1939. Following the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, Flewin's football career came to a halt. He served in the Royal Marines during hostilities, and occasionally turned out for Portsmouth in wartime football, winning an

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

wartime cap against

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

on 16 September 1944. When football resumed at the end of the war, Flewin became a regular in Portsmouth's defence, and was also named the team's captain. He was a member of the sides that won consecutive league titles in 1948–49 and 1949–50. In 1949 the team was tipped to become the first to win the double but lost to

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 ...

. Flewin retired in 1953, having played 163 first-team matches for Portsmouth. Following his playing career, Flewin moved into coaching. He first took charge of Portsmouth's youth team, and later became assistant to manager Eddie Lever. He remained assistant manager at Portsmouth until October 1960, when he accepted the job as manager of

Stockport County Stockport County Football Club are a professional football club in Stockport, England, who compete in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1883 as Heaton Norris Rovers, they were renamed Stockport Co ...

. In September 1963, he moved back south to become manager at Bournemouth, where he spent two years before resigning in 1965. After leaving football, Flewin settled on the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a Counties of England, county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the List of islands of England#Largest islands, largest and List of islands of England#Mo ...

, where he managed the Fort Warden holiday camp in Totland Bay. He died in May 2008, aged 87 a week after the

2008 FA Cup Final The 2008 FA Cup Final was an association football match between Cardiff City and Portsmouth held at Wembley Stadium, London, on 17 May 2008. The final was the showpiece match of English football's primary cup competition, the 2007–08 Footbal ...

References

External links

The Independent: Reg Flewin obituaryPortsmouth News: Pompey mourn death of legend Flewin
{{DEFAULTSORT:Flewin, Reg 1920 births 2008 deaths English men's footballers English football managers Portsmouth F.C. players Stockport County F.C. managers AFC Bournemouth managers England men's wartime international footballers Royal Marines personnel of World War II Footballers from Portsmouth Men's association football central defenders Military personnel from Portsmouth Royal Marines ranks