John O'Donnell (25 March 1897 – 1952) was an English 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 lea ...

Career

Born in

Gateshead Gateshead () is a town in the Gateshead Metropolitan Borough of Tyne and Wear, England. It is on the River Tyne's southern bank. The town's attractions include the twenty metre tall Angel of the North sculpture on the town's southern outskirts, ...

County Durham County Durham, officially simply Durham, is a ceremonial county in North East England.UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. The county borders Northumberland and Tyne an ...

, on 25 March 1897, O'Donnell, like so many other footballers from the

North East The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A ''compass rose'' is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each ...

, started his career playing for his local

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team (in his case, Felling).

Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. It lies on the River Skerne, west of Middlesbrough and south of Durham. Darlington had a population of 107,800 at the 2021 Census, making it a "large town" ...

soon signed him, and he earned a reputation as a hard-tackling full-back. Everton paid around £3,000 for him soon afterwards, a fee that was rare for a defender. The move didn't work out, however, and

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside town in Lancashire, England. It is located on the Irish Sea coast of the Fylde peninsula, approximately north of Liverpool and west of Preston, Lancashire, Preston. It is the main settlement in the Borough of Blackpool ...

bought him for a similar price. O'Donnell joined the Seasiders in late 1930, making his debut for the club on 20 December, in a home game against

Grimsby Town Grimsby Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, England, that competes in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Nicknamed "the Mariners", the club was f ...

. For the next two seasons he became a regular in the back line as Blackpool tried desperately to retain their recently achieved

First Division 1st Division or First Division may refer to: Military Airborne divisions *1st Parachute Division (Germany) *1st Airborne Division (United Kingdom) * 1st Airmobile Division (Ukraine) * 1st Guards Airborne Division Armoured divisions *1st Armoure ...

status. O'Donnell's move coincided with a time of trouble for the Blackpool defence. By the end of the 1930-31 season, the club had conceded 125 goals, followed by 102. Disciplinary problems followed O'Donnell. It was reported on three occasions that the club had suspended him for various matters. Eventually it was mutually agreed to terminate his contract, and O'Donnell played out the remainder of his career in the lower leagues, notably with

Wigan Athletic Wigan Athletic Football Club is a professional association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England. The team competes in the EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system. Founded in 1932, they have p ...

. After just three months with Wigan, O'Donnell moved across the Irish Sea to join Dublin side

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in the

League of Ireland The League of Ireland is a national association football Sports league, league consisting of professional clubs in the Republic of Ireland and Derry, Derry City in Northern Ireland. It is governed by the Football Association of Ireland. It was ...

.Ryan, Seán, and Stephen Burke. The Book of Irish Goalscorers: (Republic of Ireland International, Inter-league, European Club and League of Ireland Goalscorers 1921-1987). Dundrum, Co. Dublin: Irish Soccer Co-op, 1987.

References

* * 1897 births 1952 deaths Footballers from Gateshead Men's association football defenders English men's footballers Darlington F.C. players Everton F.C. players Blackpool F.C. players Hartlepool United F.C. players Wigan Athletic F.C. players English Football League players 20th-century English sportsmen {{England-footy-defender-1890s-stub