George Wood (footballer)
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | George Wood | ||
| Date of birth | 26 September 1952 | ||
| Place of birth | Douglas, Scotland | ||
| Playing position | Goalkeeper | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Forth Wanderers | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1970–1971 | East Stirlingshire | 43 | (1) |
| 1971–1977 | Blackpool | 117 | (0) |
| 1977–1980 | Everton | 103 | (0) |
| 1980–1983 | Arsenal | 60 | (0) |
| 1983–1987 | Crystal Palace | 192 | (0) |
| 1987–1990 | Cardiff City | 67 | (0) |
| 1989–1990 | → Blackpool (loan) | 15 | (0) |
| 1990–1991 | Hereford United | 41 | (0) |
| 1991–1992 | Merthyr Tydfil | 32 | (0) |
| 1992–1997 | Inter Cardiff | 127 | (0) |
| National team | |||
| 1979–1982 | Scotland | 4 | (0) |
| Teams managed | |||
| Unknown | Inter Cardiff | ||
|
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. | |||
George Wood (born 26 September 1952 in Douglas, South Lanarkshire) is a Scottish former footballer who played as a goalkeeper for Blackpool, Everton, Arsenal, Crystal Palace and Cardiff City during his career. [1][2][3][4]
Club career
George Wood started his career at East Stirlingshire for whom he scored a goal from his own penalty area against Queen of the South on 9 January 1971.[5]
He moved to Blackpool in 1972, for £10,000 as a cover for John Burridge. This fee thus comprised an initial £7,000, which was followed by another £3,000 after making twelve appearances for the club. Wood made his debut on 15 April 1972, in a 2–0 home victory over that of Oxford United. He then spent the next four years jostling for the No. 1 jersey with Burridge, eventually establishing himself in 1975–76 after Budgie was sold to Aston Villa.[1]
He was signed by First Division side Everton for £150,000 on 18 August 1977.[2] He was the Toffees first-choice goalkeeper for the next three seasons, making over 120 appearances.
Wood joined Arsenal in August 1980 for £140,000,[3] to be the successor to Pat Jennings, with whom he shared the first-team goalkeeper's spot for the next three seasons. Jennings' longevity counted against Wood, and, as he was unable to supplant the Irish veteran, Wood was given a free transfer in May of 1983 having made 61 appearances in goal for Arsenal.[3]
He was then signed by Crystal Palace and was their first choice keeper for the next four-and-a-half seasons. Wood made 192 league appearances for Palace, winning the club's Player of The Year" award in 1986. [4]
Wood made a move to Cardiff City in January 1988, where he made 67 league appearances, and ended his league career with a loan spell to Bloomfield Road , featuring once again for the Tangerines in 1989. He then played for Hereford United in the 1990–91 season. Stints followed afterward at non-league sides Merthyr Tydfil and Inter Cardiff which was a side that Wood later managed.
International career
Wood's international career saw firstly Alan Rough and then later Jim Leighton competing with him for a place in the side. He made his debut for Scotland, playing against Northern Ireland on 22 May 1979.He all in all earned four caps for Scotland between 1979 and 1982, the last coming against Northern Ireland on 28 April 1982. Wood also found himself being a member of Scotland's squad for the World Cup of 1982 which was held in Spain.[6]
Coaching
He was the goalkeeper coach at Hartlepool United, having previously worked in a similar position at Cardiff City. In June of 2009, Wood was appointed as goalkeeping coach at Swindon Town.[7]
He then returned to former club Blackpool for a third time within August of 2011 in a similar role.[8] In December 2012 he joined Crystal Palace as goalkeeper coach.[9]
Honours
- Player of the Year: 1986[4]
- Individual
References
- 1 2 Calley, Roy (1992). Blackpool: A Complete Record 1887–1992, p.126. Breedon Books.
- 1 2 Gillatt, Peter (30 November 2009). Blackpool FC On This Day: History, Facts and Figures from Every Day of the Year. Pitch Publishing Ltd. ISBN 1-905411-50-2.
- 1 2 3 "George Wood: Profile". Arsenal.com.
- 1 2 3 "A story of Palace keepers". Read Crystal Palace.com.
- ↑ "Spurs check Leeds march to soccer title". The Gazette. Montreal. The Canadian Press. 11 January 1971. p. 17. Retrieved 19 July 2014.
- ↑ "George Wood: Profile". Scotland Epistles.com.
- ↑ "Wood appointed goalkeeping coach". Swindon. Vital Football.co.uk.
- ↑ "Coach McPhee walks out in wage row". Blackpool Gazette.co.uk.
- ↑ "Wood follows Holloway". Sky Sports.com.
- Soar, Phil; Tyler, Martin (2005). The Official Illustrated History of Arsenal. Hamlyn. ISBN 0-600-61344-5.
External links
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