Derek Neate

Derek George Stanbridge Neate (1 October 1927 – October 2014) was an English professional footballer who played as a winger in the Football League for Brighton & Hove Albion.[1]

Derek Neate
Personal information
Full name Derek George Stanbridge Neate[1]
Date of birth (1927-10-01)1 October 1927[1]
Place of birth Uxbridge, England
Date of death October 2014 (2014-11) (aged 87)[1]
Place of death West Sussex, England
Height 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)[2]
Position(s) Winger
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1947–1956 Hayes
1956–1959 Brighton & Hove Albion 24 (6)
1959–1962 Bognor Regis Town
Teams managed
1959–1962 Bognor Regis Town (player-manager)
1964–1966 Southwick
1967–1968 Worthing
1968–19?? Steyning Town
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Life and career

Neate was born in 1927 in Uxbridge, Middlesex.[1] He began playing football as an amateur for Hayes in 1947.[3] A winger known for his pace, Neate was under consideration to represent Great Britain at the 1948 London Olympics as a sprinter, but an appearance in the Powderhall Sprint, a race with a cash prize, had deprived him of his amateur status and therefore his eligibility.[4] He continued as a regular in the Hayes team until a broken leg suffered in May 1952 deprived him not only of a whole season's football but also of possible selection for the Great Britain football team at the 1952 Olympics.[3][4] He gained weight and lost confidence while out injured, and found it difficult to re-establish himself in the side.[3][5] He then suffered burst blood vessels in a leg and other health issues, and was advised to retire, but by late 1955 his form and fitness had returned.[6]

Towards the end of the 1955–56 season, Neate turned professional with Brighton & Hove Albion. He made his debut in a 1–1 draw with promotion rivals Leyton Orient, a match that Albion needed to win, and by the end of the following season had made 28 appearances in the Third Division South and scored six goals. He stayed with the club for a further two years, but Denis Foreman and Frankie Howard kept him out of the first team.[2] He settled in Lancing, West Sussex,[3] and spent three years as player-manager of County League club Bognor Regis Town, and also managed Southwick, Worthing and Steyning Town, before retiring from the game.[2]

Neate died in West Sussex in 2014 at the age of 87.[1]

References
  1. "Derek Neate". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 30 November 2018.
  2. Carder, Tim; Harris, Roger (1997). Albion A–Z: A Who's Who of Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. Hove: Goldstone Books. pp. 181–182. ISBN 978-0-9521337-1-1.
  3. "A–Z of Hayes FC: N". Hayes & Yeading United F.C. Retrieved 30 November 2018.
  4. "Tell Tom: Derek's Olympics". BBC South Today. 11 October 2008. Retrieved 30 November 2018.
  5. "Hayes recall Neate to Cup team". Middlesex Advertiser and County Gazette. 18 December 1953. p. 10. Derek Neate, who lost his place to Robin Long early in October. Neate who two seasons ago touched near England form, found it hard to regain confidence after a long absence following a broken leg.
  6. "Amateur footballer whose name is hitting the headlines". Middlesex Advertiser and County Gazette. 13 January 1956. p. 11. At different times during the past three years Derek has broken a leg, lost the use of the other leg temporarily through burst blood vessels, and had an operation for kidney trouble. He was warned to give up playing and many Hayes fans wondered last season whether they would ever see this popular player in action again. Since he returned to the first team recently he has been putting up some brilliant performances, and after seeing him last Saturday when he scored both goals which knocked Hounslow out of the Middlesex Senior Cup, one well known sports writer has suggested that Derek deserves a trial for England.
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