George Mulholland (footballer)
George R. Mulholland (4 August 1928 – January 2002) was a Scottish professional footballer who played more than 400 games for league clubs Stoke City, Bradford City and Darlington.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 4 August 1928 | ||
| Place of birth | Ayr, Scotland | ||
| Date of death | January 2002 (aged 73) | ||
| Position(s) | Full back | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1950–1953 | Stoke City | 3 | (0) |
| 1953–1960 | Bradford City | 277 | (0) |
| 1960–1963 | Darlington | 106 | (0) |
| 1963–1966 | Billingham Synthonia | ||
| Total | 386 | (0) | |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only | |||
Early life
Mulholland was born in Ayr, Scotland on 4 August 1928.[1] He moved to the Potteries with his family when he was aged two-years-old.[2] Mulholland served in the Royal Navy during the Second World War before he returned to the Stoke area.[2]
Football career
Mulholland signed for Stoke City as an amateur during the 1949–50 season initially as a forward. He became a full-time professional in July 1950 but made only three league appearances in three years and was signed by Bradford City manager Ivor Powell on a free transfer in July 1953.[1]
Mulholland was turned into a full back by Powell and handed his debut on 29 August 1953 against Chesterfield.[1] He played the remaining 43 games of the 1953–54 season as Bradford finished fifth in Division Three (North).[3] He was then an ever-present in the City side for the following four seasons, failing to miss a league or cup game for the club until he fractured his leg 12 minutes from the end of a game against Mansfield Town on 1 September 1958.[1] His run of 237 league games, and 246 in total, broke the club's record of consecutive appearances held by another full back Charlie Bicknell.[2] The run coincided with goalkeeper Geoff Smith, who played 200 consecutive league games between 1954 and 1958.[1] Mulholland returned to the side in November 1958, playing 22 during the 1958–59 season and a further 28 the following season.[2] During his stay at Bradford, he had just two partners at full back—Jock Whyte and Tommy Flockett.[1] He was renowned for his pace, and functions to defend and mark the opposition winger, and has been inaugurated into the club's hall of fame.[1]
In July 1960, Mulholland was given a free transfer to Darlington where he played another 106 league games, finishing his professional career with 386 league games but without scoring.[2] His time at Darlington also included a game in front of a club record crowd of 21,023 in a 2–1 defeat to Bolton Wanderers on 14 November 1960.[4] He retired from the professional ranks in 1963, and played for non-league side Billingham Synthonia before he retired three years later.[1]
Post-football career
Mulholland retired to Billingham, where he held a number of jobs, including at ICI, as a school teacher and an insurance agent. He died in January 2002 at the age of 73, after a four-year battle with cancer.[1]
Career statistics
- Sourced from George Mulholland at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Stoke City | 1950–51 | First Division | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 3 | 0 | |
| 1951–52 | First Division | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1952–53 | First Division | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 3 | 0 | |||
| Bradford City | 1953–54 | Third Division North | 43 | 0 | 2 | 0 | – | 45 | 0 | |
| 1954–55 | Third Division North | 46 | 0 | 5 | 0 | – | 51 | 0 | ||
| 1955–56 | Third Division North | 46 | 0 | 3 | 0 | – | 49 | 0 | ||
| 1956–57 | Third Division North | 46 | 0 | 1 | 0 | – | 47 | 0 | ||
| 1957–58 | Third Division North | 46 | 0 | 4 | 0 | – | 50 | 0 | ||
| 1958–59 | Third Division | 22 | 0 | 4 | 0 | – | 26 | 0 | ||
| 1959–60 | Third Division | 28 | 0 | 8 | 0 | – | 36 | 0 | ||
| Total | 277 | 0 | 27 | 0 | – | 304 | 0 | |||
| Darlington | 1960–61 | Fourth Division | 45 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 54 | 0 |
| 1961–62 | Fourth Division | 41 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 43 | 0 | |
| 1962–63 | Fourth Division | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 21 | 0 | |
| Total | 106 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 118 | 0 | ||
| Career Total | 386 | 0 | 33 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 425 | 0 | ||
References
- Markham, David (2007). The legends of Bradford City. Breedon Books Sport. pp. 136–137. ISBN 978-1-85983-572-2.
- Frost, Terry (1988). Bradford City A Complete Record 1903–1988. Breedon Books Sport. p. 125. ISBN 0-907969-38-0.
- Frost. Bradford City A Complete Record 1903–1988. p. 249.
- "Can we afford to lose 120 years of history?". Darlington & Stockton Times. 27 January 2004. Retrieved 1 May 2008.