Verdi Godwin
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Verdi Godwin[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 11 February 1926[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Blackburn, England[1] | ||
| Date of death | 1 December 2013 (aged 87)[2] | ||
| Place of death | Southport, England | ||
| Playing position | Forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Middlesbrough | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1946–1948 | Blackburn Rovers | 27 | (6) |
| 1948–1949 | Manchester City | 8 | (3) |
| 1949–1950 | Stoke City | 22 | (2) |
| 1950–1951 | Mansfield Town | 31 | (9) |
| 1951–1952 | Middlesbrough | 0 | (0) |
| 1952 | Grimsby Town | 1 | (0) |
| 1953 | Brentford | 7 | (1) |
| 1954–1955 | Southport | 17 | (2) |
| 1955–1956 | Barrow | 15 | (3) |
| 1956–1957 | Tranmere Rovers | 14 | (2) |
| 1957–1958 | Macclesfield Town | 3 | (0) |
| Total | 146 | (28) | |
|
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. | |||
Verdi Godwin BEM (11 February 1926 – 1 December 2013) was a former English footballer who played in the Football League for Blackburn Rovers, Manchester City, Mansfield Town, Middlesbrough, Grimsby Town, Brentford and Stoke City.[1]
Career
Godwin was born in Blackburn and began his career with local side Blackburn Rovers.[1] He scored six goals in two seasons at Ewood Park and joined Manchester City in the summer of 1948.[1] He scored three goals in eight matches for Man City before joining Stoke City whose manager Bob McGrory saw Godwin as the answer to Stoke's goalscoring problem in 1949–50.[1] However, despite scoring on his debut Godwin was poor and scored just once more in the next 20 matches and by January he was used as a part exchange with Third Division Mansfield Town for Harry Oscroft.[1] Godwin then became a journeyman striker spending short spells at Middlesbrough, Grimsby Town, Brentford, Southport, Barrow and finally Tranmere Rovers.[1]
Personal life
After retiring from football, Godwin worked during the summer for 36 years as a lifeguard on Southport beach. He was award the British Empire Medal in recognition for his service.[3]
Career statistics
- Sourced from Verdi Godwin profile at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Blackburn Rovers | 1946–47 | First Division | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 1 |
| 1947–48 | First Division | 12 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 5 | |
| Manchester City | 1948–49 | First Division | 8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 3 |
| Stoke City | 1949–50 | First Division | 22 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 23 | 2 |
| Mansfield Town | 1949–50 | Third Division North | 17 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 7 |
| 1950–51 | Third Division North | 14 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 2 | |
| Grimsby Town | 1951–52 | Third Division North | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Brentford | 1951–52 | Second Division | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1952–53 | Second Division | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | |
| 1953–54 | Second Division | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Southport | 1954–55 | Third Division North | 17 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 2 |
| Barrow | 1955–56 | Third Division North | 15 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 16 | 4 |
| Tranmere Rovers | 1955–56 | Third Division North | 14 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 2 |
| Career Total | 142 | 28 | 2 | 1 | 144 | 29 | ||
References
External links
- Verdi Godwin stats at Neil Brown stat site