Richard Davis (footballer)
English footballer (born 1943)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Richard Frederick Davis (born 14 November 1943) is an English retired footballer who played as a full-back for various clubs in the 1960s.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Richard Frederick Davis | ||
| Date of birth | 14 November 1943 | ||
| Place of birth | Plymouth, England | ||
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)[1] | ||
| Position | Full-back | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1960–1961 | Plymouth Argyle | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1961–1964 | Plymouth Argyle | 23 | (0) |
| 1964–1965 | Southampton | 1 | (0) |
| 1965–1969 | Bristol City | 8 | (0) |
| 1969–1970 | Barrow | 50 | (0) |
| 1973–1976 | Falmouth Town | 185 | (33) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1979–1981 | Falmouth Town (player manager) | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Football career
Plymouth Argyle
Davis was born in Plymouth, Devon and joined his local club, Plymouth Argyle as a trainee in August 1960, going on to sign as a professional a year later on his 18th birthday.[1] Described as "a strongly built left-back",[1] Davis made his first-team debut in a 3–2 defeat at Derby County on 20 Mar 1963. In his second match, Davis came up against Stanley Matthews of Stoke City,[2] going down to another defeat. Despite being on the losing side in both his opening matches, Davis retained his place for the rest of the season.[3]
He started the 1963–64 season playing six of the first eight games, before losing his place to Wilf Carter. After another five league matches between late-November and mid-January, of which four were defeats, Davis returned to the reserves, with the long-serving Bryce Fulton taking over at left-back.[4] In his two seasons as a professional with Argyle, Davis made a total of 24 appearances.[5]
Southampton
Davis joined fellow Second Division side Southampton in July 1964.[1] He spent most of his time at The Dell in the reserves and made his solitary first-team appearance away to his former club on 17 February 1965, losing 4–0 as the "Saints" were "outplayed fore and aft" by Argyle, with Mike Trebilcock scoring twice.[6]
Later career
Davis left Southampton in July 1965 to join Bristol City where he made only eight appearances in a four-year spell before joining Barrow in March 1969 where he made 50 appearances[7] before dropping down to non-league football in the summer of 1970.[1]
He played for Falmouth Town between 1973 and 1976 and had a second spell at the club, from 1979 to 1981, as a player manager.[citation needed] He later assisted Plymouth Argyle in their School of Excellence and was also a physical education teacher in Plymouth for over 20 years.[8]