Verdi Godwin
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| 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 | ||
| Position(s) | 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) |
| 1958–1959 | Macclesfield Town | 3 | (0) |
| Total | 146 | (28) | |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Verdi Godwin BEM (11 February 1926 – 1 December 2013) was an English footballer who played as a forward in the Football League for Blackburn Rovers, Manchester City, Mansfield Town, Middlesbrough, Grimsby Town, Brentford and Stoke City. After retiring as a player, he worked as a scout.[3]
Godwin was born in Blackburn and began his career with local club Blackburn Rovers.[1] He scored six league goals in two seasons at Ewood Park and joined Manchester City in June 1948.[4] He scored three goals in eight matches for City before joining Stoke City,[5] 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 scored just once more in the next 20 league matches and by January he was transferred to Third Division Mansfield Town in part-exchange for Harry Oscroft.[1] Following his spell with the Stags, Godwin became a journeyman and spent short spells with Middlesbrough, Grimsby Town, Brentford, Southport, Barrow, Tranmere Rovers and finally Macclesfield.[1][6]
Personal life
After retiring from football, Godwin worked during the summer for 36 years as a lifeguard on Southport beach.[7] He was awarded the British Empire Medal in recognition of his service.[7]