Calland Ralph Image 1 Torquay United 1948

Description

Lanchester, County Durham born left back Ralph Calland began his football career with Annfield Plain from where he was signed by First Division club Charlton Athletic in May 1937. He spent two seasons at The Valley without making their first eleven before joining Third Division (South) club Torquay United in May 1939, making his Football League debut against Mansfield Town in the last match of the subsequently abandoned 1939-40 Football League season a day before the outbreak of the Second World War in September 1939.

With peacetime football then abandoned, Calland had to wait seven years for his next appearance for The Gulls, when he played in Torquay’s first post-war League match and was an ever present in their first post-war season. Described as a “grand player.. strong and forceful, he is a real ‘ninety minute’ man and rarely plays a bad game”, Calland played regularly in Torquay’s first six seasons after the War but lost his place in March 1952 and only played irregularly thereafter, his last match coming against Leyton Orient in September 1953, after which he retired having scored 14 goals, 13 of which were penalties, in 222 appearances for Torquay United.

His younger brother Andrew Calland was a forward who scored 11 goals in 24 appearances for Torquay United in the early 1950’s.