Glassey Bob Image 1 Mansfield Town 1939

Description

Chester-le-Street, County Durham born inside left Bob Glassey began his football career with Horden Colliery Welfare (later renamed Darlington Town), from where he was signed by First Division club Liverpool in March 1934, making his Football League debut against Preston North End at Anfield in December 1935, scoring in only the fifth minute of his debut in a 2-1 win. He then added an even quicker strike in the first minute of the victory at Brentford a week later. He played 8 times in the First Division during the 1935-36 season, scoring four goals in all including a brace in a 2-2 draw with Middlesbrough in April 1936.

However Glassey had only made one further first team appearance the following season, playing in a defeat at Leeds United on 26th September, when he broke his leg in a reserve game on the last day of October against Aston Villa. After being released from the club in the summer of 1937, Glassey returned to his former amateur club, Horden Colliery Welfare  and restarted his professional career with Stoke City, joining them in February 1938, but he failed to make the first eleven at The Potters and joined Third Division (South) club Mansfield Town in the 1939 close season.

Glassey scored on his debut for The Stags in a 5-4 defeat to Crystal Palace and played in both of Mansfield’s other two matches before the outbreak of the Second World War on 3rd September 1939 forced the abandonment of peacetime football and effectively ended his professional career. After the War he returned to play for Horden Colliery Welfare in 1945 and subsequently played for Stockton in 1946 and West Stanley in 1947 before his eventual retirement.

NB in the photograph it’s probable that he’s wearing a Liverpool shirt, in which case it would date to around 1936.