Geoff Barrowcliffe (18 October 1931 – 26 September 2009) was an English professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

who played as a fullback in

The Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in Association football around the wor ...

for

Derby County Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Derby, Derbyshire, England. In 2022, it was announced that DCFC was acquired by Clowes Developments (UK) Ltd, a Derbyshire-based property group. Founded in 188 ...

, and also played for several non-league clubs. Barrowcliffe began his career at non-league Ilkeston Town, before being signed by Derby in October 1950. He spent the next 16 years at the Baseball Ground, and played 475 league games for the Rams. He also scored 37 goals for the club, most of them from the penalty spot. He left Derby at the end of the 1965–66, and joined

Boston United Boston United Football Club is a semi-professional association football club based in Boston, Lincolnshire, England. The club participates in the National League North, at the sixth tier of the English football league system. The club is known ...

, where he played 41 games and scored 11 goals. He later played for Heanor Town, Moor Green Colliery, Kimberley Town and Long Eaton United and managed Kimberley Town and Radford. Barrowcliffe died in

Ilkeston Ilkeston is a town in the Borough of Erewash, Derbyshire, England, on the River Erewash, from which the borough takes its name, with a population at the 2011 census of 38,640. Its major industries, coal mining, iron working and lace making/texti ...

on 26 September 2009, a few weeks before his 78th birthday. He had been suffering from Alzheimer's disease. Minute silences were observed before both Derby County's

Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...

game against

Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an offshoot ...

on 3 October and a friendly between Derby and Ilkeston Town on 5 October.

References

1931 births 2009 deaths People from Ilkeston Footballers from Derbyshire English footballers Association football fullbacks English Football League players Ilkeston Town F.C. (1945) players Derby County F.C. players Boston United F.C. players Deaths from Alzheimer's disease Deaths from dementia in England People from Little Eaton {{England-footy-defender-1930s-stub