Ernest Percival Gillibrand (27 August 1901 – 1976) was an English

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 lea ...

who played predominantly as a

centre forward In the sport of association football, a forward (attacker or striker) is an outfield position which primarily plays further up the pitch than midfielders and defenders. As with any attacking player, the role of the forward relies heavily on be ...

, but could also play at

outside forward In the sport of association football, a forward (attacker or striker) is an outfield position which primarily plays further up the pitch than midfielders and defenders. As with any attacking player, the role of the forward relies heavily on bei ...

. He had a somewhat nomadic career, representing no fewer than 12 different clubs. During his career, Gillibrand played over 500 matches and scored in excess of 500 goals in the

Manchester Football League The Manchester Football League is a association football, football league in England, affiliated with Manchester Football Association, Manchester FA, covering a 30-mile radius from Manchester Town Hall. It was formed in 1893, although play ceased ...

. While playing for

Hyde United Hyde United Football Club is a semi-professional football club in Hyde, Greater Manchester, England, formed in 1919. The team's strip is red shirts and black shorts and their home ground is the 4,250 capacity Ewen Fields. Hyde United's record ...

, he set a league record of 87 goals in one season. He had a short spell as a professional player in the early stages of his career, and made two appearances in

the Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in the world, and was the top-level football league in England from ...

for

Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

Football career

As a youth, Gillibrand played for Hugh Oldham Lads and Compstall. In the 1920–21 season, he joined

Northwich Victoria Northwich is a market town and civil parish in the Cheshire West and Chester borough of Cheshire, England. It lies on the Cheshire Plain, at the confluence of the rivers River Weaver, Weaver and River Dane, Dane, east of Chester, south of Warr ...

of the

Cheshire County League The Cheshire County League was a football league founded in the north west of England in 1919, drawing its teams largely from Cheshire, surrounding English counties and North Wales. Initially the league was dominated by the reserve teams of Fo ...

. He subsequently played for

Glossop Glossop is a market town in the borough of High Peak (borough), High Peak, Derbyshire, England, east of Manchester, north-west of Sheffield and north of Matlock, Derbyshire, Matlock. Near Derbyshire's borders with Cheshire, Greater Mancheste ...

before signing for Football League side

Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club (commonly referred to as simply Villa) is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club, founded in 1874, compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The team have p ...

as an amateur in March 1922. Two months later, he was awarded a professional contract but he failed to break into the first-team and left the club at the end of the 1922–23 season. In August 1923, Gillibrand joined

Third Division North The Third Division North of the Football League was a tier in the English football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran in parallel with the Third Division South with clubs elected to the League or relegated from a higher division allocated to ...

outfit

on a free transfer. After spending the first few months in the reserve team, he made his Nelson debut on 29 December 1923 in the 1–1 draw away at

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside town in Lancashire, England. It is located on the Irish Sea coast of the Fylde peninsula, approximately north of Liverpool and west of Preston, Lancashire, Preston. It is the main settlement in the Borough of Blackpool ...

. Gillibrand made his second and final Nelson appearance in the following match, also against Blackpool, on 5 January 1924. After leaving Nelson, Gillibrand returned to

non-League football Non-League football describes association football, football leagues played outside the top leagues of a country. Usually, it describes leagues which are not fully professional. The term is primarily used for football in England, where it is ...

with Rossendale United. He spent just over one season with Rossendale before joining Manchester North End in October 1925. Gillibrand went on to play for several other clubs in the

over the following seasons, including

Stalybridge Celtic Stalybridge Celtic Football Club is an English football club based in Stalybridge, Greater Manchester. They are currently members of the and play at Bower Fold. The team traditionally plays in a blue and white strip. In 1921, Stalybridge Celti ...

and

Buxton Buxton is a spa town in the High Peak, Derbyshire, Borough of High Peak, Derbyshire, in the East Midlands region of England. It is England's highest market town, sited at some above sea level.Alston, Cumbria also claims this, but lacks a regu ...

. In 1929 he signed for

. During his single season with the club, Gillibrand scored a total of 86 goals, setting a new record haul for the Manchester League. He then had short spells with Denton United and Buxton prior to joining

Droylsden Droylsden is a town in Tameside, Greater Manchester, England, east of Manchester and west of Ashton-under-Lyne, with a population at the 2011 Census of 22,689. Within the boundaries of the historic county of Lancashire, in the mid-19th cen ...

in 1931. Gillibrand spent four seasons at the Butcher's Arms Ground, scoring a total of 275 goals in all competitions. In November 1934, he made his 500th appearance in the Manchester League, and scored his 500th league goal the following month in a match against his former club, Denton United. Gillibrand was awarded a testimonial match by Droylsden in March 1935, but left the club at the end of the 1934–35 campaign. He ended his career with spells at Ashton National and Stalybridge Celtic, where he was manager of the reserve team.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gillibrand, Ernest 1901 births 1976 deaths Footballers from Prestwich English men's footballers Men's association football forwards Northwich Victoria F.C. players Glossop North End A.F.C. players Aston Villa F.C. players Nelson F.C. players Rossendale United F.C. players Manchester North End F.C. players Stalybridge Celtic F.C. players Buxton F.C. players Denton United F.C. players Hyde United F.C. players Droylsden F.C. players Ashton National F.C. players English Football League players Manchester Football League players 20th-century English sportsmen