Gordon Edward Bolland (born 12 August 1943 in

Boston, Lincolnshire Boston is a market town and inland port in the borough of the same name in the county of Lincolnshire, England. It lies to the south-east of Lincoln, east of Nottingham and north-east of Peterborough. The town had a population of 45,339 at ...

) is an English retired

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 ...

and manager. A striker, Bolland joined Londoners Chelsea as a teenager, and was a member of the sides which won the

FA Youth Cup The Football Association Youth Challenge Cup is an English football competition run by The Football Association for under-18 sides. Only those players between the age of 15 and 18 on 31 August of the current season are eligible to take part. It ...

in 1960 and 1961, alongside the likes of

Peter Bonetti Peter Philip Bonetti (27 September 1941 – 12 April 2020) was an English professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper for Chelsea, the St. Louis Stars, Dundee United and England. He was known for his safe handling, lightning reflexes a ...

, Ron Harris,

Terry Venables Terence Frederick Venables (6 January 1943 – 25 November 2023), often referred to as El Tel, was an English football player and manager who played for clubs including Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Queens Park Rangers and won two caps for E ...

and

Bobby Tambling Robert Victor Tambling (born 18 September 1941) is an English former professional footballer, who played as a forward, most notably for Chelsea, Crystal Palace and England. He was Chelsea's all-time top scorer for 47 years, with 202 goals in ...

. Despite this, he only made two appearances for the first team and was released in March 1962, after which he signed for

Leyton Orient Leyton Orient Football Club, commonly referred to as Orient, is a professional association football club based in Leyton, Waltham Forest, London, England. The team compete in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system. ...

. Bolland played for Orient during their only season in the English top flight, and scored 19 goals in 64 league games before joining

Norwich City Norwich City Football Club is a professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk, England. The club competes in the Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was founded in 1902. Since 1935, Norwich have played their h ...

in 1964 for £31,500, where he scored 29 goals in 105 league matches. After a brief spell with

Charlton Athletic Charlton Athletic Football Club is a professional association football club based in Charlton, south-east London, England. The team compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system. Their home ground is ...

, Bolland signed for

Millwall Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Poplar, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east of ...

for £10,000 in October 1968. Bolland proved to be a fast, skilful striker who could also drop into midfield to great effect. It was from this position that Bolland scored a spectacular goal against

Bristol City Bristol City Football Club is a professional football club based in Bristol, England. The team compete in the , the second level of the English football league system. Founded in 1894, the club competed in the Southern League and Western L ...

on 16 October 1971 which won the

Match Of The Day ''Match of the Day'' (abbreviated to ''MOTD'') is a Association football, football highlights programme, typically broadcast on BBC One on Saturday nights during the Premier League season. ''Match of the Day'' is one of the BBC's longest-runn ...

"Goal of the Month" award. In the 1972–73 season, Bolland scored 9 goals in seven consecutive league games. He remained with Millwall for seven years, scoring 62 goals in 244 games, and is an inductee of the club's Hall of Fame. He finished his career as

player-manager A player–coach (also playing coach, captain–coach, or player–manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. Player–coaches may be head coaches or assistant coaches, and they may make chang ...

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, the fifth level of the English football league system. The club is known as 'the ...

External links

Gordon Bolland Millwall Hall Of Fame
1943 births Boston United F.C. players Boston United F.C. managers Charlton Athletic F.C. players Chelsea F.C. players English men's footballers English football managers Leyton Orient F.C. players Living people Millwall F.C. players Norwich City F.C. players Footballers from Boston, Lincolnshire Men's association football forwards English Football League players {{England-footy-forward-1940s-stub