Ian Mellor (19 February 1950 – 1 May 2024) 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 lea ...

who played as a

left winger In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

Career

Mellor was born in Sale, England. He began his career with

Manchester City Manchester City Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in Manchester, England, that competes in the Premier League, the English football league system, top flight of Football in England, English footbal ...

. He played as a substitute as City won the

1972 FA Charity Shield The 1972 FA Charity Shield was contested between Manchester City and Aston Villa. Normally, the Charity Shield would have been contested by the First Division champions and FA Cup holders, who were Derby County and Leeds United respectively, but ...

. He then moved to

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 1973 for a fee of £65,000. The Canaries were struggling against relegation in their first season in English football's top division when Mellor joined. He played in the last eleven league games of the season and played his part in helping the club stay up. He went on to score nine goals in 43 games for Norwich. He the joined

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

where he was known as "Spider" thanks to his very long legs. He played 122 times for Brighton and scored 31 goals in a partnership up top with Peter Ward. On a wet and windy night at the Goldstone in 1977, the match against Walsall was goalless at half time. In the second half, Mellor scored a hat trick and Ward four goals for a 7-0 demolition, only 17 days apart from another seven goal feat in a 7-2 win against York City. In February 1978, he moved for £25,000 to

Chester Chester is a cathedral city in Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, Wales, River Dee, close to the England–Wales border. With a built-up area population of 92,760 in 2021, it is the most populous settlement in the borough of Cheshire West an ...

, He helped Chester finish fifth in

Division Three The Football League Third Division was the third tier of the English football league system in 1920–21 and again from 1958 until 1992. When the FA Premier League was formed, the Third Division become the fourth tier of English football. In 2 ...

in his first season and was on target in a

Football League Cup The English Football League Cup, often referred to as the League Cup and currently known as the Carabao Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout competition in men's domestic football in England. Orga ...

giantkilling against

First Division 1st Division or First Division may refer to: Military Airborne divisions *1st Parachute Division (Germany) *1st Airborne Division (United Kingdom) * 1st Airmobile Division (Ukraine) * 1st Guards Airborne Division Armoured divisions *1st Armoure ...

side

Coventry City Coventry City Football Club is an English professional football club based in Coventry, West Midlands. The club plays in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club is nicknamed The Sky Blues after the sky blue colou ...

early in 1978–79. At the end of the season Mellor moved to

Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an off ...

, scoring in a 4–0 defeat of Sheffield United. He joined

Bradford City Bradford City Association Football Club is an English professional football club in Bradford, West Yorkshire. The club competes in , the third tier of English football, and is managed by Graham Alexander. The club was founded in 1903 and ...

in June 1982. He also played briefly in Hong Kong for Tung Sing before ending his professional career.

Personal life and death

Mellor was the father of former

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

striker

Neil Mellor Neil Andrew Mellor (born 4 November 1982) is an English retired professional footballer who played as a striker. He began his career at Liverpool in the Premier League. He made his name in 2004 by scoring a stunning last-minute goal from long r ...

. He died following a battle against

amyloidosis Amyloidosis is a group of diseases in which abnormal proteins, known as amyloid fibrils, build up in tissue. There are several non-specific and vague signs and symptoms associated with amyloidosis. These include fatigue, peripheral edema, weigh ...

on 1 May 2024, at the age of 74.

References

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Ian Mellor
Post War English & Scottish Football League A - Z Player's Transfer Database

Notes

1950 births 2024 deaths Footballers from Sale, Greater Manchester English men's footballers Men's association football wingers English Football League players Manchester City F.C. players Norwich City F.C. players Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. players Chester City F.C. players Kiveton Park F.C. players Sheffield Wednesday F.C. players Bradford City A.F.C. players Worksop Town F.C. players {{england-footy-midfielder-1950s-stub