John Bertolini (21 March 1934 – 21 June 2021) was a Scottish 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

wing half 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. ...

. He was later a manager.

Career

Born in

Alloa Alloa (Received Pronunciation ; Scottish pronunciation /ˈaloʊa/; , possibly meaning "rock plain") is a town in Clackmannanshire in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. It is on the north bank of the Forth at the spot where some say it ceases to ...

, of Italian descent, Bertolini played for Alva Albion Rangers,

Stirling Albion Stirling Albion Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the city of Stirling. The club was founded in 1945 following the demise of King's Park after World War II. The club currently competes in as a member of the Scottish Profession ...

Workington Workington is a coastal town and civil parish in the Cumberland district of Cumbria, England. The town is at the mouth of the River Derwent on the west coast, south-west of Carlisle and north-east of Whitehaven. At the 2021 census the ...

and

Brighton & Hove Albion Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club, commonly referred to as Brighton, is a professional football club based in Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. Their home gr ...

. Signed by Albion manager Billy Lane, Bertolini played at right half and had a spell of 193 consecutive appearances during his career at the Goldstone. A knee-ligament injury while turning out for the reserves ended his career in October 1965. After retiring, he managed

Whitehawk Whitehawk is a suburb in the east of Brighton, England, south of Bevendean and north of Brighton Marina. The area is a large, modern housing estate built in a downland dry valley historically known as Whitehawk Bottom. The estate was originall ...

ran a pub in

Shoreham-by-Sea Shoreham-by-Sea (often shortened to Shoreham) is a coastal town and port in the Adur District, Adur district, in the county of West Sussex, England. In 2011 it had a population of 20,547. The town is bordered to its north by the South Downs, to ...

, West Sussex, and worked in the car and van hire business. He suffered from dementia and spent the last eight years of his life in a care home in

Worthing Worthing ( ) is a seaside town and borough in West Sussex, England, at the foot of the South Downs, west of Brighton, and east of Chichester. With a population of 113,094 and an area of , the borough is the second largest component of the Br ...

, where he died on 21 June 2021, aged 87.

References

1934 births 2021 deaths Footballers from Alloa Scottish people of Italian descent Scottish men's footballers Men's association football wing halves Alva Albion Rangers F.C. players Stirling Albion F.C. players Workington A.F.C. players Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. players Scottish Football League players English Football League players Scottish football managers Whitehawk F.C. managers 20th-century Scottish sportsmen {{Scotland-footy-midfielder-1930s-stub