Patrick John Gavin (born 5 June 1967) 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 ...

. He played as a striker for several clubs, with probably his most successful spell coming at Gillingham.

Career

Gavin started out playing for non-league Hanwell Town whilst working as a postman (earning him the nickname "

Postman Pat ''Postman Pat'' is a British stop motion animated television series, animated children's television series first produced by Woodland Animations. The series follows the adventures of Pat Clifton, a Mail carrier, postman who works for the Royal ...

") before he was signed on a short-term contract by Gillingham of the

Football League Third Division The Football League Third Division was the third tier of the English football league system in 1920–21 Football League, 1920–21 and again from 1958–59 Football League, 1958 until 1991–92 Football League, 1992. When the FA Premier League ...

towards the end of the 1988-89 season. This was the first transfer deal for which Hanwell had ever received a fee. He scored seven goals in just thirteen games, although this was not enough to save the Gills from relegation. Impressed with his ability, Gillingham moved quickly to sign him to a permanent contract, however due to an oversight the contract was not correctly registered with 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, it is the oldest football league in Association football around the world, the w ...

. As this left Gavin technically out of contract,

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 ...

club

Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

were able to sign him up. After protracted wrangling, Leicester agreed to allow him to return to Gillingham on loan for the 1989-90 season but the controversy affected his form and he scored just one goal in over thirty matches. Upon his return to Leicester he was unable to secure a first-team place and moved on to

Peterborough United Peterborough United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England. The team compete in League One, the third level of the English football league system. Peterborough United formed in ...

for a fee of £15,000. Gavin broke a club record by scoring in his first five consecutive matches, helping the Posh to promotion that season. He later played for

Northampton Town Northampton Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Northampton, England. The team competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the English football league system. Founded in 1897, the c ...

and

Wigan Athletic Wigan Athletic Football Club is a professional association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England. The team competes in the EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system. Founded in 1932, they have p ...

before drifting into

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 ...

, starting with two seasons at

Farnborough Town Farnborough Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in Farnborough, Hampshire, England. Founded in 1967 as Farnborough Town, they are currently members of the , the sixth tier of English football and play at Cherrywood Road. ...

. During his time with Northampton Town, he scored two goals against

Shrewsbury Town Shrewsbury Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England. The team currently competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1886, the club were inaugur ...

on the last day of the 1992-93 season which left Northampton as 3-2 winners, thus preserving their league status. In 2005 Gavin returned to the club where he had started his career, Hanwell Town, initially as player-coach. In January 2006 he stepped up to the role of joint manager, but his tenure ended in February 2007.

References

Sources

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Pat Gavin career stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gavin, Pat 1967 births Living people Gillingham F.C. players Leicester City F.C. players Peterborough United F.C. players Northampton Town F.C. players Wigan Athletic F.C. players Aylesbury United F.C. players Chelmsford City F.C. players Harrow Borough F.C. players Hendon F.C. players Footballers from the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham People from Hammersmith Men's association football forwards English men's footballers English football managers English football coaches English Football League players