Raymond Bradwell Drake (24 October 1934 – 30 March 2013) was an English footballer who played 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

Stockport County Stockport County Football Club is a professional association football club based in Stockport, Greater Manchester, England. The team competes in EFL League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1883 as Heaton ...

Career

Drake was born in

Stockport Stockport is a town in Greater Manchester, England, south-east of Manchester, south-west of Ashton-under-Lyne and north of Macclesfield. The River Goyt, Rivers Goyt and River Tame, Greater Manchester, Tame merge to create the River Mersey he ...

and joined local side

in 1956. Drake made an instant impact for County scoring 19 goals in the first season as a professional. This prompted

Bolton Wanderers Bolton Wanderers Football Club ( ) is a professional association football, football club based in Horwich, Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the Englis ...

to make a move for him as they saw him as a replacement for

Nat Lofthouse Nathaniel Lofthouse (27 August 1925 – 15 January 2011) was an English professional footballer who played as a forward for Bolton Wanderers for his entire career. He won 33 caps for England between 1950 and 1958, scoring 30 goals, with one ...

but a move did not materialise. Drake then had a major fall out with the manager Willie Moir and he left and went on to play in

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 ...

. He joined

Altrincham F.C. Altrincham Football Club is a professional football club based in Altrincham, Greater Manchester, England. Founded in 1891 and nicknamed "the Robins", they are currently members of and play at Moss Lane. History Altrincham was established b ...

in 1958, scoring once in 5 games. He later plated 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 ...

and Cheadle Town.

References

General * . Retrieved 19 April 2013. Specific 1934 births 2013 deaths Footballers from Stockport English men's footballers Men's association football forwards English Football League players Stockport County F.C. players Altrincham F.C. players Hyde United F.C. players 20th-century English sportsmen {{England-footy-forward-1930s-stub