Anthony Connell (27 January 1944 – 30 December 2024) was a Scottish

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

player and coach. A full-back, he played for

Third Lanark Third Lanark Athletic Club was a Scottish football club based in Glasgow. Founded in 1872 as an offshoot of the 3rd Lanarkshire Rifle Volunteers, the club was a founder member of the Scottish Football Association (SFA) in 1872 and the Scottish ...

, St Mirren and Queen of the South in the

Scottish Football League The Scottish Football League (SFL) is a defunct league featuring professional and semi-professional football clubs mostly from Scotland.One club, Berwick Rangers, is based in the town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, which is located approximately 4&nbs ...

and also played Junior football with

Pollok Pollok (, ) is a large housing estate on the south-western side of the city of Glasgow, Scotland. The estate was built either side of World War II to house families from the overcrowded inner city. Housing 30,000 at its peak, its population ha ...

for his final two seasons, then coached them for one season after his retirement.

Playing career

Connell was born in

Govan Govan ( ; Cumbric: ''Gwovan''; Scots language, Scots: ''Gouan''; Scottish Gaelic: ''Baile a' Ghobhainn'') is a district, parish, and former burgh now part of southwest Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated west of Glasgow city centre, on the sout ...

; he started his senior career with

in 1963, moving from local

junior Junior or Juniors may refer to: Aircraft * Ekolot JK-05L Junior, a Polish ultralight aircraft * PZL-112 Junior, a Polish training aircraft * SZD-51 Junior, a Polish-made training and club glider Arts and entertainment Characters * Bowser Jr., ...

team

Strathclyde Strathclyde ( in Welsh language, Welsh; in Scottish Gaelic, Gaelic, meaning 'strath

alley An alley or alleyway is a narrow lane, footpath, path, or passageway, often reserved for pedestrians, which usually runs between, behind, or within buildings in towns and cities. It is also a rear access or service road (back lane), or a path, w ...

of the River Clyde') was one of nine former Local government in Scotland, local government Regions and districts of Scotland, regions of Scotland cre ...

alongside Alan Mackay. The

Cathkin Park Cathkin Park is a municipal park in Glasgow, Scotland. The park is maintained by the city's parks department, and it is a public place where football is still played. The park contains the site of the second Hampden Park, previously home to the ...

club were relegated to

Scottish Division Two The Scottish Football League (SFL) is a defunct league featuring professional and semi-professional football clubs mostly from Scotland.One club, Berwick Rangers, is based in the town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, which is located approximately 4 k ...

in his second season. He played 91 times for ''Thirds'', scoring once before moving to St Mirren after Thirds went bust in 1967 (he had played in the club's final game against

Dumbarton Dumbarton (; , or ; or , meaning 'fort of the Britons (historical), Britons') is a town in West Dunbartonshire, Scotland, on the north bank of the River Clyde where the River Leven, Dunbartonshire, River Leven flows into the Clyde estuary. ...

). Saints won promotion to

Scottish Division One The Scottish Football League (SFL) is a defunct league featuring professional and semi-professional football clubs mostly from Scotland.One club, Berwick Rangers, is based in the town of Berwick-upon-Tweed, which is located approximately 4 k ...

in his first season with the club as they won the league. He was named their Player of the Year in 1969–70, before leaving at the end of the next season. He made a total of 114 appearances scoring once. He joined Queen of the South in Division Two in 1971 and left in 1974, playing 59 games and scoring once. After this he played for

for two seasons, then coached the

club for a further season. In 2007, he was inducted into the St Mirren hall of fame.

Personal life and death

Connell was a part-time footballer and also worked for

Glasgow Corporation Glasgow City Council (Scottish Gaelic: ''Comhairle Baile Ghlaschu'') is the local government authority for Glasgow City council area, Scotland. In its modern form it was created in 1996. Glasgow was formerly governed by a corporation, also kno ...

Housing Department throughout his career. He died peacefully on 30 December 2024, at the age of 80.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Connell, Tony 1944 births 2024 deaths People from Govan Scottish men's footballers Footballers from Glasgow Men's association football fullbacks Scottish Football League players Third Lanark A.C. players Pollok F.C. players Queen of the South F.C. players St Mirren F.C. players Strathclyde F.C. players Scottish Junior Football Association players