Dale Gordon
Encyclopedia
Dale Andrew Gordon is a former professional association football player who played for Norwich City
, Rangers
, West Ham United
, Peterborough United
, Millwall
and AFC Bournemouth
. He was a midfielder - predominantly right-sided - who excited supporters by running at defenders and setting up numerous goals for his team mates.
Gordon is currently Director of Football at Great Yarmouth Town
.
supporter and has said that he cried when watching the 1978 FA Cup Final
on television in which Ipswich beat Arsenal
1-0.
and made his league debut for them on 25 August 1984 in a 3-3 draw against Liverpool
.
His first goal for Norwich came on 10 November 1984 in a 3-0 win against Luton Town
. Gordon made 27 appearances during that 1984-85 season. He found first-team opportunities limited during the following 1985-86 season but did score the goal that secured the Division 2 championship for Norwich in a 1-1 draw against Stoke City
on 19 April 1986.
1986-87 was Gordon's breakthrough season. He established himself as a first-team regular and played 41 league games as a vital part of the team that recorded what was then their best ever league finish of fifth position - though he was denied the chance to play in the UEFA Cup due to the ban on English clubs in European competitions arising from the Heysel disaster
of 1985. Gordon was capped by England under 21s
towards the end of the campaign, but hampered his chances of future selection when he and his Norwich City team mate Robert Rosario
broke curfew while away with the under 21s and went to a nightclub. Gordon was later capped twice for the England B
team.
In December 1988, Gordon achieved "a unique place in Norwich City history - a record nobody can ever take away. He was the first player to score in a live televised Football League match involving the Canaries", a 2–1 win over West Ham
.
The 1988-89 season ended with Gordon being voted Norwich City player of the year as the team finished fourth in the league and reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup, though again he and his colleagues were deprived of UEFA Cup action as the ban on English clubs in European competitions was still in force. In total, Gordon played 261 games for Norwich (the majority of which were as a right-sided midfielder) between his 1984 debut and his final appearance on 2 November 1991. After the match against Nottingham Forest
on 2 November 1991, he signed for Scottish
club Rangers
for a fee of £1,200,000.
and went on to win two Scottish Championships
, the Scottish Cup
and the Scottish League Cup
.
for £750,000 on 8 July 1993, but his career at Upton Park
was disrupted by injuries. He did, however, score West Ham's first ever goal in the Premier League in a 1-1 draw against Coventry City
on 21 August 1993 at Highfield Road
, his only West Ham goal. In just over three years he made only 11 appearance in all competitions for West Ham and had a six game loan period, in 1996, at Millwall
before leaving to join Bournemouth
in August 1996 on a free transfer. In 1996, Gordon expressed a desire to return to Norwich City, but his injuries got the better of him and he retired as a professional player in February 1997.
Gordon managed Great Yarmouth Town
in the Jewson League, appointed to the position in May 1997. He also managed Gorleston where he was assisted by fellow former Norwich players Robert Fleck and Mal Lucas.
Gordon was appointed Director of Football at Great Yarmouth Town
in October 2007.
Norwich City F.C.
Norwich City Football Club is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. As of the 2011–12 season, Norwich City are again playing in the Premier League after a six-year absence, having finished as runner up in the Championship in 2010–11 and winning automatic promotion.The...
, Rangers
Rangers F.C.
Rangers Football Club are an association football club based in Glasgow, Scotland, who play in the Scottish Premier League. The club are nicknamed the Gers, Teddy Bears and the Light Blues, and the fans are known to each other as bluenoses...
, West Ham United
West Ham United F.C.
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Upton Park, Newham, East London. They play in The Football League Championship. The club was founded in 1895 as Thames Ironworks FC and reformed in 1900 as West Ham United. In 1904 the club relocated to their current...
, Peterborough United
Peterborough United F.C.
Peterborough United Football Club are a professional English football club based in Peterborough. Peterborough United formed in 1934 and played in the old Midland League, which they won six times; eventually being admitted to the Football League in 1960, replacing Gateshead. Their home ground is...
, Millwall
Millwall F.C.
Millwall Football Club is an English professional football club based in South Bermondsey, south east London, that plays in the Football League Championship, the second tier of English football. Founded as Millwall Rovers in 1885, the club has retained its name despite having last played in the...
and AFC Bournemouth
A.F.C. Bournemouth
A.F.C. Bournemouth is an English football club currently playing in Football League One. The club plays at Dean Court in Kings Park, Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset and have been in existence since 1899....
. He was a midfielder - predominantly right-sided - who excited supporters by running at defenders and setting up numerous goals for his team mates.
Gordon is currently Director of Football at Great Yarmouth Town
Great Yarmouth Town F.C.
Great Yarmouth Town F.C. is an English football club based in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk. The club are currently members of the Eastern Counties League Premier Division and play at the Wellesley Recreation Ground, whose grandstand is believed to be the world's oldest football stand still in regular...
.
Early life
Gordon grew up as an Ipswich TownIpswich Town F.C.
Ipswich Town Football Club are an English professional football team based in Ipswich, Suffolk. As of 2011, they play in the Football League Championship, having last appeared in the Premier League in 2001–02....
supporter and has said that he cried when watching the 1978 FA Cup Final
1978 FA Cup Final
The 1978 FA Cup Final took place on 6 May 1978 at Wembley Stadium. It was contested between Arsenal and Ipswich Town. While Ipswich were considered underdogs, with Arsenal fielding a number of well-known players, including England striker Malcolm Macdonald, Ipswich won the match 1–0.Ipswich...
on television in which Ipswich beat Arsenal
Arsenal F.C.
Arsenal Football Club is a professional English Premier League football club based in North London. One of the most successful clubs in English football, it has won 13 First Division and Premier League titles and 10 FA Cups...
1-0.
Norwich City
However, he signed for Town's rivals Norwich CityNorwich City F.C.
Norwich City Football Club is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. As of the 2011–12 season, Norwich City are again playing in the Premier League after a six-year absence, having finished as runner up in the Championship in 2010–11 and winning automatic promotion.The...
and made his league debut for them on 25 August 1984 in a 3-3 draw against Liverpool
Liverpool F.C.
Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool, Merseyside. Liverpool has won eighteen League titles, second most in English football, seven FA Cups and a record seven League Cups...
.
His first goal for Norwich came on 10 November 1984 in a 3-0 win against Luton Town
Luton Town F.C.
Luton Town Football Club is an English professional football club based since 1905 at Kenilworth Road, Luton, Bedfordshire. The club currently competes in the fifth tier of English football, the Conference National, for the third consecutive season during the 2011–12 season.Formed in 1885, it was...
. Gordon made 27 appearances during that 1984-85 season. He found first-team opportunities limited during the following 1985-86 season but did score the goal that secured the Division 2 championship for Norwich in a 1-1 draw against Stoke City
Stoke City F.C.
Stoke City Football Club is an English professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire that plays in the Premier League. Founded in 1863, it is the oldest club in the Premier League, and considered to be the second oldest professional football club in the world, after Notts...
on 19 April 1986.
1986-87 was Gordon's breakthrough season. He established himself as a first-team regular and played 41 league games as a vital part of the team that recorded what was then their best ever league finish of fifth position - though he was denied the chance to play in the UEFA Cup due to the ban on English clubs in European competitions arising from the Heysel disaster
Heysel Stadium disaster
The Heysel Stadium disaster occurred on 29 May 1985 when escaping fans were pressed against a wall in the Heysel Stadium in Brussels, Belgium, as a result of rioting before the start of the 1985 European Cup Final between Liverpool of England and Juventus of Italy...
of 1985. Gordon was capped by England under 21s
England national under-21 football team
England's national Under-21 football team, also known as England Under-21s or England U21, is considered to be the feeder team for the England national football team....
towards the end of the campaign, but hampered his chances of future selection when he and his Norwich City team mate Robert Rosario
Robert Rosario
Robert Michael Rosario is a retired English footballer who played professionally for Norwich City, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Coventry City and Nottingham Forest before playing and coaching in the United States....
broke curfew while away with the under 21s and went to a nightclub. Gordon was later capped twice for the England B
England B national football team
England B is a secondary football team run occasionally as support for the England national football team. At times they have played other nations' full teams; they have also played matches against 'B' teams from other football associations...
team.
In December 1988, Gordon achieved "a unique place in Norwich City history - a record nobody can ever take away. He was the first player to score in a live televised Football League match involving the Canaries", a 2–1 win over West Ham
West Ham United F.C.
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Upton Park, Newham, East London. They play in The Football League Championship. The club was founded in 1895 as Thames Ironworks FC and reformed in 1900 as West Ham United. In 1904 the club relocated to their current...
.
The 1988-89 season ended with Gordon being voted Norwich City player of the year as the team finished fourth in the league and reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup, though again he and his colleagues were deprived of UEFA Cup action as the ban on English clubs in European competitions was still in force. In total, Gordon played 261 games for Norwich (the majority of which were as a right-sided midfielder) between his 1984 debut and his final appearance on 2 November 1991. After the match against Nottingham Forest
Nottingham Forest F.C.
Nottingham Forest Football Club is an English Association Football club based in West Bridgford, Nottingham, that plays in the Football League Championship...
on 2 November 1991, he signed for Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
club Rangers
Rangers F.C.
Rangers Football Club are an association football club based in Glasgow, Scotland, who play in the Scottish Premier League. The club are nicknamed the Gers, Teddy Bears and the Light Blues, and the fans are known to each other as bluenoses...
for a fee of £1,200,000.
Rangers
Gordon scored twice on his debut for Rangers against Dunfermline AthleticDunfermline Athletic F.C.
Dunfermline Athletic Football Club are a Scottish football team based in Dunfermline, Fife, commonly known as just Dunfermline. They currently compete in the Scottish Premier League....
and went on to win two Scottish Championships
Scottish Football League Premier Division
The Scottish Football League Premier Division was, from 1975 until 1998, the top division of the Scottish Football League and the entire Scottish football league system...
, the Scottish Cup
Scottish Cup
The Scottish Football Association Challenge Cup,, commonly known as the Scottish Cup or the William Hill Scottish Cup for sponsorship purposes, is the main national cup competition in Scottish football. It is a knockout cup competition run by and named after the Scottish Football Association.The...
and the Scottish League Cup
Scottish League Cup
The Scottish League Cup is a football competition open to all Scottish Football League and Scottish Premier League clubs. At present it is also known as the Scottish Communities League Cup owing to the sponsorship deal in place with the Scottish Government. In the past it has been sponsored by...
.
West Ham United
He joined West Ham UnitedWest Ham United F.C.
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Upton Park, Newham, East London. They play in The Football League Championship. The club was founded in 1895 as Thames Ironworks FC and reformed in 1900 as West Ham United. In 1904 the club relocated to their current...
for £750,000 on 8 July 1993, but his career at Upton Park
Boleyn Ground
The Boleyn Ground, more commonly referred to as Upton Park due to its location in Upton Park, London is the football stadium of West Ham United.-History:...
was disrupted by injuries. He did, however, score West Ham's first ever goal in the Premier League in a 1-1 draw against Coventry City
Coventry City F.C.
Coventry City Football Club, otherwise known as the Sky Blues owing to the traditional colour of their strip, are a professional English Football league club based in Coventry...
on 21 August 1993 at Highfield Road
Highfield Road
The Highfield Road Stadium was a football stadium in the city of Coventry, England. It was the home ground for Coventry City F.C. until the club moved to the new Ricoh Arena after the 2005-06 season...
, his only West Ham goal. In just over three years he made only 11 appearance in all competitions for West Ham and had a six game loan period, in 1996, at Millwall
Millwall F.C.
Millwall Football Club is an English professional football club based in South Bermondsey, south east London, that plays in the Football League Championship, the second tier of English football. Founded as Millwall Rovers in 1885, the club has retained its name despite having last played in the...
before leaving to join Bournemouth
A.F.C. Bournemouth
A.F.C. Bournemouth is an English football club currently playing in Football League One. The club plays at Dean Court in Kings Park, Boscombe, Bournemouth, Dorset and have been in existence since 1899....
in August 1996 on a free transfer. In 1996, Gordon expressed a desire to return to Norwich City, but his injuries got the better of him and he retired as a professional player in February 1997.
Coaching
Since his retirement, Gordon has spent a great deal of time running his own football schools for young players. He briefly ran a football academy in Lowestoft on behalf of Ipswich Town and has coached at schools in the Ipswich area, including Caister High SchoolGordon managed Great Yarmouth Town
Great Yarmouth Town F.C.
Great Yarmouth Town F.C. is an English football club based in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk. The club are currently members of the Eastern Counties League Premier Division and play at the Wellesley Recreation Ground, whose grandstand is believed to be the world's oldest football stand still in regular...
in the Jewson League, appointed to the position in May 1997. He also managed Gorleston where he was assisted by fellow former Norwich players Robert Fleck and Mal Lucas.
Gordon was appointed Director of Football at Great Yarmouth Town
Great Yarmouth Town F.C.
Great Yarmouth Town F.C. is an English football club based in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk. The club are currently members of the Eastern Counties League Premier Division and play at the Wellesley Recreation Ground, whose grandstand is believed to be the world's oldest football stand still in regular...
in October 2007.