Oliver Anthony "Ollie" Kearns (born 12 June 1956) is an English former footballer who played in the Football League

The Football League

The Football League, also known as the npower Football League for sponsorship reasons, is a league competition featuring professional association football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest such competition in world football...

 for Reading

Reading F.C.

Reading Football Club is an English association football club based in the town of Reading, Berkshire who currently play in the Championship...

, Oxford United

Oxford United F.C.

Oxford United Football Club is an English association football club based in Oxford, Oxfordshire. The club play in League Two, following promotion from the Conference National in May 2010. The club had been a non-League side since their relegation from the Football League in the 2005–06 season. The...

, Walsall

Walsall F.C.

Walsall Football Club are an English association football club based in Walsall, West Midlands. They currently play in League One. The club was founded in 1888 as Walsall Town Swifts, an amalgamation of Walsall Town F.C. and Walsall Swifts F.C. The club was one of the founder members of the Second...

, Hereford United

Hereford United F.C.

Hereford United Football Club is an English professional football club based in the city of Hereford. Founded in 1924, they are competing in Football League Two in the 2011–12 season. Hereford have played at Edgar Street for their entire history and are nicknamed 'The Whites' or 'The Lilywhites',...

 and Wrexham during the 1970s and 1980s. He scored the first goal for the newly formed Rushden & Diamonds

Rushden & Diamonds F.C.

Rushden & Diamonds Football Club was an association football club based in Irthlingborough, Northamptonshire, England. Formed by a merger of Rushden Town and Irthlingborough Diamonds in 1992, the club played in the Conference National following a short spell in the Football League at the start of...

 on 22 August 1992 against Bilston Town

Bilston Town F.C.

Bilston Town Football Club is an English association football club based in Bilston, West Midlands. In the 2011–12 season they are playing in the West Midlands League Division One...

 in the Southern League

Southern Football League

The Southern League is an English football competition featuring semi-professional and amateur clubs from the South West, South Central and Midlands of England and South Wales...

 Midland Division.

Career

Kearns was born in Banbury

Banbury

Banbury is a market town and civil parish on the River Cherwell in the Cherwell District of Oxfordshire. It is northwest of London, southeast of Birmingham, south of Coventry and north northwest of the county town of Oxford...

, and began his football career at local club Banbury United

Banbury United F.C.

Banbury United is a football club based in Banbury, Oxfordshire, who play in the Southern League Premier Division. They are nicknamed The Puritans and they play their home matches at the Spencer Stadium...

 before signing for Third Division

Football League Third Division

The Football League Third Division was the 3 tier of English Football from 1920 until 1992 when after the formation of the Football Association Premier League saw the league renamed The Football League Division Two...

 club Reading

Reading F.C.

Reading Football Club is an English association football club based in the town of Reading, Berkshire who currently play in the Championship...

 in 1977 at the age of 20. Reading were relegated to the Fourth Division

Football League Fourth Division

The Fourth Division of The Football League was the fourth-highest division in the English football league system from the 1958–59 season until the creation of the Premier League prior to the 1992–93 season...

 in his first season, but bounced back two years later, as Kearns added 11 league goals to the 16 he scored the previous season. He then joined Oxford United

Oxford United F.C.

Oxford United Football Club is an English association football club based in Oxford, Oxfordshire. The club play in League Two, following promotion from the Conference National in May 2010. The club had been a non-League side since their relegation from the Football League in the 2005–06 season. The...

, and scored in Jim Smith's

Jim Smith (footballer)

James Michael "Jim" Smith is a retired English footballer and manager. As a player, he made 249 appearances in the Fourth Division of The Football League, representing Aldershot, Halifax Town, Lincoln City and Colchester United, and played for three-and-a-half years for Boston United of the...

 first game as manager. However he was only to spend one year at the Manor Ground before his transfer to Walsall

Walsall F.C.

Walsall Football Club are an English association football club based in Walsall, West Midlands. They currently play in League One. The club was founded in 1888 as Walsall Town Swifts, an amalgamation of Walsall Town F.C. and Walsall Swifts F.C. The club was one of the founder members of the Second...

, also of the Third Division, in 1982, where he joined his older brother Mick

Mick Kearns

Michael "Mick" Kearns is a former professional footballer and Republic of Ireland international goalkeeper, who is currently the Community Director at Walsall Football Club....

. Again, he was to spend only one year at Fellows Park

Fellows Park

Fellows Park was a football stadium in Walsall, England. It was the home ground of Walsall F.C. from 1896 till 1990, when the team moved to the Bescot Stadium....

 before dropping down a division to play for Hereford United

Hereford United F.C.

Hereford United Football Club is an English professional football club based in the city of Hereford. Founded in 1924, they are competing in Football League Two in the 2011–12 season. Hereford have played at Edgar Street for their entire history and are nicknamed 'The Whites' or 'The Lilywhites',...

.

He spent four-and-a-half years at Edgar Street, and was top goalscorer two seasons running, in 1985–86 and 1986–87. He then finished his Football League career with Wrexham

Wrexham A.F.C.

Wrexham Football Club are a professional football team based in Wrexham, north-east Wales, who play in the English football pyramid.Founded in 1872, they are one of the oldest surviving football clubs in Britain and the oldest professional club in Wales...

 before moving into non-League football

Non-league football

Non-League football is football in England played at a level below that of the Premier League and The Football League. The term non-League was commonly used well before 1992 when the top football clubs in England all belonged to The Football League; all clubs who were not a part of The Football...

 first, briefly, with Kettering Town

Kettering Town F.C.

Kettering Town Football Club are a football club originating in Kettering, Northamptonshire but currently based in the nearby village of Irthlingborough. The club play in the Conference National after winning the Conference North in 2007–08...

. He then played for Rushden Town

Rushden Town F.C.

Rushden Town F.C. was a football club from Rushden, England. Founded in 1889, the club merged with Irthlingborough Diamonds to form Rushden & Diamonds in 1992. Nicknamed "the Russians", the club played at Hayden Road.-History:...

 and Worcester City

Worcester City F.C.

Worcester City Football Club is an English football club based in Worcester, Worcestershire. The club are currently members of the Conference North and play at St George's Lane.-History:...

 before joining the newly formed Rushden & Diamonds

Rushden & Diamonds F.C.

Rushden & Diamonds Football Club was an association football club based in Irthlingborough, Northamptonshire, England. Formed by a merger of Rushden Town and Irthlingborough Diamonds in 1992, the club played in the Conference National following a short spell in the Football League at the start of...

. On 22 August 1992, he scored the first league goal in the club's history, against Bilston Town

Bilston Town F.C.

Bilston Town Football Club is an English association football club based in Bilston, West Midlands. In the 2011–12 season they are playing in the West Midlands League Division One...

 in the Southern League

Southern Football League

The Southern League is an English football competition featuring semi-professional and amateur clubs from the South West, South Central and Midlands of England and South Wales...

 Midland Division. He finished his career at Racing Club Warwick.

Kearns later worked in property development.