Ian Leigh

Ian Leigh

Personal information
Date of birth	(1962-06-11) 11 June 1962 (age 62)
Place of birth	Ilfracombe, England
Position(s)	Goalkeeper
Youth career
1978–1979	Swaythling
1979–1981	Bournemouth
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1981–1986	Bournemouth	123	(0)
1984	→ Bristol City (loan)	1	(0)
1985	→ Torquay United (loan)	4	(0)
1986	Bashley	?	(?)
1986–1992	Hamrun Spartans	?	(?)
Total		128	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Ian Leigh (born 11 June 1962) is an English former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. Active between 1981 and 1992 in both England and Malta, in both League and non-League football, Leigh made over 125 career appearances.

Early and personal life

Leigh was born in Ilfracombe, Devon on 11 June 1962.^[1][2] After retiring as a professional footballer, Leigh later became a double-glazing salesman in Southampton.^[2]

Career

Leigh began his career in non-League football with Swaythling, leaving them as a seventeen-year-old in October 1979 to join Football League team Bournemouth.^[2] Leigh made his professional debut for Bournemouth in 1981 after replacing the injured Kenny Allen in an away game against Peterborough United, a game in which Bournemouth lost 1–0.^[3] Over the next five seasons, Leigh made 123 appearances in the Football League for Bournemouth.^[4] While playing in the FA Cup against defending champions Manchester United in January 1984, Leigh kept a clean sheet in a 2–0 victory, and was rewarded with a lifetime supply of pizzas from a local Italian restaurant.^[2][5] The deal stayed in place for over a year, until Bournemouth's then manager Harry Redknapp bought the restaurant, citing the fact that Leigh was getting, "a bit fat, a little bit lumpy."^[2][5] He also played as Bournemouth won the inaugural Associate Members' Cup by beating Hull City in the final.^[6] Towards the end of his Bournemouth career, Leigh spent brief loan spells at Bristol City and Torquay United, making one and four appearances respectively.^[7][8] After Leigh left Bournemouth in 1986, he briefly played non-League football for Bashley, before moving to Malta to play with Hamrun Spartans, where he spent a further six seasons.^[1] Leigh was renowned for his powerful long shots, and became Ħamrun Spartans' penalty taker.^[1]

References

1. "Ian Leigh profile". Hamrun Spartans F.C. official website. Retrieved 9 September 2010.
2. Greg Struthers (8 January 2006). "Caught in Time: Bournemouth beat Manchester United, FA Cup, 1984". The Times. Retrieved 9 September 2010.^{[dead link‍]}
3. Neil Perrett (20 August 2010). "Cherries: Jalal would take a whack for Prenton victory". Bournemouth Echo. Retrieved 9 September 2010.
4. "BOURNEMOUTH : 1946/47–2009/10". Post War English & Scottish Football League A – Z Player's Database. Retrieved 9 September 2010.
5. "Harry's magic touch". The Independent. 24 January 2009. Retrieved 9 September 2010.
6. "Cup win was simply red-markable for club legend Mozzy". afcb.co.uk. 24 May 2019. Retrieved 11 June 2019.
7. "BRISTOL CITY : 1946/47–2009/10". Post War English & Scottish Football League A – Z Player's Database. Retrieved 9 September 2010.
8. "TORQUAY UNITED : 1946/47–2006/07". Post War English & Scottish Football League A – Z Player's Database. Retrieved 9 September 2010.