Tony Ford (footballer, born 1959)

For the former Bristol City footballer, see Tony Ford (footballer, born 1944).

Tony Ford
MBE
Personal information
Full name Anthony Ford
Date of birth (1959-05-14) 14 May 1959 (age 65)
Place of birth Grimsby, England
Height 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)[1]
Position(s) Midfielder
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1975–1986 Grimsby Town 355 (55)
1986 → Sunderland (loan) 9 (1)
1986–1989 Stoke City 112 (13)
1989–1991 West Bromwich Albion 114 (14)
1991–1994 Grimsby Town 68 (3)
1993 → Bradford City (loan) 5 (0)
1994–1996 Scunthorpe United 76 (9)
1996–1999 Mansfield Town 103 (7)
1999–2002 Rochdale 89 (6)
Total 931 (108)
International career
1989 England B 2 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Anthony Ford MBE (born 14 May 1959) is an English former footballer. Through most of his career, Ford was a right-sided midfielder, but in later years, he was converted to right-back. In a career that spanned 27 years, across four decades, Ford played 931 league matches, which is the all-time record for matches played in the English league by an outfield player. He is one of five outfield players in English football to have ever passed 1,000 games in competitive matches (including league, cup and for Graham Alexander also national team games), the others being Scott McGleish,[2] Graham Alexander,[3] Jamie Cureton, Stuart Pearce and Neil Redfearn.

Career

Playing career

Ford began his career at his hometown club Grimsby Town when he made his first-team debut as a 16-year-old on 4th October 1975 in an away game against Walsall.[4] Ford was of mixed heritage (his father was a Black Barbadian) and he was the first Black player to play for the club.[5] He spent 11 years at Blundell Park, where he made his name as one of the most talented players outside the top division. In 1986, he left Grimsby. He first had a short loan spell at Sunderland, and later joined Stoke in a permanent deal.

Ford spent two and a half years at Stoke, before being transferred to West Bromwich Albion midway through the 1988–89 season. After three years at The Hawthorns, he rejoined Grimsby in late 1991. His second spell at Blundell Park lasted three seasons, and he left the club at the end of the 1993–94 season, having played 423 league games for the club, which at the time placed him second on the club's career appearance list behind Keith Jobling.

In 1994, Ford joined Grimsby's arch-rivals Scunthorpe, where he played two seasons. After a short spell at non-league side Barrow, he was asked by Steve Parkin, a former teammate at Stoke and West Bromwich Albion, who had recently been appointed manager at Mansfield, to become his assistant. This allowed Ford to continue his playing career, and in early 1999, he played his 825th career league game, breaking Terry Paine's record for career appearances by an outfield player.

Coaching career

In the summer of 1999, Parkin resigned as Mansfield manager to take a similar job at Rochdale. He again appointed Ford as his assistant, and, aged 40, Ford continued to play regularly. The final goal of his career was the winner in a 1–0 win at Swansea City on 9 October 2001,[6] and his final professional appearance came the following month against Torquay United.[7]

He retired from playing in November 2001 when he and Parkin took up the same positions at Barnsley. Both were sacked by the club eleven months later, but in August 2003 he returned to his former role at Rochdale under new manager Alan Buckley. He kept his job when Buckley made way for Parkin on 31 December 2003, but was sacked along with the latter three years later.

He went on to work for his former club Grimsby Town as a scout, but was relieved of his duties in May 2011.

Career statistics

Source:[8]

Club Season League FA Cup League Cup Other[A] Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Grimsby Town 1975–76 Third Division 15 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 16 0
1976–77 Third Division 6 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 8 0
1977–78 Fourth Division 34 2 1 0 1 0 0 0 36 2
1978–79 Fourth Division 45 16 1 0 3 0 0 0 49 16
1979–80 Third Division 37 5 4 0 9 4 0 0 50 9
1980–81 Second Division 28 4 1 0 1 0 3 1 33 5
1981–82 Second Division 35 7 3 0 1 0 3 2 42 9
1982–83 Second Division 37 4 3 1 3 0 3 0 46 5
1983–84 Second Division 42 8 1 0 4 0 0 0 47 8
1984–85 Second Division 42 6 3 1 6 1 0 0 51 8
1985–86 Second Division 34 3 1 0 3 0 2 0 40 3
Total 355 55 19 2 33 5 11 3 418 65
Sunderland (loan) 1985–86 Second Division 9 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 9 1
Stoke City 1986–87 Second Division 41 6 5 0 2 0 1 1 49 7
1987–88 Second Division 44 7 2 0 4 0 4 0 54 7
1988–89 Second Division 27 0 2 0 2 0 1 0 32 0
Total 112 13 9 0 8 0 6 1 135 14
West Bromwich Albion 1988–89 Second Division 11 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 11 1
1989–90 Second Division 42 8 2 1 3 0 1 0 48 9
1990–91 Second Division 46 5 1 0 2 0 1 0 50 5
1991–92 Third Division 15 0 1 0 2 0 1 0 19 0
Total 114 14 4 1 7 0 3 0 128 15
Grimsby Town 1991–92 Second Division 22 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 22 1
1992–93 First Division 17 2 1 0 1 0 0 0 19 2
1993–94 First Division 29 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 31 0
Total 68 3 3 0 1 0 0 0 72 3
Bradford City (loan) 1993–94 Second Division 5 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 7 0
Scunthorpe United 1994–95 Third Division 38 2 4 0 2 0 1 0 45 2
1995–96 Third Division 38 7 3 1 2 1 3 0 46 9
Total 76 9 7 1 4 1 4 0 91 11
Mansfield Town 1996–97 Third Division 27 2 2 1 0 0 1 0 30 3
1997–98 Third Division 34 3 0 0 2 1 2 0 38 4
1998–99 Third Division 42 2 2 0 2 0 2 0 48 2
Total 103 7 4 1 4 1 5 0 116 9
Rochdale 1999–2000 Third Division 34 2 3 0 2 0 4 0 43 2
2000–01 Third Division 38 2 1 0 2 0 0 0 41 2
2001–02 Third Division 17 2 0 0 2 1 1 0 20 3
Total 89 6 4 0 6 1 5 0 104 7
Career Total 931 108 50 5 65 8 34 4 1,080 125
A. ^ The "Other" column constitutes appearances and goals in the Anglo-Scottish Cup, Football League Group Cup, Football League Trophy and Full Members' Cup.

Honours

Grimsby Town

See also

References

  • Haynes, Keith (2005). The Tony Ford Story. Tempus Publishing Ltd. ISBN 0-7524-2418-1.
  1. ^ Dunk, Peter, ed. (1987). Rothmans Football Yearbook 1987–88. London: Queen Anne Press. p. 352. ISBN 978-0-356-14354-5.
  2. ^ Scott McGleish at 44 and 1,000 games: 'I can't see myself giving up soon' | Football | The Guardian
  3. ^ "Burnley 2–1 Swansea". BBC News. 14 April 2011. Retrieved 14 April 2011.
  4. ^ "Grimsby Town 1975/76".
  5. ^ Hern, Bill; Gleave, David (2020). Football's Black Pioneers. Leicester: Conker Editions. pp. 168–169. ISBN 9781999900854.
  6. ^ "Swansea 0–1 Rochdale". BBC Sport. 9 October 2001. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
  7. ^ "Rochdale 2–0 Torquay". BBC Sport. 3 November 2001. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
  8. ^ Tony Ford at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)