*Indicates unconfirmed information. Figures in brackets after English team names indicate all appearances made and goals scored in competitive matches for Football League clubs from 1888 onwards. For Scottish League clubs the figures show details of all competitive appearances and goals scored from 1946/47 onwards.
John Fahy
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Appearances: 63 Goals: 53
Date / Year of birth: 13th May 1943
Position: Striker
Season of first appearance: 1967/68
Season of last appearance: 1967/68
Also played for: Luton Town (0), St.Neots Town, Letchworth Town, Bedford Town, Oxford United (25,14), Cambridge United, Germiston Callies (South Africa), Toronto Metros (Canada) and Toronto Hungaria (Canada)
Tall, bustling centre-forward born in Paisley, Scotland who was especially good in the air and had a poacher's instinct for goals.
John's family moved to Bedfordshire when he was young and he started his career as an amateur at Luton, playing as a left -back for their youth team during the 1960/61 season. He was also selected for the Bedfordshire county side.
Towards the end of 60/61 John had a brief spell with Metropolitan League side St.Neots Town before moving on to Letchworth Town of the Corinthian League for the start of the 1961/62 campaign.
In September 1961 Letchworth played Bedford in an FA Cup tie and shortly afterwards Bedford signed John having been impressed with his performance.
He made his first team debut for Bedford in the Bedfordshire Premier Cup Final against Luton at the end of the 1961/62 season and in January 1964 John scored the Eagles' first goal in a famous 2-1 win at Newcastle in the 3rd Round of the FA Cup.
Later in January 1964 he moved into the Football League when 4th Division Oxford signed him for a four figure fee. John had scored 30 goals in 52 appearances for Bedford before his transfer.
He made his senior debut for Oxford in a 2-1 defeat at Bradford City on 18.4.64 but didn't feature again in the first team until October 1964. After another lengthy spell in the reserves John returned to the senior side in March 1965 and on 27.3.65 he scored all three goals in a 3-0 home win over Bradford Park Avenue. He ended the 1964/65 season having scored ten goals for Oxford, a tally which helped the club gain promotion to the 3rd Division. John started 1965/66 in the first team but fell out favour after a few weeks and only made a handful of appearances during the remainder of the campaign. On 18.3.66 he scored twice in a 4-1 win at York and the match turned out to be John's last for Oxford as he was released a few days later having scored 14 goals in a total of 25 appearances for the U's.
He immediately joined Southern League outfit Cambridge United and John scored his first goal for his new club on 26.3.66 in a 4-0 home win over Margate.
In March 1967 John returned to Bedford and scored four goals in 17 games before joining Margate, initially on trial, in October 1967.
John scored inside the opening ten seconds of his debut against Canterbury in a Kent Floodlight Cup tie at Hartsdown Park on 11.10.67 and went on to complete a hat-trick within 33 minutes as Margate ran out 4-0 winners. Not surprisingly his transfer became permanent within days and after he'd scored eight goals in his first seven games Margate were so desperate to keep John that they made an appeal in the programme for an unfurnished flat for him and his wife to live in.
He went on to score an outstanding 53 goals in the 63 appearances he made during the remainder of the 1967/68 season. They included no less than five further hat-tricks. On 13.12.67 John was on target in a 3-1 win at Yeovil in the FA Cup 1st Round and he also played in the 2nd Round as Margate lost 4-0 at home to Peterborough on 6.1.68.
On 1.4.68 John remarkably bagged a hat-trick in the space of three second half minutes as Margate thrashed Tonbridge 5-0 in a Kent Floodlight Cup tie at Hartsdown Park. All of his goals were headers and they were scored between the 56th and 59th minutes.
On 6.4.68 John featured in the 1st Leg of the Southern League Cup Final - a 1-1 draw with Ramsgate at Hartsdown Park - and then took part in the 2nd Leg at Southwood on 13.4.68 which finished 0-0. He scored four times in a 9-2 win over visitors Gravesend & Northfleet in a Kent Floodlight Cup tie on 3.5.68 and three of John's goals that night were headers described as "top class" by the local press.
On 16.5.68 he scored all three goals as Margate beat Ramsgate 3-1 at Hartsdown Park in the replay of the Southern League Cup Final but that turned out be John's last outing for the club. At the end of the season he was released as he decided to emigrate to South Africa and Margate manager Almer Hall described it as "a body blow to the club."
John joined Germiston Callies, coached by former Wolves winger Micky Lill, and they later paid Margate a fee of £350 towards the end of 1968. It had been agreed that the payment would be made by the end of the year.
In four seasons in South Africa John was always amongst the league's top goalscorers but at one stage he suffered a severe knee injury that kept him out of the game for six months. It was supposed to end his career but happily John recovered.
He then played professionally in Canada and spent the 1972 season with Toronto Metros in the National American Soccer League. He made ten appearances for them and scored three times.
John reverted to part-time football for the 1973 campaign as he continued his business career and he spent that season with Toronto Hungaria. He notched up 24 goals to finish as the Canadian Soccer League's joint top scorer and Hungaria won the National Soccer League Cup.
He spent three more years with Hungaria and finished as the league's leading scorer once more before retiring.
In 1998 local press legend Dave Cooper named John as his all-time favourite Margate striker, despite once getting a wet shoe courtesy of John's dog. That happened during a chance meeting on Cliftonville seafront and after John's dog had relieved himself on Dave's shoe John quipped "Just like his master, give him half a chance and he's got a deadly touch !"
John moved to Australia in 1986 and was owner / operator of a McDonalds outlet there in 1998.
In 2003 he was still in Australia (New South Wales) where he was a local councillor and said that his season with Margate was the most enjoyable in the 15 years he played professionally. John explained that was due to "the great team spirit, the amazing unorthodox coaching skills of Almer Hall, and the excellent relationship that the board had with the whole organisation."
|
SEASON (CLUB) |
FULL (MAX) |
SUB |
GLS |
|
FAC |
SLC |
KSC |
KFC |
KSS |
|
1967/68 (MFC) |
63 (82) |
0 |
53 |
SOUTHERN LEAGUE PREMIER DIVISION (8TH OF 22) |
2R |
W |
1R |
GR |
N/A |
| Played and
scored in FA Cup 1st Round (13.12.67 - won 3-1 at Yeovil
Town). Played in FA Cup 2nd Round (06.01.68 - lost 4-0 at home to Peterborough United). Played in Southern League Cup Final 1st Leg (06.04.68 - drew 1-1 at home to Ramsgate Athletic). Played in Southern League Cup Final 2nd Leg (13.04.68 - drew 0-0 at Ramsgate Athletic). Played and scored hat-trick in Southern League Cup Final replay (16.05.68 - beat Ramsgate Athletic 3-1 at home). | |||||||||