John Falconer (footballer)
John Gunn Falconer (2 January 1902 – 1982) was a Scottish professional footballer who made over 200 appearances in the Scottish League for Cowdenbeath as a goalkeeper.[2][3]
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | John Gunn Falconer[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 2 January 1902[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Kinning Park, Scotland | ||
| Date of death | 1982 (aged 79–80)[2] | ||
| Place of death | Eastwood, Scotland | ||
| Position(s) | Goalkeeper | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| Gower Thistle | |||
| –1919 | Ibrox Waverley | ||
| 1919–1921 | St Anthony's | ||
| 1921–1930 | Cowdenbeath | 204 | (0) |
| 1931–1933 | Celtic | 7 | (0) |
| 1933–1934 | East Stirlingshire | 25 | (0) |
| 1934–1935 | Creetown | ||
| 1935–1936 | Stranraer | ||
| International career | |||
| 1928 | Scottish League XI | 1 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Career
A goalkeeper, Falconer made 204 appearances in the top two divisions of Scottish football for Cowdenbeath in two spells between 1921 and 1928.[3] While with the Fife club, he made one appearance for the Scottish League XI against the Football League XI in March 1928,[4][3] but six months later his career appeared to have been ended when he sustained a broken kneecap.[2][3]
He made a return to league football with Celtic in 1931 and was soon unexpectedly back in First Division action when he had to replace John Thomson, who had been fatally injured during a match.[2][3] However, Joe Kennaway soon arrived at Celtic Park and after a period as his deputy, Falconer moved to Second Division club East Stirlingshire in 1933, where he played for one season.[1]
Career statistics
| Club | Season | League | Scottish Cup | Other | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Cowdenbeath | 1921–22[1] | Scottish Second Division | 37 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 40 | 0 | |
| 1922–23[1] | 36 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 38 | 0 | |||
| 1924–25[1] | Scottish First Division | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 14 | 0 | ||
| 1925–26[1] | 36 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 37 | 0 | |||
| 1926–27[1] | 37 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 39 | 0 | |||
| 1927–28[1] | 35 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 37 | 0 | |||
| 1928–29[1] | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 9 | 0 | |||
| Total | 204 | 0 | 10 | 0 | — | 214 | 0 | |||
| Celtic | 1931–32[5] | Scottish First Division | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3[lower-alpha 1] | 0 | 11 | 0 |
| East Stirlingshire | 1933–34[1] | Scottish Second Division | 25 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 26 | 0 | |
| Career total | 236 | 0 | 12 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 251 | 0 | ||
- Appearances in Glasgow Cup
Honours
- Cowdenbeath Hall of Fame[3]
References
- Litster, John. Record of Pre-War Scottish League Players. Norwich: PM Publications.
- "Falconer, John – The Celtic Wiki". www.thecelticwiki.com. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
- "Hall of Fame | John Falconer". Cowdenbeath FC. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
- "John Falconer – Scotland Football League Record from 10 Mar 1928 to 10 Mar 1928 clubs – Cowdenbeath". www.londonhearts.com. Retrieved 5 September 2020.
- "Celtic Player John Falconer Details". www.fitbastats.com. Retrieved 28 June 2018.