Peter Gelson

Peter William John Gelson (18 October 1941 – 26 April 2021) was an English professional footballer who played in the Football League for Brentford as a centre back and wing half. A cult hero amongst the club's supporters, he is third on the all-time Brentford appearances list with 516. In 2013, Gelson placed second in a Football League 125th Anniversary poll of Brentford's all-time fan favourites and was inducted into the Brentford Hall of Fame in November 2014.[3]

Peter Gelson
Personal information
Full name Peter William John Gelson[1]
Date of birth (1941-10-18)18 October 1941
Place of birth Hammersmith, England
Date of death 26 April 2021(2021-04-26) (aged 79)[2]
Place of death Staines-upon-Thames, England
Position(s) Centre back, wing half
Youth career
1958–1960 Brentford
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1960–1975 Brentford 471 (17)
1974–1977 Hillingdon Borough
1977 Hounslow
1977–1978 Hillingdon Borough
1978–1979 Walton & Hersham
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Career

Brentford

Joining Brentford at a young age,[4] Gelson progressed through the club's youth, 'A' and reserve teams before making his professional debut at age 19 in a 2–0 Third Division defeat to Halifax Town on 22 August 1961.[5] Despite still being a part-time player,[4] Gelson quickly established himself in the first team as a wing half, making 28 appearances during the 1961–62 season, a campaign which saw Brentford relegated to the Fourth Division.[5]

Gelson was a key player in Brentford's 1962–63 Fourth Division title-winning season and made 32 appearances,[5] but he remained part-time and did not sign a professional contract until 1964.[6] He was awarded the captaincy in August 1966,[7] but a loss of form saw him lose it to Bobby Ross four months later.[8] Gelson was known for his long-range goals and scored three times from behind the halfway line.[9] A "hard man" as a player, in 1970 he ended the career of Colchester United's Bobby Howlett in a challenge which resulted in a broken leg for the Us defender.[10]

Gelson went on to be a fixture at centre back until his final appearance for the club in September 1974.[5] He left Brentford shortly after, having made 516 appearances in all competitions for the club.[4] In recognition of his service to the club, Gelson was awarded testimonials in 1970 and 1975,[6] earning him £3,630.[11] He was inducted into the Brentford Hall of Fame in November 2014 and remained a season ticket holder up until the final seasons at Griffin Park.[2][12]

Non-League football

After his departure from Brentford, Gelson played on in non-League football, appearing for Hillingdon Borough (two spells), Hounslow and Walton & Hersham.[9] In 1985, he was active in forming the Staines Town Veterans' team, for which he also played, making his final appearance at the age of 66 on the final day of the 2007–08 season.[13]

Personal life

In his early days as a part-time player at Brentford, Gelson worked in telecommunications for the Post Office.[14] His Brentford teammate Gordon Phillips remained a lifelong friend and the pair were godparents to each other's children.[2] After retiring from football, Gelson found work at Heathrow Airport and worked in security with British Airways and Qatar Airways.[15] He worked for a number of years in Doha, Qatar as a loadmaster for Khalifa bin Hamad Al Thani's multiple private aircraft.[16] He retired and returned to the UK in 2007.[16] Gelson was married and as of June 2010, had five grandchildren.[16]

Career statistics
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League FA Cup League Cup Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Brentford 1961–62[5] Third Division 24 1 4 0 0 0 28 1
1962–63[5] Fourth Division 29 0 1 0 1 0 31 0
1963–64[5] Third Division 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0
1964–65[5] Third Division 42 1 4 0 0 0 46 1
1965–66[5] Third Division 34 2 2 0 0 0 36 2
1966–67[5] Fourth Division 45 0 4 0 3 0 52 0
1967–68[5] Fourth Division 43 5 2 0 1 0 46 5
1968–69[5] Fourth Division 43 2 2 0 5 0 49 2
1969–70[5] Fourth Division 43 4 2 0 3 1 48 5
1970–71[5] Fourth Division 45 0 5 0 1 0 51 0
1971–72[5] Fourth Division 37 2 0 0 1 0 38 2
1972–73[5] Third Division 42 0 1 0 2 0 45 0
1973–74[5] Fourth Division 40 0 1 0 1 0 42 0
1974–75[5] Fourth Division 3 0 0 0 1 0 4 0
Career total 4711728019151618

Honours

Brentford

Individual

References
  1. "Peter Gelson". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 19 October 2015.
  2. "Peter Gelson 1941–2021". www.brentfordfc.com. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  3. "Brentford". Football League 125. Archived from the original on 10 March 2016. Retrieved 24 November 2014.
  4. Haynes, Graham; Coumbe, Frank (2006). Timeless Bees: Brentford F.C. Who's Who 1920–2006. Harefield: Yore Publications. pp. 63–64. ISBN 978-0955294914.
  5. White, Eric, ed. (1989). 100 Years Of Brentford. Brentford FC. pp. 385–393. ISBN 0951526200.
  6. Croxford, Lane & Waterman 2011, p. 254.
  7. "Gelson Is Captain". The Brentford & Chiswick Times. 12 August 1966.
  8. "Ross Takes Over As Captain". The Brentford & Chiswick Times. 23 December 1966.
  9. Official Matchday Magazine Of Brentford Football Club versus Oldham Athletic. Blackheath: Morganprint. 14 August 1999. p. 41.
  10. "Brentford 2–0 Colchester Utd – Player Match List – Colchester United". www.coludata.co.uk. Retrieved 31 August 2016.
  11. Griffin Gazette: Brentford's Official Matchday Magazine versus Crewe Alexandra. Quay Design of Poole. 6 April 1996. p. 20.
  12. Wickham, Chris. "Bob Booker, Peter Gelson, Keith Millen, Alan Nelmes and Danis Salman honoured at Brentford FC 125 Year Anniversary Dinner". Retrieved 24 November 2014.
  13. "Weekly News And Match Bulletin – Season 2007–2008 No: 38 – : – 28th April 2008". Ryman Football League. Retrieved 11 November 2021.
  14. "First, Best, Worst: Peter Gelson". Brentford FC. Retrieved 28 February 2018.
  15. Croxford, Mark; Lane, David; Waterman, Greville (2011). The Big Brentford Book of the 70s. Legends Publishing. p. 295. ISBN 978-1906796709.
  16. Bruzon, Nick. "Where Are They Now? Peter Gelson – Part 2". brentfordfc.co.uk. Archived from the original on 16 February 2018. Retrieved 26 March 2017.
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