Gerry Bridgwood

Gerry Bridgwood
Personal information
Full name	Gerald Bridgwood
Date of birth	17 October 1944
Place of birth	Stoke-on-Trent, England
Date of death	2 March 2012 (aged 67)
Place of death	Goostrey, England
Position(s)	Midfielder
Youth career
1958–1960	Stoke City
Senior career*
Years	Team
1960–1968	Stoke City
1968–1973	Shrewsbury Town
	Telford United
Total
	*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Gerald "Gerry" Bridgwood (17 October 1944 – 2 March 2012) was an English footballer who played as a midfielder in the Football League for Shrewsbury Town and Stoke City. Bridgwood spent eight years at Stoke, in which time he was used as backup and was used sparingly by manager Tony Waddington.^[1]

Career

Bridgwood started his career with local team Stoke City and made his professional debut at the end of the 1960–61 season at home to Brighton & Hove Albion.^[1] It took him a while to establish himself in Tony Waddingtons squad and he was used as a back up player in his time at Stoke.^[1] In total Bridgwood played in 111 matches for Stoke scoring eight goals in nine seasons.^[1] His most productive season was the 1966–67 as he made 26 appearances. He also played six matches in the club's run to the 1964 Football League Cup Final. He left for regular football in 1968 and joined Shrewsbury Town where he spent five years before ending his career with Telford United.^[1]

Personal life

After finishing his playing career Bridgwood and his wife Cynthia became pub landlords. They owned The Greyhound (Stafford) for many years. Since the early 1990s they owned the Crown Inn, Goostrey. Bridgwood's eldest son, Mark, a ceramic artist, lives with his family in U.S. His youngest son, Scott is a painter in the UK.

Death

Gerry Bridgwood died on 2 March 2012 after a suspected heart attack just days after he had decided to retire from the pub trade.^[2]

Career statistics

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition^[3]
Club	Season	League			FA Cup		League Cup		Total
Club	Season	Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Stoke City^[1]	1960–61	Second Division	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
	1961–62	Second Division	5	0	0	0	0	0	5	0
	1962–63	Second Division	4	0	1	0	1	0	6	0
	1963–64	First Division	16	2	0	0	6	0	22	2
	1964–65	First Division	8	0	0	0	4	1	12	1
	1965–66	First Division	15	2	0	0	1	0	16	2
	1966–67	First Division	25	2	0	0	1	0	26	2
	1967–68	First Division	15	0	0	0	1	1	16	1
	1968–69	First Division	6	0	0	0	1	0	7	0
	Total		95	6	1	0	15	2	111	8
Shrewsbury Town	1968–69	Third Division	4	0	0	0	0	0	4	0
	1969–70	Third Division	30	2	1	0	2	0	33	2
	1970–71	Third Division	23	1	2	0	1	0	26	1
	1971–72	Third Division	35	2	3	0	2	0	40	2
	1972–73	Third Division	25	2	3	0	1	0	29	2
	Total		117	7	10	0	6	0	132	7
Career total			212	13	10	0	21	2	243	13

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ Matthews, Tony (1994). The Encyclopaedia of Stoke City. Lion Press. ISBN 0-9524151-0-0.
^ "Former Stoke City star Gerry Bridgwood died days after retiring from pub". The Sentinel. Archived from the original on 4 June 2012. Retrieved 3 March 2012.
^ Gerry Bridgwood at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)

External links

Gerry Bridgwood at Post War English & Scottish Football League A–Z Player's Transfer Database

[The_Encyclopaedia_of_Stoke_City-1] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ Matthews, Tony (1994). The Encyclopaedia of Stoke City. Lion Press. ISBN 0-9524151-0-0.

[2] "Former Stoke City star Gerry Bridgwood died days after retiring from pub". The Sentinel. Archived from the original on 4 June 2012. Retrieved 3 March 2012.

[3] Gerry Bridgwood at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)

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