George McLeod (footballer, born 1932)

George James McLeod (30 November 1932 – 5 September 2016) was a Scottish professional football winger who played in the Football League for Luton Town, Brentford and Queens Park Rangers.

George McLeod
Personal information
Full name George James McLeod[1]
Date of birth (1932-11-30)30 November 1932
Place of birth Inverness, Scotland
Date of death 5 September 2016(2016-09-05) (aged 83)[1]
Place of death Luton, England
Playing position(s) Winger
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
Brora Rangers
Clachnacuddin
1955–1958 Luton Town 51 (6)
1958–1964 Brentford 207 (20)
1964–1965 Queens Park Rangers 41 (4)
1965 Port Elizabeth City
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Playing career

Early years

Born in Inverness and brought up in Brora, McLeod began his career with Highland League clubs Brora Rangers and Clachnacuddin.[2][3] Despite a lack of success in the league, he won the first silverware of his career in cup competitions with Clachnacuddin. He departed the club in early 1955.[4]

Luton Town

McLeod moved to England to sign for Second Division high-flyers Luton Town in January 1955.[5] He failed to make an immediate impact and made just one appearance in what remained of the 1954–55 season, in which the Hatters finished second in the Second Division to claim a place in the top-flight for the first time in the club's history.[6] McLeod made 15 appearances and scored his first goal for the club during the 1955–56 season, before establishing himself in the team during 1957–58, making 34 appearances and scoring four goals. He made just one appearance during the early weeks of the 1958–59 season, before departing the club in October 1958.[4] McLeod made 51 league appearances and scored six goals during his time at Kenilworth Road.[1]

Brentford

McLeod dropped down to Third Division to join Brentford in a £6,000 deal in October 1958.[4] He quickly went on to establish himself in the team and was rarely absent, including chalking up a run of 132 consecutive appearances,[4] which included a career-high 52 games during the 1961–62 season.[7] McLeod was an ever-present during the 1962–63 Fourth Division championship-winning season, making 49 appearances as Brentford were promoted back to the Third Division at the first attempt.[7] McLeod fell out of favour during the 1963–64 season, departing Griffin Park in January 1964.[4] McLeod made 232 appearances and scored 22 goals during his six years with the Bees.[4]

Queens Park Rangers

McLeod signed for Brentford's Third Division West London rivals Queens Park Rangers in January 1964, in a part exchange deal which saw Mark Lazarus move to Brentford for £8,000.[4] He made 42 appearances and scored four goals before departing at the end of the 1964–65 season.[8][9]

Port Elizabeth City

McLeod saw out his career with a spell in South Africa at National Football League club Port Elizabeth City, playing under former Brentford teammate Matt Crowe.[4]

Personal life

McLeod, a widower, died on 5 September 2016 at the age of 83; he was survived by one daughter and four brothers.[2] Two of his relatives also became footballers – Alisdair Sutherland and John McLeod (Buckie Thistle).[2] After his retirement from football, McLeod became a publican in Steppingley and Wootton.[5] After his death his ashes were scattered in the River Brora.[2]

Honours

Clachnacuddin

Brentford

Career statistics
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League FA Cup League Cup Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Brentford 1958–59[7] Third Division 29 5 4 0 — 33 5
1959–60[7] 36 4 1 0 — 37 4
1960–61[7] 36 3 2 0 3 1 41 4
1961–62[7] 46 3 5 0 1 1 52 4
1962–63[7] Fourth Division 46 4 1 0 2 0 49 4
1963–64[7] Third Division 14 1 3 0 3 0 20 1
Total 207 20 16 0 9 2 232 22
Queens Park Rangers 1963–64[8] Third Division 17 4 — — 17 4
1964–65[9] 24 0 0 0 1 0 25 0
Total 41 4 0 0 1 0 42 4
Career total 248 24 16 0 10 2 274 26
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References
  1. "George McLeod". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  2. "McLeod was wizard of the pitch". www.northern-times.co.uk. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  3. "Am Baile". Am Baile. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  4. Haynes, Graham; Coumbe, Frank (2006). Timeless Bees: Brentford F.C. Who's Who 1920–2006. Harefield: Yore Publications. p. 107. ISBN 978-0955294914.
  5. "GEORGE MCLEOD: 30/11/1932 – 5/9/2016". Archived from the original on 1 February 2017. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  6. Luton Town F.C. at the Football Club History Database
  7. White, Eric, ed. (1989). 100 Years Of Brentford. Brentford FC. pp. 385–387. ISBN 0951526200.
  8. "QPRnet – Seasonal Stats – 1963–64". Retrieved 4 February 2020.
  9. "QPRnet – Seasonal Stats – 1964–65". Retrieved 4 February 2020.
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