John Phillips (footballer)

Thomas John Seymour Phillips (7 July 1951 – 31 March 2017)[1] was a Welsh footballer who played as a goalkeeper for various English clubs and the Welsh national team.[2]

John Phillips

Personal information
Birth name	Thomas John Seymour Phillips
Date of birth	(1951-07-07)7 July 1951
Place of birth	Shrewsbury
Date of death	31 March 2017(2017-03-31) (aged 65)
Playing position(s)	Goalkeeper
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1968–1970	Shrewsbury Town	51	(0)
1970	Aston Villa	15	(0)
1970–1980	Chelsea	125	(0)
1980	Crewe Alexandra	6	(0)
1980–1981	Brighton & Hove Albion	1	(0)
1981–1982	Charlton Athletic	2	(0)
1982–1983	Crystal Palace	0	(0)
	Sea Bee
Total		200	(0)
National team
1973–1974	Wales	4	(0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Phillips started out with his home town club, Shrewsbury Town, for whom he made 51 appearances, before transferring to Aston Villa at the age of 18. After only a handful of matches for Villa, Phillips joined Chelsea in August 1970 for £25,000. He was to spend the majority of his career with the west London club as the long-term understudy to Peter Bonetti and only once, in 1974-75, was he to make over 30 appearances in a season for the club. He made a total of 149 appearances for Chelsea.

He left Chelsea in 1980 and had brief spells with Crewe Alexandra, Brighton & Hove Albion, Charlton Athletic, Crystal Palace and Sea Bee in Hong Kong. John Toshack signed Phillips for Swansea City in the early Eighties, but never made the first team. He also won 4 caps for the Wales national team. Phillips died in 2017 at the age of 65 after a long illness.[3]

References

1. Davies, Gareth; Garland, Ian (1991). Who's Who of Welsh International Soccer Players. Bridge Books. pp. 163–164. ISBN 1-872424-11-2.
2. John Phillips at Post War English & Scottish Football League A–Z Player's Database
3. John Phillips: Former Wales & Chelsea goalkeeper dies, aged 65