Keith Chadwick

Keith Michael Chadwick (born 10 March 1953) is an English former footballer who played as a midfielder. After impressing at non-league Nantwich Town, he joined Third Division side Port Vale via Crewe Alexandra in August 1972. In five years he played 46 games in league and cup, scoring seven goals, before he was forced to retire due to injury. He later coached at Port Vale, H. & R. Johnson, Alsager Town, and Stoke City, and took up a career at Rolls-Royce Motors in August 1977. He worked for the company for 22 years, before he was appointed as Managing Director at Radshape Sheet Metal in March 2005.

Keith Chadwick

Personal information
Full name	Keith Michael Chadwick[1]
Date of birth	(1953-03-10) 10 March 1953[1]
Place of birth	Butt Lane, England[1]
Playing position(s)	Midfielder
Youth career
	Port Vale
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
	Nantwich Town
1972	Crewe Alexandra	0	(0)
1972–1977	Port Vale	41	(7)
Total		41+	(7+)
Teams managed
	H. & R. Johnson
	Alsager Town
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Playing career

Chadwick graduated from the Port Vale junior side to join non-league Nantwich Town, before joining league club Crewe Alexandra. He returned to Port Vale as an amateur in August 1972, and finally signed a professional contract with the club in July 1973.[1] He got his first Third Division game in March 1974, and finished 1973–74 with five appearances under manager Roy Sproson.[1]

He was a regular first team player in 1974–75, playing both up front and at the back.[1] He got his first senior goal at London Road on 30 November, helping the "Valiants" to a 2–0 win over Peterborough United.[1] He also scored against Huddersfield Town, Southend United and Charlton Athletic (twice), to finish the campaign with five goals in 23 games.[1]

He scored twice in eighteen appearances in 1975–76, at Gillingham and Sheffield Wednesday; however he began suffering with knee troubles in the spring.[1] Causing him to miss the entirety of the 1976–77 campaign, these problems eventually brought about his retirement in March 1977, aged just 24.[1]

Coaching career

Chadwick was appointed the Port Vale youth coach a month after retirement from the game. He was sacked in September 1978, after choosing to play a big cricket match rather than travel with the youth team to a match.[1] He became the manager of H. & R. Johnson, where he resumed his playing career.[1] After moving on to Alsager Town of the Cheshire League, he was appointed as a coach at Stoke City's School of Excellence.[1]

Post-retirement

After his football career ended, he returned to Rolls-Royce Motors as a sheet metal worker in August 1977, where he stayed until December 1999. In his time at Rolls-Royce he had a number of positions, including: Quality Engineer, Supplier Development Manager, and various roles within the Purchasing Team.

On leaving the company he joined Aston based company Radshape Sheet Metal in June 2000 as Lean Manufacturing consultant, later becoming Sales/Quality Director. In March 2005, he became the Managing Director,[2] a position he still holds as of October 2014. Along with co-director Chris Dickinson he set up the biggest indoor radio controlled superstore in Europe, located in Minworth, Birmingham.

Statistics

Source:[3]

Club	Season	Division	League		FA Cup		Other		Total
			Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Port Vale	1973–74	Third Division	5	0	0	0	0	0	5	0
	1974–75	Third Division	22	5	1	0	0	0	23	5
	1975–76	Third Division	14	2	1	0	3	0	18	2
	Total		41	7	2	0	4	0	47	7

References

1. Kent, Jeff (1996). Port Vale Personalities. Witan Books. p. 56. ISBN 0-9529152-0-0.
2. "May 2007 Newsletter" (PDF). radshape.co.uk. Retrieved 5 November 2011.
3. Keith Chadwick at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)

External links

• Radshape Sheet Metal Ltd (company website)