David McGhee

David McGhee
Personal information
Full name David Christopher McGhee[1]
Date of birth (1976-06-19) 19 June 1976 (age 48)
Place of birth Worthing, England
Height 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[2]
Position(s) Utility player
Youth career
Plymouth Argyle
St Austell
1993–1995 Brentford
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1995–1999 Brentford 124 (9)
1999 Stevenage Borough 2 (0)
1999–2004 Leyton Orient 114 (7)
2004–2006 Canvey Island 42 (1)
2006 Chelmsford City 7 (0)
2006 Wivenhoe Town 6 (0)
2006–2007 Falmouth Town 24 (4)
2007–2015 Lanreath
Managerial career
2014–2015 Lanreath (player-manager)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

David Christopher McGhee (born 19 June 1976) is an English retired professional footballer, who made over 230 appearances as a utility player in the Football League for Brentford and Leyton Orient.

Playing career

Early years

McGhee was born in Worthing. Starting out as a defender, he began his career in the youth system at Plymouth Argyle.[3] He was not taken on as a scholar by first team manager Peter Shilton and dropped into non-League football to sign for local South Western League club St Austell.[3]

Brentford

McGhee joined Second Division club Brentford on trial in 1993, after the club responded to a contact request from his father.[3] He signed a professional contract with the Bees in April 1994 and received his maiden call into the first team squad for a Football League Trophy first round match versus Brighton & Hove Albion on 19 October that year.[4][5] He remained on the bench for the 1–0 victory.[5] McGhee's professional debut came on 21 January 1995, when he replaced Darren Annon during a 2–1 league win over Hull City.[5] He was largely an unused substitute during the rest of the 1994–95 season, finishing with seven appearances and scored one goal.[6]

McGhee established himself in the first team during the 1995–96 season, wearing five different shirt numbers and proving to be an able utility player.[7] He made 45 appearances and scored six goals.[6]

McGhee's best season for Brentford came in 1996–97, when he made a season-high 53 appearances and scored two goals.[8] The Bees led the Second Division for much of the first two-thirds of the season, before dropping to fourth position and qualifying for the playoffs.[9] After beating Bristol City 4–2 on aggregate in the semi-finals, the Bees lost 1–0 to Crewe Alexandra at Wembley Stadium in the final.[10]

McGhee was again a regular pick during the 1997–98 season, making 33 appearances and scoring one goal in which Brentford's playoff hangover consigned them to relegation to the Third Division after a final-day defeat to Bristol Rovers.[11] A succession of injuries saw McGhee miss the entire 1998–99 season, and he retired in January 1999.[12] He made 138 appearances and scored 10 goals during his time at Griffin Park.[12]

Stevenage Borough

McGhee came out of retirement to sign for Conference club Stevenage Borough in August 1999.[12] He made two appearances before departing Broadhall Way before the end of the first month of the season.[13]

Leyton Orient

McGhee returned to the Football League to sign for struggling Third Division club Leyton Orient in November 1999.[1] He quickly established himself in the side, making 23 appearances and scoring one goal during the remainder of the 1999–00 season to help the Os retain their league status.[14] McGhee had an excellent 2000–01 season, making 51 appearances and scoring three goals as the Os finished in the playoff positions.[15] As with Brentford in 1997, McGhee suffered heartbreak in his second appearance at Wembley Stadium, with Orient crashing to a 4–2 defeat to Blackpool in the final, after having twice taken the lead.[16]

Orient suffered a hangover in the 2001–02 season, though McGhee again featured in almost all the club's matches, making 45 appearances and scoring two goals.[17] McGhee's run as a mainstay of the team came to an end on 10 September 2002, when he suffered a ruptured achilles tendon after 11 minutes of a 3–2 League Cup first round victory over Queens Park Rangers.[18][19] He returned to match play just over a year later and was named captain, but managed just 12 appearances and one goal during the 2003–04 season,[20] before leaving the club on 25 March 2004.[21] McGhee made 135 appearances and scored seven goals during five years at Brisbane Road.[22] His performances earned him the nickname "Mad Dog".[21]

Return to non-League football

On 25 March 2004, McGhee dropped into non-League football to join high-flying Isthmian League Premier Division club Canvey Island on a contract running until the end of the 2005–06 season.[21] Following the club's promotion to the Conference Premier at the end of the 2003–04 season, McGhee failed to hold down a regular place in the team and made 47 appearances and scored one goal before departing at the end of the 2005–06 season.[23][24][25]

McGhee continued his descent down the pyramid with short spells at Isthmian League clubs Chelmsford City and Wivenhoe Town respectively during the first half of the 2006–07 season.[26] McGhee returned to Cornwall in late 2006 to sign for South Western League club Falmouth Town.[27] He signed for East Cornwall League Premier Division club Lanreath in 2007 and played for the team until 2015.[28][29] He re-emerged with the club's veterans' team 2017, playing as a goalkeeper.[30]

Managerial career

McGhee has held coaching and assistant manager positions in the youth setup at local Cornish club Looe Town.[31] He served as joint-player-manager of East Cornwall League First Division club Lanreath during the 2014–15 season.[28]

Personal life

McGhee's son Callum played under his management at Lanreath.[32] In March 2015, McGhee was diagnosed with a brain tumour.[28]

Career statistics

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] League cup[b] Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Brentford 1994–95[6] Second Division 7 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 1
1995–96[6] 36 5 4 0 2 1 3[c] 0 45 6
1996–97[8] 45 1 3 1 3 0 2[d] 0 53 2
1997–98[11] 29 1 2 0 2 0 0 0 33 1
Total 117 7 9 1 7 1 5 0 138 10
Stevenage Borough 1999–00[14] Conference 2 0 — — — 2 0
Leyton Orient 1999–00[14] Third Division 22 1 — — 1[c] 0 23 1
2000–01[15] 39 3 4 0 4 0 4[e] 0 51 3
2001–02[17] 40 2 4 0 0 0 1[c] 0 45 2
2002–03[18] 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 4 0
2003–04[20] 10 1 1 0 0 0 1[c] 0 12 1
Total 114 7 9 0 5 0 7 0 135 7
Canvey Island 2003–04[23] Isthmian League Premier Division 4 0 — — — 4 0
2004–05[24] Conference Premier 22 1 0 0 — 3[f] 0 25 1
2005–06[25] 20 0 0 0 — 2[f] 0 22 0
Total 46 1 0 0 — 5 0 51 1
Chelmsford City 2006–07[26] Isthmian League Premier Division 7 0 0 0 — — 7 0
Wivenhoe Town 2006–07[26] Isthmian League First Division North 6 0 — — — 6 0
Career total 292 15 18 1 12 1 17 0 350 18
  1. ^ Includes FA Cup
  2. ^ Includes League Cup
  3. ^ a b c d Appearances in Football League Trophy
  4. ^ Appearances in Second Division play-offs
  5. ^ 3 appearances in Third Division play-offs, 1 appearance in Football League Trophy
  6. ^ a b Appearances in FA Trophy

References

  1. ^ a b "David McGhee". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 25 June 2015.
  2. ^ "David McGhee". Archived from the original on 10 June 1998. Retrieved 17 April 2019.
  3. ^ a b c Brentford F.C. Griffin Gazette versus Huddersfield Town. Quay Design of Poole. 21 February 1995. p. 28.
  4. ^ Croxford, Mark; Lane, David; Waterman, Greville (2013). The Big Brentford Book Of The Nineties. Sunbury, Middlesex: Legends Publishing. p. 412. ISBN 9781906796723.
  5. ^ a b c Griffin Gazette versus AFC Bournemouth. Poole: Quay Design. 29 April 1995. pp. 34–35.
  6. ^ a b c d Croxford, Lane & Waterman 2013, p. 480-481.
  7. ^ Griffin Gazette versus AFC Bournemouth. Poole: Quay Design. 4 May 1996. pp. 30–31.
  8. ^ a b "Games played by Dave McGhee in 1996/1997". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 January 2015.
  9. ^ "Brentford Home Page for the 1996–1997 season". Statto.com. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 27 January 2015.
  10. ^ Wickham, Chris. "League One Guide: Crewe Alexandra". www.brentfordfc.co.uk. Retrieved 10 April 2016.
  11. ^ a b "Games played by Dave McGhee in 1997/1998". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 January 2015.
  12. ^ a b c Haynes, Graham; Coumbe, Frank (2006). Timeless Bees: Brentford F.C. Who's Who 1920–2006. Harefield: Yore Publications. p. 46. ISBN 978-0955294914.
  13. ^ "Dave McGhee – Defence – Player Profile". BoroGuide. Retrieved 1 August 2023.
  14. ^ a b c "Games played by Dave McGhee in 1999/2000". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 January 2015.
  15. ^ a b "Games played by Dave McGhee in 2000/2001". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 January 2015.
  16. ^ "Clockwatch: Blackpool 4–2 Orient". BBC. 26 May 2001. Retrieved 10 April 2016.
  17. ^ a b "Games played by Dave McGhee in 2001/2002". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 January 2015.
  18. ^ a b "Games played by Dave McGhee in 2002/2003". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 January 2015.
  19. ^ "McGhee blow for O's". SkySports. Retrieved 27 January 2015.
  20. ^ a b "Games played by Dave McGhee in 2003/2004". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 January 2015.
  21. ^ a b c "McGhee Makes Canvey Switch". leytonorient.com. 25 March 2004. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  22. ^ David McGhee at Soccerbase
  23. ^ a b "Player Details: Season 2003–2004". SoccerFacts UK. Archived from the original on 25 April 2016. Retrieved 10 April 2016.
  24. ^ a b "David McGhee Unknown team or unattached – Hull City AFC". Hull City Mad. Archived from the original on 3 June 2016. Retrieved 10 April 2016.
  25. ^ a b "David McGhee Unknown team or unattached – Hull City AFC". Hull City Mad. Archived from the original on 4 June 2016. Retrieved 10 April 2016.
  26. ^ a b c "All Competitions : Player's Appearances – McGhee David". Football.mitoo.co. Retrieved 10 April 2016.
  27. ^ "Town crumble in second half". Falmouth Packet. 13 December 2006. Retrieved 27 January 2015.
  28. ^ a b c "News: David McGhee". leytonorient.com. Retrieved 14 June 2015.
  29. ^ "Best Wishes To Dave McGhee". Canvey Island FC – The Official Website | The Pride of Essex Football. Archived from the original on 24 September 2017. Retrieved 10 April 2016.
  30. ^ "Wadebridge Town 7–0 Lanreath". Q Cornwall Leisure Veterans League. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
  31. ^ "Looe News August 12". yudu.com. Retrieved 27 January 2015.
  32. ^ "Match Report – Pensilva 1st XI". Pensilva FC. Retrieved 14 June 2015.