:John Durkin (footballer)
{{short description|Scottish footballer (1930–1983)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2018}}
{{Use British English|date=February 2018}}
{{Infobox football biography
| image =
| fullname = John Durkin{{Hugman|5605|access-date=1 November 2022}}
| name = John Durkin
| height =
| position = Inside forward
| birth_date = {{birth date|1930|4|18|df=y}}
| birth_place = Hill of Beath, Scotland
| death_date = {{death date and age|1983|7|3|1930|4|18|df=y}}
| death_place = Ottawa, Canada
| currentclub =
| years1 = 1951–1952
| years2 = 1952–1953
| years3 = 1953–1955
| clubs1 = Heart of Midlothian
| clubs2 = Dunfermline Athletic
| clubs3 = Gillingham
| clubs4 = Ramsgate Athletic
| caps1 = 9 | goals1 = 0
| caps2 = 12 | goals2 = 2
| caps3 = 30 | goals3 = 5
}}
John Durkin (18 April 1930 – 3 July 1983) was a Scottish footballer who had a career in the 1950s. He began his senior career in his native Scotland with Heart of Midlothian, but never gained a regular place in the team. He later played for English club Gillingham, where he made 30 appearances in The Football League.
Career
Born in Hill of Beath, Fife{{cite book | first=Roger|last= Triggs | title=The Men Who Made Gillingham Football Club| publisher=Tempus Publishing Ltd | year=2001| isbn=0-7524-2243-X|page=107}} Durkin joined Edinburgh-based club Heart of Midlothian from local club Hill of Beath Ramblers in 1948, but did not make his Scottish Football League debut until 1951. He remained at Tynecastle Stadium until 1952, but played only sporadically, and joined Dunfermline Athletic in December of that year.{{Cite web|url=http://www.londonhearts.com/scores/players/durkinjohn.html|title=John Durkin|publisher=London Hearts Supporters' Club|accessdate=18 September 2010|archive-date=21 June 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100621040650/http://www.londonhearts.com/scores/players/durkinjohn.html|url-status=dead}} In August 1953,{{cite book | first=Barry J.|last= Hugman | title=Canon League Football Players' Records 1946–1984| publisher=Newnes Books | year=1984| isbn=0-600-37318-5|page=131}} he joined Gillingham of the Football League Third Division South. He signed for his new club on 21 August and made his Football League debut the following day in a match against Reading, during which he scored two goals in a 3–0 victory. He missed only one first team match between his debut and the following January, but then missed the remainder of the 1953–54 season.{{cite book | first=Tony|last= Brown | title=The Definitive Gillingham F.C.: A Complete Record| publisher=Soccerdata| year=2003| isbn=1-899468-20-X|pages=63–64}} The following season, he could not gain a place in the team, managing only three appearances when key players were injured, although on his first appearance for ten months he scored a goal in a 3–1 victory over Newport County. He left at the end of the 1954–55 season to join non-league club Ramsgate Athletic of the Kent League in May 1955. No further details of his career are known.
Outside football
Durkin was a chemistry student when he signed for Gillingham. He went on to combine playing for the club with a job at an East Kent coal mine. Durkin died in Ottawa, Canada on 3 July 1983, at the age of 53.
References
{{reflist|33em}}
External links
- {{NeilBrownPlayers|player4/johndurkin}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Durkin, John}}
Category:People from Hill of Beath
Category:Scottish men's footballers
Category:Heart of Midlothian F.C. players
Category:Dunfermline Athletic F.C. players
Category:Gillingham F.C. players
Category:Ramsgate F.C. players
Category:Scottish Football League players
Category:English Football League players
Category:Footballers from Fife
Category:Men's association football inside forwards