Jim Langley
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ernest James Langley | ||
| Date of birth | 7 February 1929 | ||
| Place of birth | London, England | ||
| Date of death | 9 December 2007 (aged 78) | ||
| Place of death | London, England | ||
| Position(s) |
Full-back | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
|
Yiewsley | |||
| Hounslow Town | |||
| Uxbridge | |||
| Hayes | |||
| Brentford | |||
| Ruislip | |||
| 1948–1952 | Guildford City | 155 | (7[1]) |
| 1952–1953 | Leeds United | 9 | (3) |
| 1953–1957 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 178 | (16) |
| 1957–1965 | Fulham | 356 | (33) |
| 1965–1967 | Queens Park Rangers | 87 | (9) |
| 1967–1971 | Hillingdon Borough | ||
| Total | 785 | (61) | |
| International career | |||
| 1958 | England | 3 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1967–1971 | Hillingdon Borough | ||
| 1977 | Dulwich Hamlet | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Ernest James Langley (7 February 1929 – 9 December 2007) was an English
Club career
Amateur
Langley started his football career as an amateur playing for a number of non-league sides in the London area whilst still a teenager. At the age of fourteen he was the youngest player to play for
As with many youngsters his age, Langley was called upon to do
Guildford City
Langley was a huge crowd favourite at Guildford City, helping them to two Southern League cup finals in 1951 and 1952 during his four seasons there. After the near catastrophic 1948–49 season he also helped the Surrey side to record a top ten finish in each of the following three seasons. It was hence with great reluctance that Guildford were forced to sell their prized asset to Second Division
Leeds United
Langley's second shot at making it in the Football League was as unhappy as his first as Langley made only 9 appearances for Leeds during his one season there. Despite scoring on his debut and on two subsequent occasions in his nine appearances on the left wing, manager
Brighton and Hove Albion
Albion finally provided Langley with the opportunity to show his ability and he thrived at the south coast club during his four seasons there, helping them secure runners up position in the 1953–54 and 1955–56 seasons and captaining them for two years. He was selected to play for the
Fulham
This move to
Queens Park Rangers
Langley left Fulham in 1965, moving to Queens Park Rangers in a £5,000 deal. Despite being in his mid thirties, he helped Rangers to a third-place finish in the Third Division in 1965–66 and the following season, he featured in the side which won the
Return to non-league
After being released by QPR at the end of that season, Langley turned his attention to management, becoming player-boss of
International career
Langley's career for his national team was short and sweet and he perhaps should have had more time to prove himself. Then manager Walter Winterbottom selected Langley for the home international against Scotland in April 1958 after his impressive first season with Fulham and he helped the side to a 4–0 victory and he played in the 2–1 victory over Portugal at Wembley, though he did miss a penalty in that game. However a 5–0 defeat by Yugoslavia in the next game meant that he was never called up again after an international career of barely three weeks.[4]
Post-playing career
Langley retired in 1971 and became a coach at Crystal Palace before returning to Hillingdon Borough as a club administrator. He appears to have had one last sojourn in management for Dulwich Hamlet in the latter part of the 1976–77 season where he strived, ultimately fruitlessly, to prevent their relegation into the Second Division of the Isthmian League.[6]
Langley after his time at Hillingdon Borough Football Club was finally finished moved into a career in hospitality as managing steward with overall responsibility for the operation of the club including the bar and premises firstly at West Drayton Royal British Legion and then at Sipson Royal British Legion. He was a popular person well known for his slightly wide legged gait caused by a lifetime of strenuous physical activity playing football and his characteristic friendly charm that he displayed to everybody that he met.
He became Club President of his Grandson Lee Langley’s boyhood club; Staines Town. Lee attempted to follow in Jimmy’s footsteps, trialling for Brentford, before becoming a trainee at QPR, interest in the young, but tough central midfielder also came from Chelsea; but within a month of this interest he tore a cruciate ligament and his time at the pro clubs came to an end. Lee is now a founder member and the Club President of Stoke & Torbay Police FC, whose annual charity matches are named ‘The Gentleman Jim Cup’ after Jimmy.
Langley died in London at the age of 78. Six days after his death his former club Fulham held a minute's silence before their home match with Newcastle United.
References
- ISBN 978-1-78280-979-1
- ISBN 9780752428413.
- ^ May, D. (2006) Guildford City Football Club 1921-1974. Privately published. No ISBN.
- ^ a b Ponting, Ivan. "Jimmy Langley: Ebullient Fulham full-back", The Independent, 2007-12-17. Retrieved 2009-04-04.
- ^ "Sportlight". Acton Gazette and West London Post. 28 September 1967. p. 3.
- ^ Anon. "Former manager, Jim Langley, passes away", Dulwich Hamlet F.C., official website, 2007-12-16. Retrieved 2009-04-04.