Meet the man who played for promotion rivals Fleetwood Town and Wycombe Wanderers ... in the 1950s.

As we look forward to the League One play-off semi-finals between Fleetwood Town  and Wycombe Wanderers, it’s a pleasure to hear from someone who played for both clubs.
Gerald Stephen signed for Fleetwood Town 64 years agoGerald Stephen signed for Fleetwood Town 64 years ago
Gerald Stephen signed for Fleetwood Town 64 years ago
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And Gerald Stephen can certainly offer a unique viewpoint, having played for them in the 1950s, either side of National Service in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) and Singapore.

At 86, Thornton Cleveleys resident Gerry is the elder statesman of the Fleetwood Town Official Supporters’ Club and a member of Town’s Former Players’ Association.

Gerald Stephen playing for RAF Changi in SingaporeGerald Stephen playing for RAF Changi in Singapore
Gerald Stephen playing for RAF Changi in Singapore
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Born in Balham, south London, Gerry tells his footballing story in his own words...

“My father bought me my first pair of football boots and a ball for my seventh birthday in 1940. He said: ‘Practise kicking that with your left foot and you will be able to walk into any team in the country.’

“I was living in Somerset at the time, having been evacuated from London a year earlier, on the day war was declared.

“I first played on grass in 1944, when I went to St Clement Danes Grammar School in Shepherds Bush, London.

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“I was chosen for my house team as an outside-left, but only seven players turned up and the captain told me to play at centre-half. That’s the position I played for the school junior team the following year and captained the side.

“On leaving school at 16 I wrote to Queens Park Rangers for a trial but after one session they said I was too slow.

“I signed for a local youth club, where I played as a centre-forward and scored 45 goals in the season. Next season I joined another youth club and played left-back.

“When I was almost 18 I wrote to Wimbledon asking for a trail. After one full game at left-back I was signed for four months.

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I was called up to do my National Service in the Royal Air Force and played centre-half for RAF Innsworth and at left-half for Wycombe Wanderers Reserves. I was then moved up to Kirkham, where I met my wife, and Lytham before being posted overseas.

“My first posting was to Ceylon, where I played left-half in the station team. I had just been told I had been selected for the Combined Services team when I was posted to Singapore. There I played left-back for RAF Changi and we won the league.

“After being demobbed, I hoped to play for Wycombe again but nobody there remembered me and the train journey from home was too costly. Instead I signed for Surbiton Town in the Surrey Senior League. We trained twice a week at Craven Cottage, the home of Fulham.

“In 1954, I signed for Wealdstone, then Tooting and Mitcham before we moved to Blackpool. We had a baby on the way and couldn’t afford to live in London.

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“I got a job with ICI and joined Fleetwood Town for the 1956/57 season. It was a very good set-up but because I did shiftwork I couldn’t always get time off to play.

“So next season I played for Layton Institute in the Fylde League. I was made captain and we won the league three years on the trot, going into the West Lancashire League.

“I stayed with Layton for 15 years. I also played in the Wednesday League for Whitegate Juniors and then for Blackpool Jazz Club.

“I became manager of Poulton United before joining the management committee of the Fylde League as registration secretary. I left football altogether in the 1980s. I got into natural history and that took over really.”

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To bring his story up to date, Gerry joined the Fleetwood Town Former Players’ Association in 2018 and went on to join FTOSC last year.

Gerry admits he is no fan of modern football but still likes to see Fleetwood do well, and their forthcoming play-off semi-final against another of his former clubs has grabbed his attention.

He added: “The players are fitter these days but it isn’t my type of football – there’s no tackling!

“But Highbury is much better now and the club’s facilities are brilliant. I still follow their fortunes, especially when they are playing Wycombe, and I like to see Fleetwood win.”

Our thanks once again to FTOSC chairman Bernard Noble for his help in producing this article.