Tuesday 26 January 2016

WORKING GLASS HERO

As if what I wrote yesterday about "hope in the community" wasn't enough, one of my chums from "Fox" country referred to another great working GLASS hero, Jimmy Glass, the much travelled Carlisle United goalkeeper. A journeyman footballer to say the least, he was on loan from Swindon Town, when he memorably left his goal and raided Plymouth Argyll's penalty area during the last minute of the last game of the 1998-9 season. His team were looking down the relegation barrel.
(Carlisle United by the way once were known as the Foxes following John Peel's association with Cumbria).

Scarborough, also on the edge of parachuting to the Conference, had finished their final match of the season and drawn 1-1. The Scarborough crowd was on the pitch celebrating their "survival" as news that Carlisle, still 1-1, had not yet earned the vital three points to stay up. Carlisle's match was over running, when this happened...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KejwqhLDeOs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2QSigBwtFCk

So Jimmy Glass?? what do I know about his career. He was born in Epsom, Surrey and is now 42 years old. His career as a goalkeeper went from Chelsea Youth through Crystal Palace (1989-96) without any first team appearance. He was put out on loan to Dulwich Hamlet (14 games), Portsmouth (3 games), Gillingham (0 games), Burnley (0), Bournemouth (1996-98, 95), Swindon Town 98-00, 11) and to CARLISLE (1999, wait for it...for 3 matches and one goal).

Then  he was at Cambridge United (0), Brentford (0), Oxford United (0), Crawley (2001, 17 matches), Brockenhurst (3), Kingstonian (14), Lewes (3) and Weymouth (2004, 3 matches). He retired at 27 years old, hardly worn out, but returned to coach at Poole Town in 2011. Glass  had scored one goal in 169 "first team" appearances, not unusual for a goalkeeper of course.

After his short lived fame, Glass wrote a book called "One hit wonder", he worked in IT and then as a taxi driver in Lytchett Matravers, a scrumptious Dorset village, where he lives with his family. He is part of the hospitality package at AFC Bournemouth.

To counter his remarkable historic moment, Glass is one of few goalkeepers to score an own goal at Wembley, with 62,000 watching. This was in the Football League Trophy final 1998 (known as the Auto Windscreens Shields trophy). John Bailey had scored Bournemouth's first goal against Grimsby early on. After 75 minutes Glass put in his own net and the rest was history. He had quite a game.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vx42RZMSv1A
Bruce Grobbelaar famously being another in the 1984 Charity Shield v Everton.

His goal, the Carlisle one, was voted 74th most important goal in football history in the Times list! As well as gaining other shattering accolades.




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