DEREK DOOLEY

Derek Dooley Way, is a Sheffield City inner ring road, named after a Sheffield Wednesday and Sheffield United footballing legend. Dooley was a member at both clubs, as a player, manager and chairman. He was a bull of a centre forward, who suffered a terrible injury in a 50/50 tackle, against the Preston goalkeeper, in a match that United lost 0-1. On Valentine's Day 1953, at 23 years old, he was in the form of his life, playing for The Owls in the First Division. In the previous season he had scored 46 times in 30 matches helping the Wednesday to a Second Divison championship by scoring nearly half their goals. 

After 20 games in the First Division he had continued his form with 16 goals. The next match was away against Preston North End and Wednesday had lost 1-0 after a Tom Finney second half goal, but worse to come was that Dooley was taken to hospital at the Preston Royal Infirmary with a double break of his right shinbone. He sustained the injury colliding with Preston's goalkeeper, George Thompson, at Deepdale. A crowd of over 28,000 witnessed this.

After the leg was reset and plastered, he left hospital but complained and a nurse, whom Dooley had playfully asked to sign his plaster cast, noticed that he couldn't feel his toes. The cast was removed and a small scratch on his leg revealed "Gas gangrene" had set in, which probably entered the abrasion from the pitch soil. An anti-gangrene serum was driven to the hospital that day but it was too late and his leg had to be amputated above the knee, four days later, sadly ending a promising career in 1953. He ended his playing career with 65 goals in 63 games. His career, however, continued off the pitch.

Dooley, Derek Statue 30/7/2010  by Vanstone, Paul @ Sheffield United FC, Bramall Lane.

Dooley had started his career at Sheffield YMCA, then played for Lincoln City in 1946 twice. joining Wednesday next. In two years he made a name for himself proving to be a prolific goal scorer. When he recovered, Dooley was only 23 years old and remarkably "sensible", reflecting on what he was going to do next. He worked at the ground, acted as a journalist, scouted for talent, he handled the switchboard at a club director's, coached the youth team and ran the club lottery. He also helped develop the new Hillsborough stadium, over 8 years.

Determined not to be regarded as an invalid, Dooley went on to manage Wednesday in 1971 but fell out with the club when he was sacked in 1973, on Christmas Eve. 

In 1974 he crossed the city and saw the development of Sheffield United's stadium, at Bramall Lane, as Commercial Manager in 1999, when he saw the Blades to return to the Premier League in 2006 and oversaw what was arguably the club's best period in the top flight.

 

He eventually retired with a Testimonial match, between the two city clubs, attracting a 55,000 crowd that  joined in to support him. He was the subject of Eamonn Andrews' "This is Your Life" TV programme (see above), a ring road in Sheffield was named after him, there is a flagstone dedicated to him at the City Hall "Walk of Fame", he was honoured with the MBE in 2003, Paul Vanstone sculptured a statue of Dooley at Bramall Lane in 2010 and the Wednesday Junior Academy at Crookes bears his name. He died on the 5th March 2008 at 78 years old.