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| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | David John Longhurst[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1965-01-15)15 January 1965[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Northampton,[1] England | ||
| Date of death | 8 September 1990(1990-09-08) (aged 25)[1] | ||
| Place of death | York,[1] England | ||
| Height | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)[2] | ||
| Position | Striker | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1983–1985 | Nottingham Forest | 0 | (0) |
| 1985–1987 | Halifax Town | 85 | (24) |
| 1987–1988 | Northampton Town | 37 | (7) |
| 1988–1990 | Peterborough United | 58 | (7) |
| 1990 | York City | 6 | (2) |
| Total | 186 | (40) | |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
David John Longhurst (15 January 1965 – 8 September 1990) was an Englishfootballer. During his career, he played forNottingham Forest,Halifax Town,Northampton Town,Peterborough United andYork City. He died on the pitch during a match for York City againstLincoln City in 1990.
Northampton-born Longhurst was a pacy striker who began his career inNottingham Forest's youth team under the management ofBrian Clough in the early 1980s, and received a permanent contract in 1983. However, he never played a first team game for Forest, and joinedHalifax Town in theFourth Division on a free transfer in 1985. He was a regular goalscorer at the club, scoring 24 goals in 85 league appearances, although it wasn't enough to turn theWest Yorkshire club into promotion contenders. After two seasons at Halifax, he joined his hometown clubNorthampton Town in 1987.
After one season at Northampton, Longhurst was signed byPeterborough United in 1988, scoring a hat-trick in a 3–3 draw withGillingham in theFA Cup first round atPriestfield Stadium on 19 November that year. Peterborough won the replay 1–0.[3]
He joinedYork City in March 1990. In the third match of the1990–91 season againstLincoln City, Longhurst suffered a heart attack on the pitch, and was pronounced dead when he arrived at the hospital. He was the first player to die in aFootball League match in 63 years; the previous on-pitch death in a Football League match wasBury defenderSam Wynne in 1927. The subsequent inquest into Longhurst's death revealed that he suffered from a rare heart condition.[4]
York City later named one of the refurbished stands at theBootham Crescent stadium after him.
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