| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | George Henry Poyser[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1910-02-06)6 February 1910[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Stanton Hill, England[1] | ||
| Date of death | 30 January 1995(1995-01-30) (aged 84)[1] | ||
| Place of death | Skegby, England[1] | ||
| Height | 5 ft11+1⁄2 in (1.82 m)[2] | ||
| Position | Left-back | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1925–1927 | Teversal Colliery | ||
| 1927–1928 | Stanton Hill Victoria | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1928–1929 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 0 | (0) |
| 1929–1930 | Stourbridge | ||
| 1930–1931 | Mansfield Town | ||
| 1931–1934 | Port Vale | 72 | (0) |
| 1934–1946 | Brentford | 149 | (0) |
| 1946–1947 | Plymouth Argyle | 3 | (0) |
| 1947–1950 | Dover | ||
| Managerial career | |||
| 1947–1950 | Dover | ||
| 1953–1957 | Notts County | ||
| 1963–1965 | Manchester City | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
George Henry Poyser (6 February 1910 – 30 January 1995) was an Englishfootball player andmanager.
Aleft-back, he enjoyed a lengthy playing career, the tail end of which was interrupted byWorld War II. He played forWolverhampton Wanderers,Stourbridge,Mansfield Town,Port Vale,Brentford, andPlymouth Argyle. He helped Brentford to win theSecond Division title in 1934–35.
He became acoach and manager after the war, taking charge ofDover,Notts County andManchester City. He took County into the quarter-finals of theFA Cup, though he was better equipped as ascout than as a manager.
Poyser played as adefender and was a strong left-back.[1] Playing for Teversal Colliery, he had an unsuccessful trial atMansfield Town, before moving on to Stanton Hill Victoria.[1] He enjoyed spells atWolverhampton Wanderers andStourbridge,[3] before signing with Mansfield Town.[4] He was part of the Mansfield team when they were elected tothe Football League in 1931.[5]
In May 1931, he joinedPort Vale of theSecond Division.[1] His debut came on 2 January 1932, in a 2–0 win overPlymouth Argyle at theOld Recreation Ground.[1] However, he totalled just six appearances for the "Valiants" in the1931–32 campaign.[1] He featured 28 times in the1932–33 season before establishing himself in the first team with 39 appearances in the1933–34 campaign.[1] He made 72 league appearances for Port Vale.[4]
In June 1934 hetransferred toBrentford for a fee of £1,550, a club record.[6] In hisfirst season at Brentford, the club won the Second Division championship. The "Bees" finished fifth in theFirst Division in1935–36, sixth in1936–37 and1937–38, and then 18th in1938–39. He remained atGriffin Park for a decade, making 157 appearances, though like many players of his era, theSecond World War shortened his career, though he represented Brentford in the non-competitive wartime competitions.[7]
The 36-year-old Poyser joined Plymouth Argyle for a £3,500 fee late in the1945–46 season,[6] making three Football League South appearances and a further three Second Division appearances.[8] He leftHome Park at the end of the1946–47 season.[8]
Poyser first turned to management withDover, where he was appointed player-manager on 21 November 1947.[9] He managed the club in theKent Football League for three successful seasons, before departing in May 1950; the supporters' association chairman stated that "his genial personality, his wealth of football knowledge, and his aptitude to make friends had played a tremendously important part in the town club's success".[10] He then returned to his old professional clubs in acoaching capacity, becoming the assistant trainer at Brentford and a coach at Wolverhampton Wanderers.[6]
His management career gained more recognition atNotts County, whom he managed between October 1953 and January 1957,[11] reaching theFA Cup quarter-finals in1955. Former Notts County wingerGordon Wills regards Poyser as the bestmanager he played for.[12] The "Magpies" struggled in the lower half of the Second Division during his four seasons atMeadow Lane. However, they did reach seventh in the1954–55 season.
In January 1957, Poyser joinedManchester City as assistant toLes McDowall,[11] with a reputation for being a talentedscout.[13] Manchester City wererelegated to the Second Division in 1963, and McDowall left the club. On 11 June 1963, Poyser was appointed as his replacement.[14] He made three key signings inDerek Kevan,Jimmy Murray, andJohnny Crossan, whilst promoting home-grown talent inAlan Oakes andGlyn Pardoe – both of whom went on to build long careers at the club. In hisfirst season, the club reached theLeague Cup semi-finals but were well short of promotion in the league, finishing sixth.[13] Hissecond season proved disappointing. In January 1965, the club reached a low point with their lowest ever league attendance of 8,015 againstSwindon Town.[14] Poyser himself was not at the stadium, as he had elected to perform a scouting mission instead.[13] At Easter Poyser was sacked. The club finished the season in their then-lowest-ever position of 11th in the Second Division.[13] His replacement,Joe Mercer, went on to great success atMaine Road.
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Wolverhampton Wanderers | 1928–29[15] | Second Division | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Port Vale | 1931–32[15] | Second Division | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| 1932–33[15] | 28 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 0 | ||
| 1933–34[15] | 38 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 39 | 0 | ||
| Total | 72 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 73 | 0 | ||
| Brentford | 1934–35[16] | Second Division | 41 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 42 | 0 |
| 1935–36[16] | First Division | 28 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 29 | 0 | |
| 1936–37[16] | 31 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 33 | 0 | ||
| 1937–38[16] | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 0 | ||
| 1938–39[16] | 33 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 34 | 0 | ||
| 1945–46[16] | — | — | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Total | 149 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 157 | 0 | ||
| Plymouth Argyle | 1946–47[8] | Second Division | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Career total | 224 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 233 | 0 | ||
| Team | From | To | Record | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | W | D | L | Win % | |||
| Notts County | 22 October 1953 | 7 January 1957 | 149 | 53 | 31 | 65 | 035.6 |
| Manchester City | 12 July 1963 | 13 April 1965 | 89 | 38 | 17 | 34 | 042.7 |
Brentford
Individual