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Don Welbourne

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Don Welbourne
Personal information
Full name Donald Welbourne[1]
Date of birth (1949-03-12) 12 March 1949 (age 75)
Place of birth Scunthorpe, England
Position(s) Defender
Youth career
Scunthorpe United
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1966–1976 Scunthorpe United 254 (5)
1975 Boston Minutemen 17 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Donald Welbourne (born 12 March 1949[2]) is an English former professional footballer who made more than 250 appearances in the Football League playing as a central defender for Scunthorpe United.[3] He also played in the North American Soccer League (NASL) for the Boston Minutemen.

Career

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Welbourne was born in Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire. He began his football career as an apprentice with Scunthorpe United, and made his debut as a 17-year-old in September 1966. After establishing himself in the first team a couple of years later, he spent seven seasons as a regular, and was part of the Fourth Division team that knocked First Division Sheffield Wednesday out of the 1969–70 FA Cup on Wednesday's own ground, before injury ended his professional career in November 1975.[4][5] In 1969, he and Grimsby Town player Graham Rathbone were sent off for fighting, and each received an eight-week ban, "suspensions of unprecedented severity", according to The Times.[6] Welbourne played for the Boston Minutemen, alongside Eusébio, as they won the Northern Division of the North American Soccer League in 1975.[7] He later became a window-cleaner.[5] He also played for Appleby Frodingham.[8]

Welbourne's older brother Duncan was also a professional footballer who played more than 450 games for Watford.[9]

References

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  1. ^ "Don Welbourne". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 14 January 2019.
  2. ^ "On This Week – March 10–16". Scunthorpe United F.C. Archived from the original on 22 March 2012. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  3. ^ "Scunthorpe United : 1950/51 – 2009/10". UK A–Z Transfers. Neil Brown. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  4. ^ Norton, Michael (17 June 2007). "The Iron Alphabet: St–Y". Scunthorpe United F.C. Archived from the original on 1 February 2012. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  5. ^ a b "Spirit of 1970 can bring Iron cup glory". Scunthorpe Telegraph. 23 January 2010. Archived from the original on 5 May 2013. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  6. ^ "FA's tough measures". The Times. 10 October 1969. p. 14.
  7. ^ "Donald Welbourne". NASL Jerseys. Dave Morrison. Retrieved 19 March 2011.
  8. ^ "DON WELBOURNE". Retrieved 24 June 2024.
  9. ^ Jones, Trefor (1996). The Watford Football Club Illustrated Who's Who. T.G. Jones. p. 238. ISBN 0-9527458-0-1.
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