John Browning

Browning joined Liverpool from Scottish junior side Dunoon Athletic in March 1934. The left-half was finally introduced for the visit of Chelsea to Anfield on 20 April 1935, when Liverpool produced an emphatic 6–0 victory. He retained his place for the final two league fixtures, including a 2–2 draw with Sunderland, to finish his first campaign with three appearances. Browning found opportunities harder to come by over the following seasons. Jimmy McDougall remained a mainstay of Liverpool’s half-back line, making 38 league appearances in 1935/36, while Browning featured six times. He continued to provide cover in subsequent campaigns, adding three appearances in 1936/37 and five in 1937/38. His final season brought only two more outings, the last coming against Manchester City on 4 March 1939. In total, he played 19 league matches for Liverpool without scoring.

His father, John senior, was a Scottish international who scored 63 goals in 217 games for Celtic between 1911 and 1919. His reputation suffered a bitter blow when in 1924 he and ex-Rangers player, Archie Kyle, were found guilty of attempting to bribe Bo'Ness player Peter Brown. John received 60 days hard labour for this misdemeanour. John Jr. left Anfield in August 1939 to join Gillingham. With the outbreak of the Second World War disrupting the English football programme, he subsequently played for Dumbarton and made wartime guest appearances for Albion Rovers. After the war, he returned to competitive football with Cowdenbeath.