Don Campbell

Bootle-born half-back Don Campbell signed professional terms with Liverpool on 27 November 1950, shortly after his eighteenth birthday. A youth international, he had to wait almost three years for his senior debut, against Sunderland on 14 November 1953. He was one of 31 players used by Don Welsh during the troubled 1953/54 relegation campaign, making two appearances before playing another 12 times the following season. His Liverpool career might have ended much sooner. In December 1955, Campbell was among five players made available for transfer as the club sought to reduce its playing staff. He remained at Anfield, however, and eventually earned a sustained opportunity under Phil Taylor. After six appearances in 1956/57, he played in Liverpool’s first 26 league matches of 1957/58. His season’s total of 28 appearances included an FA Cup tie against Southend, but his final outing came at Bristol Rovers on 8 March 1958. He left Liverpool that summer having scored twice in 48 first-team games.

Campbell joined Crewe Alexandra in July 1958 for a reported £4,000 and made 169 senior appearances before moving to Gillingham in September 1962. His career continued in Kent with Folkestone Town, where he was named Player of the Year in 1964/65, and Margate, whom he joined in 1967. Combining football with work as a painter and decorator, Campbell made 99 appearances for Margate at full-back and in midfield. His two goals included a spectacular 40-yard free-kick in a 6-4 FA Cup victory over Ramsgate in October 1967. He helped Margate win the Southern League Cup in 1968 and the Kent Floodlight Cup the following year before retiring, although he briefly returned for a single appearance with Canterbury City in 1969/70.