WORCESTER City have paid tribute to former player John Spilsbury who spent nearly a decade with the club in the 1950’s.
Spilsbury died on Thursday, July 10 at the age of 91.
He made 287 appearances for Worcester and scored one goal between 1951 and 1960.
Spilsbury is believed to have played more than 100 consecutive matches for City.
He was Worcester’s leading appearance maker in the 1955/56 and 1956/57 seasons.
Spilsbury also appeared in every game of the club’s run from the preliminary round to the first round proper of the FA Cup in 1957.
The Worcester-born player first played football for St Martin’s School.
He also played for the Technical School and both the City and County Schools.
Spilsbury signed for West Bromwich Albion as an amateur and also had a trial with Stoke City.
He late signed for Worcester as an amateur in 1951. And he became an England youth international the following year in a match against Northern Ireland in Belfast.
Spilsbury made his debut for City’s reserves at the age of 16 and progressed to the first team in September 1951.
He turned professional in 1954 and played across the back four.
Spilsbury also had a talent for cricket and made one first class appearance for Worcestershire in 1952.
However, he suffered an unfortunate leg break in a reserve team fixture against Coventry City on Boxing Day in 1958.
That meant he had to listen to Worcester’s famous FA Cup triumph against Liverpool on the radio from a hospital bed in Warwick.
He departed Worcester for Kidderminster Harriers in 1960 and had a brief spell at Bromsgrove Rovers in 1964.
Spilsbury is the grandson of Aston Villa double winner and England international Fred Wheldon.
