Full name Graham Barnett Name Graham Barnett 1954–1956 Port Vale | 1952–1954 Stoke Boys' Club Playing position | |
Date of birth (1936-05-17) 17 May 1936 (age 79) Place of birth Boothen, Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, England | ||
Graham Barnett (born 17 May 1936) is an English former footballer who played as an inside-forward.
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He began his career with Port Vale in 1956, before he was sold on to Tranmere Rovers four years later. In 1961 he signed with Halifax Town, before he emigrated to Australia the following year so as to play for South Coast United. After spells with Hakoan and Polonia he was appointed as manager of South Coast United. He later managed The Corinthians, before returning to the UK to work behind the scenes at Port Vale.
Playing career
Barnett, from a mining family, worked down the pit at age fifteen. Expected to follow suit, he instead impressed playing football at Canon Street School and Stoke Boys' Club, and won an amateur contract at Port Vale in 1954. He signed professionally for Port Vale in June 1956, and won a place in Freddie Steele's first team after scoring eighteen goals in seventeen games for the reserves and also scoring twice past Middlesbrough's Rolando Ugolini in a friendly for the first team. He scored on his debut at inside-left in a 4–2 defeat to Millwall at The Den on 13 December 1958. Manager Norman Low described him as the 'supreme goal poacher' as he netted 20 goals in 22 appearances in what was left of the season. Despite this he did not get on with Low, and had many rows with his manager. He was the club's top scorer during the 1959–60 season with 17 goals in 35 games, including four against Halifax Town in a 7–0 win at Vale Park on 28 December. He also grew a beard which he shaved off once Vale were knocked out of the FA Cup at the Fifth Round stage by Aston Villa. He was sold to Peter Farrell's Tranmere Rovers for a £5,000 fee in March 1960. Tranmere were heading for relegation into the Fourth Division, but Barnett helped them to maintain their Third Division status by the end of the season. The "Superwhites" then failed to avoid relegation in the 1960–61 season under the stewardship of Walter Galbraith, and Barnett moved away from Prenton Park to Halifax Town. He scored nine goals in 32 Third Division appearances in the 1961–62 campaign. He then left The Shay and the UK, emigrating to Australia, where he played for South Coast United, Sydney Hakoah and Polonia, before becoming a player-manager with South Coast United and later The Corinthians.
Post retirement
He returned to England in 1971 and coached Vale's "A" team, later working in the club's commercial department and running the Y.T.S. team until 1985, at which point he became a newsagent.
Personal life
Graham Barnett married Ena, and went on to have three children, seven grandchildren, and 6 great grandchildren.