Les Chapman

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Les Chapman
Personal information
Full name Leslie Chapman
Date of birth September 27, 1948 (1948-09-27) (age 59)
Place of birth    Royton, Lancashire, England
Height 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
Playing position Midfield
Senior clubs1
Years Club App (Gls)*
1986–1987
1985
1983–1984
1979–1982
1979
1978
1974–1978
1969–1974
1966–1969
1965
 Preston North End
Stockport County
Rochdale
Bradford City
Stockport County
San Jose Earthquakes
Oldham Athletic
Huddersfield Town
Oldham Athletic
Huddersfield Town
High Barn		 053 0(1)
038 0(3)
088 0(0)
139 0(3)
032 0(1)

187 (11)
134 0(8)
076 0(9)
000 0(0)   
Teams managed
1985–1986
1990–1992		 Stockport County
Preston North End

1 Senior club appearances and goals
counted for the domestic league only.
* Appearances (Goals)

Les Chapman (born in Royton, Lancashire[citation needed] on September 27, 1948[citation needed]) is a former football player and manager who played in the English football league. Midfield player Chapman made 747 league appearances in a career that spanned 22 seasons.

From an early stage, it was not clear how Chapman would go on to have such a long career in football as he himself admits: "I never had a great desire to be a professional footballer, it simply landed at my feet."[citation needed]

Contents

[edit] Early years

Chapman was raised in Royton[citation needed] and as a youngster played for Chadderton Boys before going on to play for Huddersfield's youth team during his schooldays.

Les didn't turn professional straight away and actually spent the first months of his working life as a trainee accountant with Middleton Council before being recommended to Latics.[citation needed]

He began his 1st spell with Oldham Athletic making his 1st team debut as an 18 year old against Bristol Rovers in February 1967 but went back to Huddersfield (where he had played as a junior) in September 1969.[citation needed]

[edit] Back at Oldham

In December 1974, he returned to Oldham Athletic, now in Division 4. He stayed at the club for the next four and a half years, during which it climbed back up to the 2nd division, the equivalent of today's Championship. Chapman missed only five games during that time and his came as a surprise to many when he left at the end of the 1978-79 season.

In total, he made 263 league appearances for Oldham Athletic and scored 20 times.

[edit] Later years

Upon leaving Oldham, Chapman spent the summer of 1979 playing in the NAFL for San Jose Earthquakes before returning to England and to Stockport County. After one season at Edgeley Park though Les left to sign for Bradford City. Les spent four seasons at Valley Parade making 139 league appearances before leaving on a free transfer for Rochdale where he would spend two seasons ,playing nearly 100 games for the Spotland side.

[edit] Management

In July 1985 he became player-manager of Stockport County but moved on a year later to become player-assistant manager alongside John McGrath at Preston. This despite similar interest from Frank Worthington at Tranmere Rovers. In April February 1990 he took over the managership of the club himself but was later sacked in October 1992. He became reserve team coach at Manchester City in January 1993 but was replaced by Kevin Bond in July 1996 since then he has been City's kit man.

[edit] Miscellanea

Les' daughter, Tiffany Chapman is an actress, most famous for her role as Rachel Jordache in the soap opera Brookside, which she played from 1993 until the show ended in 2003. She also released a fitness video and appeared in Celebrity Wrestling.

Les scored the goal that officially clinched promotion out of the bottom flight for Preston North End (1-0 at Leyton Orient in 1987). After the match he told local newspaper the Lancashire Evening Post he felt 53 miles west of Venus. Reference to an obscure B-52's track from their album Wild Planet. A way of saying he was Over The Moon.

v • d • e
Stockport County F.C. – Managers

Stewart (1894–1911) • Lewis (1911–14) • Ashworth (1914–19) • Williams (1919–24) • Scotchbrook (1924–26) • Hyde (1926–31) • Wilson (1932–33) • Westgarth (1934–36) • Kelly (1936–38) • Hunt (1939–39) • Marshall (1939–49) • Beattie (1949–52) • Duckworth (1952–56) • Moir (1956–60) • Flewin (1960–63) • Porteous (1963–65) • Quigley (1965–66) • Meadows (1966–69) • Galbraith (1969–70) • Woods (1970–71) • Doyle (1972–74) • Meadows (1974–75) • Hopkinson (1975) • Chapman (1975–76) • Quigley (1976–77) • Thompson (1977–78) • Summerbee (1978–79) • McGuigan (1979–82) • Webster (1982–85) • Murphy (1985) • Chapman (1985–86) • Melia (1986) • Murphy (1986–87) • Hartford (1987–89) • Bergara (1989–95) • Jones (1995–97) • Megson (1997–99) • Kilner (1999–2001) • Madden (2001) • Palmer (2001–03) • Hollins (2003) • McIlroy (2003–04) • Lillis (2004) • Turner (2004–05) • Gannon (2006–)
v • d • e
Preston North End F.C. – Managers

Parker (1906–15) • Hayes (1919–23) • Lawrence (1923–25) • Richards (1925–27) • Gibson (1927–31) • Hayes (1931–32) • Muirhead (1936–37) • Scott (1949–53) • Symon (1953–54) • Hill (1954–56) • Britton (1956–61) • Milne (1961–68) • Seith (1968–70) • Ball (1970–73) • Charlton (1973–75) • Catterick (1975–77) • Stiles (1977–81) • Docherty (1981) • Kelly (1981) • Lee (1981–83) • Kelly (1983–85) • Booth (1985–86) • Kidd (1986) • McGrath (1986–90) • Chapman (1990–92) • Beck (1992–94) • Peters (1994–98) • Moyes (1998–2002) • O'Hanlon (2002) • Brown (2002–04) • Davies (2004–06) • Simpson (2006–07) • Irvine (2007–)