Sammy Morgan (footballer)

Samuel John Morgan was born in East Belfast on 3 December 1946; his mother was English, and had met his father whilst he was stationed in East Anglia. He attended Nettlefield Primary School alongside George Best. When he was 12 years old, his family relocated to England and settled in Gorleston-on-Sea. He studied at the Nottingham Trent University to become a maths and physical education teacher, graduating in 1971. He played amateur football for Gorleston in the Eastern Counties League. ==Club career==

Port Vale Morgan entered the English Football League at the relatively older age of 23 after signing Fourth Division club Port Vale in January 1970 following a period on trial. The late bloomer made his professional debut as a substitute on 30 March 1970, scoring in a 1–1 draw at Newport County. Aston Villa Aston Villa manager Vic Crowe had hoped that Morgan would prove an ideal replacement for ageing Scottish centre-forward Andy Lochhead. It took him nine games to score his first goal for Albion when he broke his duck with a brace against Crystal Palace on 24 February. Morgan left United in August 1978 after a dispute with the club, having fallen out with John Docherty, who had replaced Ron Atkinson as manager at the start of the year. ==International career==

Morgan won 18 caps for his country between 1972 and 1978. He scored a goal on his debut in a 1–1 draw with Spain on 16 February 1972, after replacing Derek Dougan in the first XI. ==Style of play==

Morgan was a brave and bustling forward. ==Personal and later life==

He married Alison and had a daughter, Hannah, and son, Ian. In February 2015, he was reported to have undergone stomach surgery in his battle against cancer. ==Career statistics==

Club statistics International statistics ==Honours==

Individual • Port Vale F.C. Player of the Year: 1972 Port Vale • Football League Fourth Division promotion: 1969–70 Brighton & Hove Albion • Football League Third Division promotion: 1976–77 Cambridge United • Football League Third Division promotion: 1977–78 Groningen • Eerste Divisie: 1979–80 ==References==