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from notes of JIM EVANS - Local ESSINGTON Historian Who sent me his words..... plus several pictures after I visited him at his ESSINGTON lock factory on my visit to England about 2005.
It was inevitable that Derek Pace would have football in his blood, his father CHARLES had managed
ESSINGTON VILLA in the 1930s, and his mother EMILY had played in an Essington Ladies team who played football to raise money for charities in the 1920s.
Derek was born on the 11th March 1932 and started school at Essington Junior School,
his younger brother Ken was born in 1936, and tragedy struck the family when their father was killed in an accident at HOLLY BANK Colliery in 1939.
Derek moved to Essington Church of England School at the age of 9, he already had a passion for football.
The school at Essington, without any sports field, was unable to provide Derek with the opportunity to play football,
so he persuaded his mother to let him move to the National School at Bloxwich where football was an important part of the school programme,
where he joined a near neighbour Dennis Adderley who was a year younger. Both lads quickly made their mark and were selected for the
school team Dennis as goalkeeper and Derek at Centre Half. It was in their position the Derek captained Walsall Schoolboys team.
At this time his hero was the great Wolves centre half Stan Cullis, Derek saw Stan make his last appearance for Wolves in the last match
of the 1946-7 season, on a boiling hot 31st May. A win would have made Wolves champions – but Liverpool pipped them to it.
In 1946 the National School entered a team in the Walsall Minor League and early in the season they defeated Shelfield Y C 12 goals to 1,
fourteen-year-old Derek playing at outside right notching four, here he teamed up again with Dennis Adderley.
In his last year at school, Dennis had been selected for Walsall Schoolboys team in 1947-8 when they reached the semi final
of the English Schools Trophy.
On leaving school, Derek went on to play for Bloxwich Scouts who played in the Bloxwich Combination.
The League also included, Gate FC (New Invention), Essington WMC and Broad Lane WMC. If the Scouts team did not have a match,
Derek would play for Bloxwich Wesley in the Walsall Minor League. In addition Derek also had a spell with Walsall Wood
[Walsall Senior League] during the 1948-49 season.
Derek was rather on the small size for a centre forward, but was hardy and tough a player as one could hope to see, a real problem for defenders to cope with, but opportunities were limited with Villa, albeit scoring on his debut against Burnley on the 17th March 1951. he came out of the Army in June 1953. In 1953-4 season Derek was one of seven centre forwards tried by Aston Villa following the departure of Trevor Ford to Sunderland. He played in 6 league games scoring 6 goals. Most of his appearances were in the Central League and Birmingham League teams, where he was a member of the Villa side that defeated Stafford Rangers in the final of the Staffordshire Senior Cup Derek scoring two of the Villas goal. Derek played in 18 league matches in 1954-5 scoring 1 gaol and he made one appearance in the F A Cup scoring in ……………………… 1955-6 was a terrible season for the Villa three weeks from the end of the season Villa they were next to bottom of the league 3 points behind Sheffield United. But in the closing game it was Derek's goals that did a great deal to save Villa from relegation, they eventually finished third from bottom on goal difference and avoided relegation. In 1956-7 Derek played in 21 league matches scoring 6 goals and in 6 cup games scoring 2 goals. After not getting selected for the Villa's 1957 cup final side. The following season he played in 12 games scoring 3 goals (He played in the Charity Shield side that lost to Manchester United.) before moved to Sheffield United in December 1957 after scoring 42 league and cup goals in 106 matches. At Sheffield he began to show a real opportunist trait, scoring 140 goals in 253-league appearance. [175 goals in 302 league and cup games] Was ever present when the club achieved first division status again, scoring 26 goals. He was United's top scorer for six seasons before moving to Notts County in December 1964, playing 29 matches and scoring 15 goals? He then moved to Walsall in July 1966, only playing 4 matches plus 1 as substitute, scoring one goal a flying header at Grimsby in August 1966, just over 15 years after his first ever league goal fir Aston Villa. In his career he scored a grand total of 233 goals in 444 games an average of one goal every 1.9 matches. After retiring from football Derek became a sales representative for Churchfield Springs Ltd of West Bromwich and died on the 17th October 1989. .... Jim Evans - Essington - August 2000 |
the Aston Villa team that won the F A Cup in 1957.
Derek is third from the right on the back row.
He played in all the cup
matches that year except the semi-final and final.
It was probably the
disappointment of not making the team or the final
that caused him to
move to Sheffield United. - Jim Evans
my gratitude to
Jim EVANS - Local Historian of Essington Staffordshire
and football fan John BARNES for their appropriate words on Derek's football career
JOHN BARNES
Gordon, I remember Derek Pace.
They called him 'Doc' Pace, because when he did national service he was either in the RAMC - The Royal Army Medical Corp
or he was a Medic in a Regiment - I think it was the former. He was with the Villa for about six seasons but Welsh
international centre forward Trevor Ford kept him out of the team, but I think he still played 100 plus matches for
Villa and scored a few goals. Pacey went to Sheffield Utd when Englands greatest ever manager Joe Mercer was manager
at Sheffield. 'Doc' was there for around seven seasons and was a regular in the team, playing over 200 times for them.
He played a couple of matches for Walsall. I think that is where he called it a day but could be mistaken. During his
career 'Doc' had the remarkable record of scoring a goal every two matches. I think he died quite young, probably in
his fifties.
I would like to add that I think 'Doc`s' scoring record was better than one goal for every two games. Also in those days Sheffield Utd were an established second division side - sometimes First division. The then First division is todays Premier Division.
from another fan: PETER CADMAN
On your family history site the first thing that hit me was Derek Pace the footballer.
I saw him play for 'The Blades', Sheffield United against The Wolves (Wolverhampton Wanderers) in Wolverhampton. I was
fortunate to have met him when members of the Sheffield team played in an 'All Stars' cricket team against
a local cricket team my dad was involved with.
.....thanks for your words John and Peter
always good to hear from loyal and knowledgable fans - GTPace
IMAGES for DEREK PACE
DEREK PACE (book) by by L Egaire Humphrey (Editor) from Barnes & Noble
Derek 'Doc' Pace - Wikipedia
Aston Villa v West Brom: Classic derby games revisited">
MEMORY LANE - NGREF2667 - ASTON VILLA - DEREK PACE
DEREK PACE - Aston Villa
Aston Villa v Sheffield United, 14 April 1956
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