John William Rainford (11 December 1930 – 21 May 2001) was an English professional footballer who played as an inside forward. He is best remembered for his 9 years in the Football League with Brentford, for whom he made over 320 appearances. He was posthumously inducted into the Brentford Hall of Fame in 2015.
Club career
Crystal Palace Born in Camden Town, Rainford began his career at Third Division South club Crystal Palace and signed his first professional contract in March 1949. Despite making his professional debut late in the 1948–49 season, he had a slow start to his Selhurst Park career and failed to appear at all during the following season and made just one league appearance in 1950–51. Rainford broke into the team during the 1951–52 season and made 34 league appearances and scored his first goal for the club. He scored seven goals in 28 appearances in the following season and departed in May 1953. Rainford made 67 appearances and scored 10 goals for the Eagles.
Cardiff City Rainford moved up to the First Division to join Cardiff City in a £3,000 deal in May 1953. He lasted only a matter of months at Ninian Park and scored one goal in three appearances before departing in October 1953.
Brentford Rainford dropped down to the Second Division to sign for Brentford in October 1953 and was new manager Bill Dodgin's first signing for the club. He quickly established himself in the team and made 32 appearances during a disastrous 1953–54 season, which saw the Bees relegated to the Third Division South. Despite averaging just under 30 games a season, Rainford's career at Griffin Park didn't take off until the arrival of Malcolm McDonald as manager in May 1957. Playing at inside forward, he provided many assists for prolific strikers George Francis and Jim Towers and set a new club record for consecutive appearances, when he played 135 matches in a row between November 1957 and September 1960.
For his service to the club, Rainford was given a testimonial in May 1961, which he shared with Ken Coote. Rainford's final season was the 1961–62 campaign and he departed prior to the club's relegation to the Fourth Division in May 1962. He made 324 appearances and scored 49 goals during just shy of 9 years at Griffin Park. Rainford received a second testimonial in 1986 and shared the £1,100 proceeds with Jim Towers. He was posthumously inducted into the Brentford Hall of Fame in 2015.
Tonbridge Rainford ended his career in non-League football with Southern League club Tonbridge, whom he joined on a free transfer late in the 1961–62 season.
Representative career Rainford appeared for the Third Division South representative team in a match against their northern counterparts on 16 March 1955. In a televised game, he scored the opening goal in a 2–0 win for the South.
Career statistics + Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueFA CupLeague CupOtherTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsCardiff City1953–54First Division31———31Brentford1953–54Second Division29231——3231954–55Third Division South33462——3961955–56Third Division South37320——3931956–57Third Division South7100——711957–58Third Division South45910——4691958–59Third Division46841——5091959–60Third Division46820——4881960–61Third Division4152033—4681961–62Third Division1521010—172Total2994221443—32449Tonbridge1961–62Southern League Premier Division172——107 appearances in Kent Floodlit Cup, 2 appearances in Kent Senior Cup, 1 appearance in Kent Senior Shield02721962–63Southern League First Division31210—178 appearances in Kent Floodlit Cup, 3 appearances in Southern League Cup, 3 appearances in Kent Senior Cup, 3 appearances in Kent Senior Shield0492Total48410—270764Career total367492244337043052
Honours Brentford Hall of Fame
References