Richard James 'Dick' Sheppard (14 February 1945–18 October 1998) was a professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper in The Football League

The Football League

The Football League, also known as the npower Football League for sponsorship reasons, is a league competition featuring professional association football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest such competition in world football...

 for West Bromwich Albion

West Bromwich Albion F.C.

West Bromwich Albion Football Club, also known as West Brom, The Baggies, The Throstles, Albion or WBA, are an English Premier League association football club based in West Bromwich in the West Midlands...

, Bristol Rovers

Bristol Rovers F.C.

Bristol Rovers Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Bristol, that competes in Football League Two. The team plays its home matches at the Memorial Stadium, in the Horfield area of the city....

, and Torquay United

Torquay United F.C.

Torquay United Football Club, nicknamed the Gulls, are an English association football club based in the tourist resort town of Torquay, Devon. They played in the Conference National in 2008–09, but were promoted to Football League Two after a 2–0 win over Cambridge United on 17 May 2009 at Wembley...

.

Sheppard represented Gloucester Schools as a child, before being signed by West Brom as an apprentice in 1960. He joined the professional ranks at the club in 1963 and went on to play 39 League games in six years with The Baggies. He moved back to his home city of Bristol

Bristol

Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...

 in 1969 to join Bristol Rovers, and made 150 League appearances before suffering a skull fracture

Skull fracture

A skull fracture is a break in one or more of the bones in the skull usually occurring as a result of blunt force trauma. If the force of the impact is excessive the bone may fracture at or near the site of the impact...

 in January 1973 in a match against Tranmere Rovers

Tranmere Rovers F.C.

Tranmere Rovers Football Club are an English team based in Birkenhead, Wirral. The club currently compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system...

 at Eastville Stadium

Eastville Stadium

Eastville Stadium, also known as Bristol Stadium and Bristol Stadium – Eastville, was a stadium in Eastville, a northern suburb of the English city of Bristol....

.

It was eleven months before he was to play again, when he joined Torquay United on loan in December 1973 in a deal that was set up in a roadside meeting between Rovers and Torquay near Bridgwater

Bridgwater

Bridgwater is a market town and civil parish in Somerset, England. It is the administrative centre of the Sedgemoor district, and a major industrial centre. Bridgwater is located on the major communication routes through South West England...

. He played just two games for Torquay, and it was a further year before he finally made it back into the Bristol Rovers lineup. His only appearance for The Pirates after breaking his skull came against Bristol City

Bristol City F.C.

Bristol City Football Club is one of two football league clubs in Bristol, England . They play at Ashton Gate, located in the south-west of the City...

 in December 1974, and after conceding four goals in the second half his professional career came to an abrupt end. Although he was sent out on loan to Fulham

Fulham F.C.

Fulham Football Club is a professional English Premier League club based in southwest London Fulham, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. Founded in 1879, they play in the Premier League, their 11th current season...

 later in the season he never played in the Football League again.

In the summer of 1975, Sheppard joined non-League

Non-league football

Non-League football is football in England played at a level below that of the Premier League and The Football League. The term non-League was commonly used well before 1992 when the top football clubs in England all belonged to The Football League; all clubs who were not a part of The Football...

 side Weymouth

Weymouth F.C.

Weymouth F.C. are an English football club based in the town of Weymouth, who currently play in the Southern League Premier Division.-History:Weymouth Football Club were founded in 1890 and played their first game on 24 September of that year...

, where he spent a year, followed by a further year back in Bristol with Portway Bristol

Portway Bristol F.C.

Portway Bristol Football Club was a non-League association football team that played in the Western League until 1987. The team played at Shirehampton Recreation Ground in Penpole Lane....

. He moved to Paulton Rovers

Paulton Rovers F.C.

Paulton Rovers Football Club are an English football club based at the Athletic Field on Winterfield Road in the village of Paulton near Bristol. They were established in 1881 and currently play in the Southern League Division One South and West...

 in 1977, and in January 1980 became the goalkeeping coach

Coach (sport)

In sports, a coach is an individual involved in the direction, instruction and training of the operations of a sports team or of individual sportspeople.-Staff:...

 for his former club Bristol Rovers. He died in 1998 at the age of 53.

Sources