Obituary | Barry Daines
We are deeply saddened by the passing of our former goalkeeper Barry Daines, who died on Saturday (7 November) at the age of 75.
A loyal servant to the Club over a 12-year period, Barry was born in Witham, Essex, on 30 September, 1951, and joined us in 1969, arriving initially as an apprentice before turning professional.
An England youth international, he made his debut in a 3-2 home victory over West Bromwich Albion in November, 1971, but spent the majority of his early years at White Hart Lane as understudy to iconic number one Pat Jennings, filling in diligently whenever the Northern Ireland legend was unable to don the gloves.
An ankle injury to Pat in the 1976/77 season opened the door for Barry’s first sustained spell between the sticks, before he took over the gloves permanently the following season after Pat was transferred to Arsenal.
He was ever-present in our campaign in the Second Division in 1977/78, helping us bounce straight back to the top flight at the first attempt following our relegation at the end of the previous season, and remained our number one over the next couple of years, despite regular competition for his spot from Mark Kendall and Milija Aleksic.
Barry was granted a testimonial against West Ham United in May, 1981, and left us that same year, having made 173 competitive appearances in our colours. He spent the next two years playing for Bulova in Hong Kong before returning to the UK to join Mansfield Town, later also having a spell at Chelmsford City.
Upon his retirement as a player, Barry worked locally at shops in Chelmsford and Writtle, but sadly found the latter years of his life affected by health problems.
We extend our sincerest condolences to Barry’s family, friends and former team-mates at this sad time.