John Bovill

John McKeown Bovill (21 March 1886 – 13 April 1954) was a Scottish footballer who played as a forward.

John Bovill
Personal information
Full name John McKeown Bovill
Date of birth 21 March 1886 – 13 April 1954
Place of birth Rutherglen, Scotland
Date of death 13 April 1954(1954-04-13) (aged 68)
Place of death Rutherglen, Scotland
Position(s) forward
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
– Rutherglen Glencairn
– Petershill
– Strathclyde
1907–1908 Rangers  2 (0)
1908 Blackburn Rovers  0 (0)
1908–1911 Chesterfield Town  18[lower-alpha 1] (3[lower-alpha 1])
1911–1914 Liverpool  27 (7)
1914–1916 Linfield  
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Bovill started his professional career in Scotland with Rangers in December 1907,[1][2] though he played for them only twice before he moved to England to play for Blackburn Rovers (no first team appearances)[3] and then Chesterfield Town where he featured regularly. He stayed with the Spirites for two years in the Midland League after they lost their Football League status,[4][5] then was signed by Liverpool. Bovill made 29 appearances for the Anfield club, with 25 of those coming in the 1911–12 season.[6][7]

He left Liverpool in May 1914 and then joined the army: he was stationed in Ireland with the Royal Ulster Rifles [8] and played for Linfield for two full seasons and part of a third, scoring the winning goal in the Irish Cup final of 1915 and winning the same trophy again a year later, as well as victories in the 1915–16 Belfast & District League and the 1916 Gold Cup.[9] He left for the Western Front in December 1916 and was gassed in the trenches in 1917, but recovered and survived to the age of 68 living in his home town of Rutherglen.[9]

References
  1. Figures in box refer to the 1908–09 Football League only. Figures are also known for the two seasons Bovill played in the Midland League: an additional 77 appearances and 31 goals.
  1. John Litster (October 2012). "A Record of pre-war Scottish League Players". Scottish Football Historian magazine. Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  2. (Rangers player) Bovill John, FitbaStats
  3. Bovill John Image 1 Liverpool 1912, Vintage Footballers
  4. Chesterfield FC: Player-based information | 1899-1909, Sky is Blue
  5. Chesterfield FC: Player-based information | 1909-1917, Sky is Blue
  6. "John Bovill". LFC History. Retrieved 23 March 2012.
  7. John McKeown Bovill (John Bovill), Play Up Liverpool
  8. Rangers' Players Who Served, Scotland's War
  9. Linfield Irish Cup winning hero who served at WW1 front line trenches featured in book of former Liverpool players, Linfield FC, 27 November 2017
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