John Lowey (footballer)

John Lowey
Personal information
Full name John Anthony Lowey[1]
Date of birth (1958-03-07)7 March 1958[2]
Place of birth Manchester, England[2]
Date of death 5 August 2019(2019-08-05) (aged 61)[2]
Place of death Brisbane, Australia[3]
Height 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)[4]
Positions
Youth career
1973–1975 Manchester United
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1975–1976 Manchester United 0 (0)
1976–1977 Chicago Sting 22 (5)
1977 Port Vale 0 (0)
1977 Blackburn Rovers 0 (0)
1977–1978 Port Vale 0 (0)
1978 California Sunshine 21 (10)
1978–1980 Sheffield Wednesday 42 (4)
1980–1986 Blackburn Rovers 141 (14)
1986–1987 Wigan Athletic 3 (0)
1986 → Chesterfield (loan) 2 (0)
1987 → York City (loan) 6 (0)
1987–1988 Preston North End 4 (1)
1988 Chester City 9 (0)
1988 Brisbane Lions
Total 250 (34)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

John Anthony Lowey (7 March 1958 – 5 August 2019) was an English footballer who played as a midfielder. Aside from three seasons in the North American Soccer League, one in the American Soccer League and one in Australia, Lowey spent the majority of his career in the Football League Second Division with Blackburn Rovers in England.

Career

Early career

Lowey began his career in the youth system of Manchester United, signing as a professional in March 1975 after three years of schoolboy terms and apprenticeship.[5] Searching for first-team opportunities, in 1976 Lowey joined the Chicago Sting of the North American Soccer League in 1976 and claimed five goals and seven assists from 17 games.[6][7] He returned to the Chicago Sting for part of the 1977 season, but only made five appearances.[6] He spent July to August 1977 with Port Vale, spent September as a non-contract player at Blackburn Rovers, and then returned to Port Vale the next month.[7] He returned to the US in 1978. He signed with the California Sunshine in the American Soccer League, before going on to score 10 goals in 21 games for the Sunshine.[8]

Sheffield Wednesday

He returned to England to make his debut for Sheffield Wednesday on 17 October 1978.[4] He went on to score five goals from 36 league and FA Cup matches in the 1978–79 season,[4] including all five FA Cup games with Arsenal.[9] However, he was limited to just 13 appearances in the 1979–80 season as manager Jack Charlton led the club to promotion out of the Third Division. He left Hillsborough after making his final appearance for the "Owls" in the League Cup on 26 August 1980.[4]

Blackburn Rovers

He signed with Blackburn Rovers in November 1980, who were now managed by Howard Kendall, for a fee of £25,000.[7][5] At first he was a back-up striker, with Norman Bell preferred in the starting eleven.[7] He went on to find success as a left-sided midfielder, forming a strong partnership with the creative Simon Barker.[5] He was an ever-present during the 1983–84 campaign.[7] He was dropped for Colin Randell in the 1984–85 season, before returning to favour during the second half of the 1985–86 campaign.[7]

Later career

He went on to play for Wigan Athletic, Chesterfield (on loan), York City (on loan), Preston North End, Chester City, and Brisbane Lions.[10]

Style of play

Lowey was a very accurate corner kick taker.[5]

Later life

After retiring as a player, Lowey lived the rest of his life in Australia and went on to own a Beauty Therapy training school and a licensed securities company.[11][12] He died on 5 August 2019, leaving behind wife Mandy and son Adam.[13]

Career statistics

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League FA Cup Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Manchester United 1975–76[14] First Division 00000000
Port Vale 1977–78[14] Third Division 00000000
Blackburn Rovers 1977–78[14] Second Division 00000000
Chicago Sting 1976[15] NASL 175——175
1977[15] NASL 50——50
Total 225––––225
California Sunshine 1978[15] ASL 2110——2110
Sheffield Wednesday 1978–79[14] Third Division 2937200365
1979–80[14] Third Division 1310000131
1980–81[14] Second Division 00001010
Total 4247210506
Blackburn Rovers 1980–81[14] Second Division 1920000192
1981–82[14] Second Division 1410031172
1982–83[14] Second Division 2250000225
1983–84[14] Second Division 4203020470
1984–85[14] Second Division 2130020233
1985–86[14] Second Division 2333120284
Total 14114619115616
Wigan Athletic 1986–87[14] Third Division 30001040
Chesterfield (loan) 1986–87[14] Third Division 20002040
York City (loan) 1986–87[14] Third Division 60000060
Preston North End 1987–88[14] Third Division 41003071
Chester City 1987–88[14] Third Division 90000090
Career total 2503413316127938

Honours

Sheffield Wednesday

References

  1. ↑ "John Lowey". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Archived from the original on 8 June 2024. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 @paulenglish1961 (7 March 2026). "Born in Manchester, 7th March 1958, John Lowey. Signed as a junior in 1975, John spent two years at Old Trafford without making the first team, before moving to the states in 1977 when he signed for Chicago Sting. Subsequently played for Sheffield Wednesday and Blackburn. He passed away in Australia 5th August 2019. #MUFC #UTFR #GGMU #ManUtd #ManchesterUnited #ManUnited" (Tweet) – via X (formerly Twitter).
  3. ↑ Burke, Darren (8 August 2019). "Tributes paid following death of promotion winning former Sheffield Wednesday star". The Star. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 "John Lowey". www.adrianbullock.com. Retrieved 8 August 2019.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "John Lowey". Blackburn Rovers Former Players Association. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  6. 1 2 "NASL-John Lowey". www.nasljerseys.com. Retrieved 8 August 2019.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Jackman, Mike (1994). Blackburn Rovers : the official encyclopaedia. Derby: Breedon. p. 1. ISBN 978-1-873626-70-2. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
  8. ↑ "The Year in American Soccer League - 1978". Archived from the original on 8 July 2009. Retrieved 2 August 2009.
  9. ↑ "Obituary". Sheffield Wednesday FC. 8 August 2019. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  10. ↑ "Stats". neilbrown.newcastlefans.com. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
  11. ↑ "John Lowey (1958-2019)". www.rovers.co.uk. 8 August 2019. Retrieved 8 August 2019.
  12. ↑ "Where Are They Now? | Footballers | John Lowey". www.where-are-they-now.co.uk. Retrieved 8 August 2019.
  13. ↑ Jacobs, Bill (9 August 2019). "Rovers legends' tributes as former midfielder John Lowey dies at 61". Lancashire Telegraph. Retrieved 5 June 2026.
  14. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 John Lowey at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
  15. 1 2 3 "NASL-". www.nasljerseys.com. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
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