Throughout football history there have been numerous examples of goalkeeping proving fatal. Dumbarton’s Joshua Wilkinson died from peritonitis two days after a hard collision in a match against Glasgow Rangers in 1921. Malaga’s Jose Gallardo died from a brain haemorrhage in 1987, a month after receiving a head blow in a collision during a Spanish Second Division game against Vigo. In 1934 Charlton Athletic’s keeper Alex Wright lost his life after demonstrating his match-winning saves from a recent game. Standing on top of a raft off Torre Abbey Sands in Torquay, he dived into shallow water and broke his neck on rocks. Wolverhampton Wanderers goalkeeper James Utterson died aged 21 from a kick to the heart he received during a reserve game in 1935.
