David McGhee

Starting out as a defender, McGhee began his career in the youth system at Plymouth Argyle.[3] He was not taken on as a scholar by first team manager Peter Shilton and dropped into Non-League football to sign for local South Western League club St Austell.[3]

McGhee joined Second Division club Brentford on trial in 1993, after the club responded to a contact request from his father.[3] He signed a professional contract with the Bees in April 1994 and received his maiden call into the first team squad for a Football League Trophy first round match versus Brighton & Hove Albion on 19 October that year.[4][5] He remained on the bench for the 1–0 victory.[5] McGhee's professional debut came on 21 January 1995, when he replaced Darren Annon during a 2–1 league win over Hull City.[5] He was largely an unused substitute for the rest of the 1994–95 season and made seven appearances and scored one goal.[6] McGhee established himself in the first team during the 1995–96 season, wearing five different shirt numbers and proving to be an able Utility player.[7] He made 45 appearances and scored six goals.[6]

McGhee's best season for Brentford came in 1996–97, making a career-high 53 appearances and scoring two goals in a season which the Bees led the league for much of the first two-thirds of the season,[8] before finishing in fourth position and qualifying for the playoffs.[9] After beating Bristol City 4–2 on aggregate in the semi-finals, McGhee's season ended in heartbreak after the Bees suffered a 1–0 defeat to Crewe Alexandra at Wembley Stadium in the final.[10] McGhee was again a regular pick during the 1997–98 season, making 33 appearances and scoring one goal in which Brentford's playoff hangover consigned them to relegation to the Third Division after a final-day defeat to Bristol Rovers.[11] A succession of injuries saw McGhee miss the entire 1998–99 season and he retired in January 1999.[12] He made 138 appearances and scored 10 goals during his time at Griffin Park.[12]

McGhee came out of retirement to sign for Conference club Stevenage Borough in August 1999.[12] He made two appearances before departing Broadhall Way.[13]

McGhee returned to the Football League to sign for struggling Third Division club Leyton Orient in November 1999.[1] He quickly established himself in the side, making 23 appearances and scoring one goal during the remainder of the 1999–00 season to help the Os retain their league status.[13] McGhee had an excellent 2000–01 season, making 51 appearances and scoring three goals as the Os finished in the playoff positions.[14] As with Brentford in 1997, McGhee suffered heartbreak in his second appearance at Wembley Stadium, with Orient crashing to a 4–2 defeat to Blackpool in the final, having led twice.[15] Orient suffered a hangover in the 2001–02 season, though McGhee again featured in almost all the club's matches, making 45 appearances and scoring two goals.[16] McGhee's run as a mainstay of the team came to an end on 10 September 2002, when he suffered a ruptured achilles tendon after 11 minutes of a 3–2 League Cup first round victory over Queens Park Rangers.[17][18] He returned to action just over a year later and was named captain, but managed just 12 appearances and one goal during the 2003–04 season,[19] before leaving the club on 25 March 2004.[20] McGhee made 135 appearances and scored seven goals during five years at Brisbane Road.[21] His performances earned him the nickname "Mad Dog".[20]

On 25 March 2004, McGhee dropped into non-league football to join high-flying Isthmian League Premier Division club Canvey Island on a contract running until the end of the 2005–06 season.[20] Following the club's promotion to the Conference Premier at the end of the 2003–04 season, McGhee failed to hold down a regular place in the team and made 47 appearances and scored one goal before departing at the end of the 2005–06 season.[22][23][24] McGhee continued his descent down the pyramid with short spells at Isthmian League clubs Chelmsford City and Wivenhoe Town respectively during the first half of the 2006–07 season.[25] McGhee returned to Cornwall in late 2006 to sign for South Western League club Falmouth Town.[26] He signed for East Cornwall League Premier Division club Lanreath in 2007 and played for the team until 2015.[27][28] He re-emerged with the club's veterans' team 2017, playing as a goalkeeper.[29]