Players who have never scored

[Stumpy Pepys]

Outfield players who have never scored in a competitive game for club or country.

I don't know how many there are, but I expect the majority of them will be full-backs.

So to start us off, Tony Hibbert. 242 appearances for Everton, no goals.

[jameswba]

Players who have never scored

This doesn't qualify, but Peter Pekarik (yes, a right-back) hasn't scored for either of his German clubs, Hertha or Wolfsburg, or for Kayserispor while he was with Turkey. That's in getting on for 200 games.

He did score - with a fine LEFT-footed finish at that - for Slovakia against Luxembourg back in March and has one other international goal, as well as the odd one or two for Zilina in the Slovak league.

There was an interview with his wife (a ballet dancer) in the local Zilina paper this week. They asked her if she was bothered by Peter's failure to find the net for Hertha. I don't know if they thought she'd say it was an issue that had ruined their marriage and she was filing for divorce because of it. Unsurprisingly, she didn't.

[Stumpy Pepys]

Players who have never scored

The problem here is that there are several players who have scored one or two goals in their entire careers, but there seem to be very few who have scored none at all.

[Jah Womble]

Players who have never scored

...the purpose of this thread being to determine just who those 'few' might be?

NB Hibbert played 328 times for Everton in all competitions, and still didn't manage a goal.

[Hot Orange]

Players who have never scored

Ipswich's all-time record holder is 50s and 60s right back Larry Carberry - 282 games, 0 goals.

The current squad are disappointingly prolific. Even Cole Skuse scored last season.

[colinwasp]

Players who have never scored

Frank Womack from Birmingham appears to be in with a shout, bfore going on to forge a successful singing career with his brother in the 1970s and 80s:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Womack

[Jah Womble]

Players who have never scored

Okay - a bit of research tells me that pre-war full back Frank Womack holds the Football League record for the most league appearances without ever scoring a goal - 511:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Womack

The records therein apply only to league matches, however, so I don't know whether he bagged any in the FA Cup (the only other professional competition in which he could've participated).

With such a prolific career, I'm sure Mr Womack wouldn't have shed too many 'teardrops' over this fact, however.

(Edit: That's quite remarkable, Brian!)

[Mumpo]

Players who have never scored

What's the record for strikers? How many games would a striker get without scoring a goal? A dozen or so? Perhaps for a couple of clubs?

[colinwasp]

Players who have never scored

Gary Bull had the worst Premier League record for a player playing at least 30 games, think he managed 1 in 30.

Carl Leaburn for Charlton I think went a long time before his first goal.

[Borracho]

Players who have never scored

jameswba wrote: This doesn't qualify, but Peter Pekarik (yes, a right-back) hasn't scored for either of his German clubs, Hertha or Wolfsburg, or for Kayserispor while he was with Turkey. That's in getting on for 200 games.

He did score - with a fine LEFT-footed finish at that - for Slovakia against Luxembourg back in March and has one other international goal, as well as the odd one or two for Zilina in the Slovak league.

There was an interview with his wife (a ballet dancer) in the local Zilina paper this week. They asked her if she was bothered by Peter's failure to find the net for Hertha. I don't know if they thought she'd say it was an issue that had ruined their marriage and she was filing for divorce because of it. Unsurprisingly, she didn't.

They should have asked her if her husband had ever picked a peck of pickled peppers.

[Borracho]

Players who have never scored

Re the thread, George Male, who played in defence for Arsenal during the Herbert Chapman years, never scored a goal for them.

As for non-scoring strikers, Jozy Altidore must be up there.

[Rogin the Armchair fan]

Players who have never scored

John Jensen famously scored once for Arsenal in about his 120th match, despite playing in midfield.

[Jah Womble]

Players who have never scored

As for non-scoring strikers, Jozy Altidore must be up there.

He managed 39 in 67 appearances for AZ Alkmaar, apparently.

They should have asked her if her husband had ever picked a peck of pickled peppers.

Very good.

[Nocturnal Submission]

Players who have never scored

I saw Erland Johnsen score the only goal of his surprisingly limited 189-game club career, a header (I think) during a game at the Bridge against Southampton which included a brief hailstorm whiteout, which was when he probably snuck the ball in.

Much more prolific at international level - 2 in 24 for Norway at senior level.

[blameless]

Players who have never scored

For the longest time, Brian McClair was this at international level.

It took him until cap no. 26 to score his first accredited goal for Scotland (and even then, that was really an own goal by CIS's Dmitri Kharin), and until cap no.30 to add a second, against a fledgling independent Estonia.

One-and-a-half goals in 30 international caps was a pretty feeble return for a player who was pulling up trees for Man Utd at the same time.

Much more prolific at international level - 2 in 24 for Norway at senior level

And one of those was from the halfway line at Hampden, the bugger.

[colinwasp]

Players who have never scored

John Aldridge also, 20 games or so for Ireland. As an aside to this, probably the most prolific would be David Nugent, 1 in a sub appearance for England v Andorra.

[Kevin S]

Players who have never scored

blameless wrote: Much more prolific at international level - 2 in 24 for Norway at senior level

And one of those was from the halfway line at Hampden, the bugger.

You're being a smidgen generous there on the distance, and the keeper should perhaps have had it, but a really sweet strike nonetheless:



Like an Exocet.

[Vicarious Thrillseeker]

Players who have never scored

Mumpo wrote: What's the record for strikers? How many games would a striker get without scoring a goal? A dozen or so? Perhaps for a couple of clubs?

Diego Forlan went 26 without scoring at Manchester United, didn't he? Garry Birtles had a similar problem.

[Mumpo]

Players who have never scored

Vicarious Thrillseeker wrote: Diego Forlan went 26 without scoring at Manchester United, didn't he? Garry Birtles had a similar problem

I mean failure to score at all, rather than mere droughts. There must be plenty of aspiring strikers who got a few first-team matches, failed to find the net and eventually gave up on the game or moved into the amateur leagues. Who played the most?

[wittoner]

Players who have never scored

Hot Orange wrote: Ipswich's all-time record holder is 50s and 60s right back Larry Carberry - 282 games, 0 goals.

The current squad are disappointingly prolific. Even Cole Skuse scored last season.

Larry Carberry died recently. He was a scouser and according to Ivan Ponting's obit in The Independent Bill Shankly offered him the job of Liverpool's Chief Scout when he retired and he turned it down in favour of being a docker.

[Jobi1]

Players who have never scored

Mumpo wrote: What's the record for strikers? How many games would a striker get without scoring a goal? A dozen or so? Perhaps for a couple of clubs?

Didn't Iain Dowie go about 18 months without scoring for West Ham before bagging that glorious own goal in the League Cup at Stockport?

[KGR]

Players who have never scored

Marcus Williams of Scunthorpe fame.

Eleven seasons in the FL, yet to score in 326 league and cup apps.

Now plying his trade, whatever plying means, in India for Kerala.

[tone_burst]

Players who have never scored

Des Walker probably deserves a mention. Well over 700 matches for club and country, and only one goal ever, which I saw in the flesh, having been taken to the game for free by a Luton Town supporting Uncle - a last minute blast which 99 times out of 100 would have ended up in the river.

[Stumpy Pepys]

Players who have never scored

tone_burst wrote: Des Walker probably deserves a mention.

Yes, but his single goal spoils it.

I had originally thought of Dortmund stalwart Marcel Schmelzer, but even he's managed two goals in 237 appearances.

[seand]

Players who have never scored

Im disappointed to discover Rob Jones scored two for Crewe before failing to score in 250+ for Liverpool