Swinton pay tribute to the late Dennis Gordon
Dennis Gordon (far right) - Photo belongs to Swinton Lions
Former Swinton star Dennis Gordon has passed away, aged 77.
Gordon passed away at Whiston Hospital earlier this week. He made his debut for the club as an amateur trialist in Swinton’s ‘A’ team against Whitehaven ‘A’ at Station Road in 1961.
He impressed while on trial and earned a professional contract within a couple of weeks. He became a regular in the halves for the club’s reserves.
Gordon found first-team opportunities hard to come by due to the dynamic partnership between Albert Cartwright and Graham Williams. He made four appearances for the club’s first-team during his Swinton career.
The former half-back made his first-team debut in 1962 against Workington Town in the semi-finals of the Lancashire Cup. He inspired Swinton to a 24-5 win in front of a 10,000 crowd.
Gordon was a star player in the Lions’ reserves and made his final appearance for the first-team in 1965 in a defeat at Hull.
He continued to play for the club’s second-string side until 1969, having displayed great loyalty to the club.
Gordon was the uncle of Love Rugby League founder James Gordon and social media executive Lucy Gordon.