ALAN BANKS

Born: 05 October 1938

Came from: Exeter City   Went to: Exeter City

First game: 20 August 1966   Last game: 21 October 1967

Appearances: 20 (20/0)   Goals: 5

A Liverpool-born striker, Banks began his career at home town club Liverpool where he briefly flourished in the first team. He had started his career in the city with Rankin Boys, before arriving at Anfield as a 17-year-old amateur in 1956, until then turning professional in May 1958.

Graduating to the first team, he played scarcely between 1958 and 1961, though he made a goalscoring debut in a Second Division fixture against Brighton & Hove Albion in September 1958. He scored once more during the 1958-59 season and four times in 1960-61 (again in the second-tier) before leaving Anfield with the somewhat unlikely but impressive record of six goals from eight league appearances.

He then moved to ambitious Southern League side Cambridge City, in the summer of 1961, for whom he scored more than 120 goals in just over two seasons and soon began to attract the attention of Football League clubs.

By then, 25 years old, he moved to Devon in October 1963 when Exeter City paid a total of £5,250 (with various clauses) for his services, with Cambridge receiving an initial £3,000 (and Liverpool £2,000). City soon realised they had a bargain when the goals started to flow. Coming into a side that had won just five of its first 15 games, his goals transformed Exeter's season, with 15 victories from the remaining 31 games, to finish fourth in Division Four and clinch the club's first-ever promotion. By this stage he had contributed 18 goals from his initial 28 league appearances for the Grecians.

His form continued in the third tier, with a good start but was then hampered by a broken leg against Port Vale in February 1965. Missing the remainder of the season he became Exeter's leading goalscorer in 1965-66 with 17 goals from 38 league appearances, though the club were relegated back to the fourth tier.

With 43 goals from just 86 league appearances, and with his 28th birthday approaching, he wanted to move up a level and duly signed for Second Division Argyle in May 1966, under Derek Ufton, in a £7,750 deal that also involved goalkeeper Peter Shearing. However, he never really reproduced his rich vein of form at Home Park and, after five goals in 19 league matches, was on his way back to Exeter in November 1967 as part of an £8,000 joint-deal along with John Newman. Slotting immediately back into his groove, he contributed six goals from 29 outings over the remainder of the season.

He beat Graham Rees' previous club-record of 85 league goals in February 1971 and went on to net, in total, 101 goals from 258 league matches.

After leaving St James Park, Alan signed for Southern League Poole Town. He returned to Exeter for a testimonial match against Leicester City in May 1975, and later played for Tiverton Town before setting up Exsports, a local chain of sports shops.

Continuing to live locally, and often seen at St James Park, he was inducted into the Exeter City Hall of Fame in 2014. He died in Exeter aged 87 years old, in July 2026 after a brief spell in hospital.