PETER DARKE

Born: 21 December 1953

Came from: Apprentice   Went to: Torquay United

First game: 14 August 1971   Last game: 16 April 1977

Appearances: 107 (101/6)   Goals: 2

Darke was one of a select band of players to have played for all three Devon professional clubs in the Football League.

He was spotted by Argyle when playing as a full-back, firstly for Ladysmith Juniors and then for Exeter Schoolboys, in the same team as future 'keeper Peta Bala'c - they would eventually go on to play together at Home Park. Darke went on to make his Argyle debut as an apprentice, away at Aston Villa aged just 17 in August 1971, ahead of signing full professional terms that December. He went on to spend six years with the Pilgrims and made over a century of appearances in green, scoring twice. One of his goals was highly memorable, a long-range effort from out wide, which was probably meant as a cross, flew in, against Southampton at home in April 1976 in front of a packed Good Friday crowd of 25,305.

Darke was part of the team that finished as runners-up in 1974-75 and earned promotion. Later in his Argyle career, in 1976-77, he was loaned to Exeter City and achieved the same again, appearing five times for them in a season in which they achieved promotion from the Fourth Division - ironically the same season as Argyle were relegated.

In March 1977, former Argyle player Mike Green and the captain of the 1974-75 promotion-winning side at Home Park, in which Darke had played, was appointed manager at Torquay United. A few months later, Darke moved to join up with his former team-mate at Plainmoor, after being released by Argyle and having turned down an offer to return to City. He played across a variety of positions in the back and middle four for the Gulls across two seasons. In total, he played 66 times for Torquay before calling time on his professional career at the end of the 1978-79 season.

He then went on to play for Minehead prior to the start of the 1979-80 season, and later played for Wellington, Saltash United and Liskeard Athletic before returning to Saltash as manager in 1985.

In later years, he continued to play with friends on a sociable level, appearing in the Exeter & District Sunday League for Santon United. Settling back in Torbay, he managed Chelston Football Club, and in later years, worked in sales, before his death in October 2021, aged just 67, after a brief illness.