Dave Shearer - Player Profile

David John Shearer was born in Inverness on the 16th October 1958.

The first records of his playing career list him as playing for Inverness Clachnacuddin of the Highland Football League in 1976.

He clearly managed to catch the attention of club scouts and in January 1978 he was signed by first division outfit Middlesbrough F.C.

David made his Football League debut infront of 15,268 fans at Ayresome Park and he was an instant hit as he netted both goals in a 2-0 win against Chelsea.

Despite that fine start to his career he only managed a handful of games over the next two seasons and the majority of these saw him entering the fray late-on off the subs bench.

In March 1980, in an attempt to prove himself and gain regular game-time he joined Wigan Athletic on loan.

David certainly made an impression as he netted nine goals in 11 games, including a hat trick in a 3-1 win against Port Vale.

Latics tried to sign the striker but the price was too high for the cash concious club and he returned to his parent club netting two goals in two games before the season ended.

The improved form enabled David to sign a three year deal with the Ayresome Park club and he enjoyesd much more game time.

In August 1983 he signed for Grimsby Town, a club who had made great strides in recent seasons and now were plying their trade in Division Two.

However the move was to be a poor one for David and he failed to feature in a game for the Mariners and in August 1984 he signed for Gillingham.

David enjoyed four seasons down in the Medway and on 17th May 1985 he achieved a somewhat unique feat when he became the first player to score a hat trick for and against the Latics.

David left Gillingham in October 1987 and signed for Bournemouth but when this move proved unsatisfactory he headed back to the North East enjoying spells with Scunthorpe United and Darlington before dropping into non-league and playing for Billingham Synthonia.

David passed away on the 3rd of July 2022 at the age of 63.