A Tribute

It is with great sadness that we have learned of the death of former Stafford Rangers striker Paul Cavell.

Cav joined Rangers in December 1987 when he was signed by Ron Reid from Goole Town.

Born in Worksop on 13 May 1963, he spent his early years at Notts Forest, signing for them in 1979. He left after two years and cited not being taken on by them as one of his worst moments in football. He subsequently signed for his home town club, scoring on his debut as a 18 year old against Gainsborough Trinity on 27 January 1982. He went on to spend a total of 5 years with the Tigers before moving to Goole Town.

Spell with the Boro

After impressing at Goole, he moved to Rangers for a £5,000 fee and made his Rangers debut in a 2-1 victory over local rivals Telford United on 28 December 1987 and recorded his first goal for the club as Rangers defeated league leaders Barnet on 6 February 1988.

His talents were quickly obvious to Rangers fans and, despite only having made a handful of appearances at the time, a brief profile in the Stafford programme noted “…he has already given plenty of indication that he WILL make a name for himself at non-league’s top level”. With Reid singing the praises of his new singing, it was a role reversal after Cavell had spent his youth cheering on Reid while he was leading the attack at Central Avenue.

At the end of his first season, he had netted 15 goals including a hat trick at Bath City. Disaster struck at the start of the 1989 season when he suffered a broken leg in a game against Telford United which forced him to miss two months. His return was greeted by a tremendous reaction from Rangers fans and he quickly regained his form to add another 12 goals to his career tally, including a lobbed finish to earn a relegation avoiding win against Kettering Town on the final day of the season.

In 1989/90, Rangers reached the FA Trophy Semi Final – the club missing out on a Wembley final with a heart-breaking defeat by Leek Town – but there was no such joy in the league as the club faced another battle against relegation. Survival was eventually achieved in another dramatic final day win against Farnborough Town, Cav again  making his mark with an 80th minute equaliser after Rangers had gone 2-0 down in the first few minutes.

That goal marked his last contribution in a Rangers shirt as he re-joined former manager Ron Reid who was now in charge at Boston United. He had scored 39 goals in 108 appearances for the Boro, many of them watched by his father John who travelled the country in support.

After the Boro

Cavell spent a couple of years at Boston before a move to Dagenham & Redbridge in 1992 and it was while he was at the East London club that he received a call up for the England semi pro side, making his debut v Wales on 3 March 1992. He also appeared for the prestigious Middlesex Wanderers side.

In 1994, he moved to Gateshead for a club record £9,000 fee before being signed by Sammy McIlroy at Macclesfield Town the following summer where he collected an FA Trophy winners medal.

In 1996, he moved on to Purfleet but returned to Boston in 1997 and spent another year at York Street before going on to appear for Gainsborough Trinity and Matlock Town in 1998.

After his playing career ended, he remained in the game in various capacities as a scout, coach and manager at the likes of Boston, Maltby, Dagenham, Sheffield United and Tamworth.

Our sincere condolences go to his family and friends.