Kevin Stead

Kevin Stead (2 October 1958 – 19 January 2016) was an English professional footballer who played as a defender for Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal and Oxford City.^[2]

Kevin Stead

Personal information
Full name	Kevin Stead[1]
Date of birth	(1958-10-02)2 October 1958
Place of birth	West Ham, England
Date of death	19 January 2016(2016-01-19) (aged 57)[1]
Place of death	Dagenham, England
Position	Defender
Youth career
197?–1976	Tottenham Hotspur
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1976–1977	Tottenham Hotspur	0	(0)
1977–1979	Arsenal	2	(0)
	Oxford City
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Life and career

Stead was born in West Ham, London,^[1] and began his career playing youth football as a defender with Tottenham Hotspur, where his older brother Micky was already a player.^[3] He never made a first-team appearance for Tottenham,^[1] and moved on to rivals Arsenal on a free transfer in July 1977.^[4] He was a regular in the reserves in the Football Combination, made his first-team debut on 14 October 1978, as a substitute in a 1–0 defeat away to Wolverhampton Wanderers in the Football League First Division, and played his second and final match for Arsenal's first team the following week, starting in a 1–0 win at home to Southampton.^[5] He was released in September 1979, and joined Isthmian League club Oxford City.^[5]

After retiring from football, Stead worked as a taxi-driver.^[5] He was married to Sharon and had two daughters.^[3] He died at his home in Dagenham in 2016 at the age of 57.^[3]