Personal Oddities
Manchester City and England goalkeeper Jim Mitchell is the only man to play for England while wearing spectacles, doing so in 1924 when capped against Ireland. He also played in the 1922 FA Cup Final for West Bromwich Albion wearing his specs.

Sheffield United's first ever goalkeeper was a bespectacled fellow by the name of Howlett

Another keeper who played in his specs was Swiss goalie Markus Schluepp, who played for St. Gallen in the late '70s/early '80s.

Former Millwall and Northern Ireland goalkeeper Ted Hinton used to keep his false teeth at the back of his net.

After losing the sight of one eye in a car accident, Gordon Banks retired from the professional game but went on to play in the odd charity and exhibition match as well as spending a season in the North American Soccer League.

The oldest player ever to play a competitive game in England was New Brighton's Neil McBain, who turned out against Hartlepool United in a Division Three (North) game in 1947 at the ripe old age of 52. McBain was New Brighton's manager and had to play as an emergency goalkeeper.

In 1964, Sunderland goalkeeper Derek Foster became the youngest person to play in the First Division when he made his debut against Leicester City at the age of 15 years and 185 days.

Legendary Baggies Keeper John Osborne apparently had a plastic knuckle - but this didn't prevent him from winning the FA and League Cup with West Brom during the 1960s.

Bulgarian International and former Reading 'keeper Borislav Mihaylov gained notoriety during the 1994 World Cup Finals in the United States when he suddenly appeared with a full head of hair having been completely bald on top only weeks before. It turned out that he had decided to wear a wig to help promote his toupee company back home (During the Quarter Final game against Mexico, the poor man had to adjust his hairpiece under the protection of a towel after the blazing sun had caused him to sweat just a little too profusely…)

Probably the most instantly recognisable international goalkeeper of recent times was Faeroe Islands' goalie Martin Knudsen, who nearly used to always wear a bobble hat when he played.

In a similar vein, Hungarian goalkeeper Gábor Király always wears a pair of grey tracksuit bottoms rather than shorts when he plays.

Peterborough United goalkeeper Fred Barber used to run out onto the pitch wearing a Freddie Kruger mask from the film Nightmare on Elm Street. When The Posh reached Wembley in the play-off finals he was politely told it was not the done thing to do at the home of football but wore it anyway.

Former Glasgow Rangers and Scotland goalkeeper Andy Goram suffered from schizophrenia in the latter part of his career.

US international Tim Howard suffers from Tourette's Syndrome.

Tom Farquharson, Cardiff City's keeper in their 1927 FA Cup triumph, apparently always carried a hand gun with him!

Former Wales international and Stoke City goalkeeper Leigh Richmond Roose was famously superstitious and always wore a lucky shirt beneath his goalkeeping jersey - an old black-and-green Aberystwyth top, was reputedly never washed.

Dutch goalkeeper Edwin Zoetebier used to bring his own lunch with him when he was with Feyenoord, which consisted of smoked fish, a speciality he first savoured when he was living in the seaside town of Volendam.

Former Canadian international and Minnesota Kicks goalkeeper Tino Lettieri used to keep a lucky mascot in the form of a stuffed parrot called 'Ozzie' at the back of his net during games.

Turkish keeper Rüstü Reçber applies a thick layer of black charcoal under his eyes for almost every game, claiming that it helps block out the glare from stadium floodlights.

To celebrate winning his 50th international cap, Wales goalkeeper Paul Jones decided a trip to the barber's was in order and emerged from the players' tunnel sporting a "50" on either side with a Welsh dragon at the back. Unfortunately for Jones, he had a nightmare between the sticks as Slovakia ran out 5-1 winners in Cardiff.

Before the start of each half, Blackburn Rovers keeper Jason Brown performs a ritual that involves resting his head against each of his posts in turn, with his eyes closed and his hands in front of him as if in prayer.

Brazilian goalkeeper Carlos José Castilho was colour-blind and often had trouble picking out white balls during night games.

Something of a superstitious chap, former Scotland international Alan Rough always carried an old tennis ball and a key ring with a thistle motif on it to the ground with him and insisted on having a shave on the morning of every match.

Another keeper with a superstitious streak in him was former Manchester United and England goalie Gary Bailey. The one-time Old Trafford custodian readily admits to using juju - an African form of black magic - during his spell with South African side Kaiser Chiefs. There must have been something in it as they won every domestic trophy while Bailey was in goal.

Having grown tired of continually being overlooked by successive England managers - despite a string of impressive performances - West Ham United's Robert Green decided to make point when the Hammers played Birmingham City in February 2008 by wearing a pair of gloves with "England's number 6" emblazoned across them.

Former American international used to wear an ice hockey-style helmet when he kept goal during the 1970s.

Nicknames
The Black Octopus - Lev Yashin
Tim- Reg Williamson (England & Middlesbrough)
Tim - Ernest Williamson (England & Arsenal) - Ernest was named after Reg
The Cat - Peter Bonetti, Tim Flowers, Reg Davies
Bert - Bernhard Trautmann (Manchester City)
Big Norm - Mark Crossley (Nottingham Forest, Fulham & Wales)
Banks of England - Gordon Banks
Lurch - Dave Beasant (Wimbledon, Newcastle United, Chelsea & England)
The Clutch - Gil Merrick (Birmingham City & England)
H - David Seaman (Arsenal, Manchester City & England)
The Marx Brothers - Gordon Banks, Peter Bonetti and Ron Springett
Colonel Mustard - Tony Coton (Manchester City)
El Loco - Ramon Quiroga (Peru), René Higuita (Columbia)
Tarzan - Peter Shilton
Dai the Drop - Dai Davies (Everton, Swansea City & Wales)
Prince of Goalkeepers - James McAulay (Dumbarton & Scotland)
Big Swifty - Frank Swift (Manchester City & England)
Tiger - Alexi Khomich (Dynamo Moscow & USSR)
Stonewall Jackson - John Jackson (Crystal Palace, Leyton Orient & Millwall)
The Archdeacon - Leigh Richmond Roose (Sunderland, Aston Villa & Wales)
Budgie - John Burridge
Calamity James - David James (Watford, Liverpool, Aston Villa, Manchester City & England)
Little Willie - William Foulke
The Flying Pig - Tommy Lawrence (Liverpool)
Happy Jack - Jack Hillman (Burnley & Manchester City)
The Freak - Mark Bosnich (Aston Villa, Manchester United & Australia)
Monty - Jim Montgomery (Sunderland), Morton Betts (Wanderers & England)
Elastic - Milija Aleksic (Luton Town, Tottenham Hotspur)
Denzil (from 'Only Fools & Horses') - Tony Warner (Millwall)
The Duck - Ubaldo Fillol (Racing Club, River Plate & Argentina)
Lettuce - Carlos Roa (Argentina)
The Rabbit - Oscar Peréz (Cruz Arul & Mexico)
The Panther - Boukar Alioum (Samsunspor & Cameroon)
Ding Dong - Andy Bell (AFC Wimbledon)
Pagliaccio (Clown) - Gianluca Pagliuca (Sampdoria, Bologna & Italy)
Spinky Winky - Nigel Spink (Aston Villa, Millwall)*
Laa-Laa - Tim Carter (Oxford United, Sunderland, Millwall, Halifax Town)*
Saint Marcos - Marcos (Palmeiras, Brazil)
Jonah - Paul Jones (Southampton, Wolves & Wales)
El Condor - Roberto Rojas (Colo Colo & Chile)
Willow - Bob Wilson (Arsenal & Scotland)
Peter the Great - Peter Schmeichel
Scruff - Alan Rough (Celtic, Partick Thistle & Scotland)
Rolls - Simon Royce (Southend United, Leicester City & QPR)
Pigskin - Angelo Peruzzi (Juventus, Italy)
Dumbo - Edwin Van De Sar (Ajax, Holland)
Walks - Ian Walker (Tottenham, Leicester City & England)
Bullneck - Andy Goram (Oldham Athletic, Rangers, Manchester United & Scotland)
Meteor - Pablo Cavallero (Celta de Vigo, Espanyol & Argentina)
Woody - Andy Woodman (Brentford, Oxford United)
Aunty - Anti Niemi (Hearts, Southampton & Finland)
Baggy - Neville Southall (Everton & Wales)
The Beast - Brian Jensen (Burnley)
The Bomb - Sander Westerveld (Vitesse Arnhem, Liverpool & Holland)
T-Ho - Tim Howard (Manchester United & United States)
Little Edwin - Ross Flitney (Fulham, Barnet)
John - Jovan Lukic (Arsenal, Leeds United)
Shaka - Neil Hislop (Reading, Newcastle United, West Ham & Portsmouth)
Spiderman - Walter Zenga (Inter, Sampdoria & Italy)
Jaguar - Luciano Castellini (Torino, Napoli)
Giddeon - Pietro Carmignani (Juventus, Fiorentina)
Sumo - Gary Phillips (Barnet)
El Brody - Jorge Campos (Cruz Azul, LA Galaxy & Mexico)
De Beer (The Bear) - Piet Schrijvers (Ajax & Holland)
Hitchy - Kevin Hitchcock (Chelsea)
Dingle - Mark Westhead (Oldham Athletic, Wycombe Wanderers)
Celeste - Sebastián Viera (Nacional de Montevideo & Uruguay)
Titan - Oliver Kahn (Bayern Munich & Germany)
Toni - Harald Schumacher (1.FC Koln & West Germany)
Monkey - Germán Burgos (River Plate, Athletico Madrid & Argentina)
Goyco - Sergio Goycochea (River Plate, Vélez Sarsfield, Newell´s Old Boys & Argentina)
Black Panther - Gyula Grosics (Honved & Hungary)
Lonners - Andy Lonergan (Preston North End)
Boaz - Glyn Myhill (Aston Villa, Bradford City, Bristol City & Hull City)
Zubi - Pascal Zuberbuhler (Grasshopper, FC Basel, & Switzerland)
Spider - Zeljko Kalac (Sydney United, Roda, Perugia, AC Milan & Australia)
The Girvan Lighthouse - Peter McCloy (Kilmarnock, Rangers & Scotland)
Sammy - Paul Sansome (Crystal Palace, Millwall & Southend United)
Erik the Viking - Erik Thorstvedt (IFK Göteborg, Tottenham Hotspur & Norway)
Frank Spencer - Richard Wright (Ipswich Town, Arsenal, Everton & England)
Gez - Paul Gerrard (Oldham Athletic, Everton & Nottingham Forest)
Der Goalie - Stefan Klos (Glasgow Rangers)
El Koke - Pedro Contreras (Real Betis)
The Poominator - Mart Poom (Derby County, Sunderland & Estonia)
Ludo - Ludek Miklosko (West Ham United & Czechoslovakia)
God's Goalkeeper - João Leite (Atlético Mineiro, Vitória de Guimarães & Brazil)
Dino Zoff - Boye Cooper (Cedar United, Mighty Barrolle a& Liberia)
Umbro - Gift Muzadzi (Dynamos, Celtics Bloemfontein, BSV Stuttgart & Zimbabwe)
Vítor Baliza (Goalmouth) - Vítor Baía (FC Porto & Portugal)
The Flying Dutchman - Gerrit Keizer (Arsenal, Charlton Athletic, Ajax & Holland)
Fawlty Manuel - Manuel Almunia (Arsenal)
Black Spider - Fabio Cudicini (Udinese, Roma & AC Milan)
Pepe - José Manuel Reina Páez (Villarreal, Liverpool & Spain)
Piggy - Fan Chun Yip (Buler Rangers, Happy Valley & Hong Kong)
Zibi the Hibby - Zbigniew Malkowski (Hibernian)
Wacka - James Walker (Walsall & West Ham United)
El Pato - Roberto Abbondanzieri (Rosario Central, Boca Juniors & Argentina)
Zé Gato - José Henrique (Benfica & Portugal)
Dida - Nelson de Jesus Silva (Corinthians, AC Milan & Brazil)
The Beast - Zach Thornton (Chicago Fire & USA)
De Muur (The Wall) - Dany Verlinden (Club Brugge & Belgium)
Eagle of Asia - Ahmad Reza Abedzadeh (Esteghlal FC, Persepolis & Iran)
The Octopus - Nir Davidovich (Maccabi Haifa & Israel)
Butterfingers - Rab Douglas (Celtic, Dundee & Scotland)
Börni - Bernd Dreher (Bayern Munich, KFC Uerdingen)
The Eagle - Dimitrios Eleftheropoulos (Olympiakos, AS Roma & Greece)
Shay - Seamus Given (Newcastle United & Republic of Ireland)
Neco - Luis Enrique Martínez (Independiente Santa Fe & Colombia)
Tarzan - Antonio Roma (Boca Juniors & Argentina)
Smiler - Jack Smith (Sheffield United)
La Tota - Antonio Carbajal (León & Mexico)
Len the Cat - Len Davies (Bangor City)
Elvis - Phil Priestley (Bangor City)
El Pulpo - Luis Arconada (Real Sociedad, Real Madrid & Spain)
The Cat of Maracaná - Antoni Ramallets (Real Valladolid, Barcelona & Spain)
Chocolate - Héctor Baley (Huracán, Independiente & Argentina)
Big Vlad - Vladimir Beara (Hajduk Split, Red Star Belgrade & Yugoslavia)
Chiquito - Carlos Bossio (Estudiantes, Benfica, Vitória & Argentina)
Saint Castilho - Carlos José Castilho (Fluminense & Brazil)
The Dude - Jerzy Dudek (Liverpool & Poland)
Edgie - Lewis Edge (Blackpool)
Kamikaze - Giorgio Ghezzi (Inter, Genoa & AC Milan)
Red Bird - Marcus Hahnemann (Reading & USA)
Slim Kat - Moeneeb Josephs (Cape Town Spurs, Bidvest Wits & South Africa)
El Divino - Ricardo Zamora (Espanyol, Barcelona & Spain)
The Cat of Prague - František Plánicka (SK Slavia Praha & Czechoslovakia)
Topsham Fisherman - Dick Pym (Bolton Wanderers & England)
Clooney - Antonios Nikopolidis (Panathinaikos, Olympiakos & Greece)
Oggy - Steve Ogrizovic (Liverpool & Coventry City)
The Ear - Daniel Örlund (AIK)
Wild Boy - Aaron Lawrence (Violet Kickers & Jamaica)
Boopie - Warren Barrett (Violet Kickers & Jamaica)
King Artur - Artur Boruc (Legia Warsaw, Celtic & Poland)
Tati - José María Buljubasich (Real Oviedo, River Plate & Universidad Catolica)
Bubu - André-Joël Eboué (Tonnerre Yaoundé & Seville)
Lasse - Lars Eriksson (Hammarby, IFK Norrköping, Porto & Sweden)
Spider - Rowen Fernandez (Kaiser Chiefs & South Africa)
Pim - Willem Doesburg (Sparta Rotterdam, PSV Eindhoven & Holland)
Kamikaze - Giorgio Ghezzi (Inter & AC Milan)
Norrie - Neil Martin (Rangers, East Fife & Queen of the South)
Killer Miller - Markus Miller (Karlsruher SC)
McKnightmare - Alan McKnight (West Ham United)
Pepín - José Casas Gris (Las Palmas, Real Betis & Spain)

*Tim Carter and Nigel Spink picked up their nicknames while playing for Millwall at the height of Teletubbie-mania in 1997. Their choice of goalkeeping kit (lurid green and yellow) probably had something to do with it...

Quirky Middle Names
Primrose - Bob Wilson (Arsenal & Scotland)
Boleslaw - Peter Schmeichel
Agnew - Colin McDonald (Burnley & England)
Hewitt - Leslie Gay (Old Brightonians, Corinthians & England)
Purvis - John Hawtry (Old Etonians & England)
Dallas Fyfe - Bill Brown (Tottenham Hotspur & Scotland)
Barkley - George Raikes (Oxford University & England)
Peel - John Rawlinson (Cambridge Univeristy & England)
Oak - Ernie Scattergood (Derby County & England)
Albermarle - Harry Swepstone (Corinthians & England)
Rodwell - Leonard Wilkinson (Oxford University & England)
Garnet - Reg Williamson (Middlesbrough & England)
Darnley - Rupert Anderson (Old Etonians & England)
Peto - Morton Betts (Wanderers & England)
Hallows - Teddy Taylor (Huddersfield Town & England)
De Courtenay - Reginald Welch (Harrow Chequers & England)
Fane - Charlie Preedy (Arsenal & Bristol Rovers)

Unfortunate Monikers
When Australia were beaten 17-0 by a touring English FA XI in 1951, their goalkeeper was one Norman Conquest.

In 1958, Danish side Frem Copenhagen had a goalkeeper called Bent Koch on their books.

In 2005, Nottingham Forest signed a young goalkeeper by the name of Paddy Gamble.

Has there ever been a more apt name for a Scottish goalkeeper than Dundee United's Hamish McAlpine?

Shrewsbury Town once had a goalkeeper by the name of Dick Brush.

Keeping it in the Family
Spurs and England goalie Ian Walker's Dad Mike used to keep goal for Colchester United back in the Seventies. Mike tried to buy his son during his first spell in charge of Norwich City.

Midfielders Stephen Clemence and Sam Shilton decided not to follow in their fathers' footsteps and battle it out for the England No1 spot like their dads, Ray and Peter, did in the late 70s/early 80s. They both opted for a career in the middle of the park instead, although Stephen was once forced to play in goal for Birmingham City after Nico Vassen was sent off.

Peter Schmeichel's son Kasper has followed in his father's footsteps, signing pro-forms with Manchester City

Dad Bobby may have played for Wales and been manager of the Welsh side at the time but when it came to his own International career Celtic keeper Jonathon Gould opted to play for Scotland instead, receiving a call-up to the Scottish World Cup Squad in 1998 following Andy Goram's departure.

Birmingham City once boasted brothers Bob and Dave Latchford in their line-up. Centre forward Bob later found fame and fortune with Everton and England while their brother, Peter, who also happened to be a goalkeeper like Dave, went to Scotland and won an awful lot of trophies with Celtic.

Former Glasgow Rangers and England goalkeeper Chris Woods' great uncle was none other than Eric Houghton, one of the first stars of the modern game between the wars.

Only one set of goalkeeping brothers have ever been part of the same World Cup squad. Victor and Vyacheslav Chanov went to the 1982 World Cup Finals with the Soviet Union as understudies to Rinat Dassajev but neither played a game.

Irish goalie Tommy Gordon let in nine goals when he won his last International cap against England in 1895. His brother Hugh just happened to be making his International debut in the very same game. A third brother, Willie, also later played for the Irish national team.

Chelsea legend and former England international John Hollins' brother Dave played in goal for Wales.

Brothers Willie and Elisha Scott both played in goal at full international level for Ireland.

Goalkeeper Jimmy Trainer and his brother Harry both played for Wales towards the end of the 19th Century. Jimmy even captained his country when Wales played England between the years 1895-97.

Goalkeeping ran strong in the Springett family. Ron was capped thirty-three times by England, keeping seven clean sheets along the way, and was part of the 1966 World Cup winning squad while brother Peter was an England Under-23 International.

England also capped goalkeeping cousins Harold Pearson and Harry Hibbs. Pearson's father Hubert was also a goalkeeper and was picked to play for England against France in 1923 but missed the match through injury and was never selected again.

England and Nottingham Forest liked to keep it in the family at the turn of the century. Goalkeeper Harry Linacre played alongside his brothers-in-law Frank and Frederick Forman while at Forest and all three were capped by England, albeit in separate games.

The Republic of Ireland also like to keep it in the family. When keeper Alan Kelly was injured against Turkey in the recent Euro 2000 play-offs manager Mick McCarthy called up his older brother Gary to the squad to replace him for the second leg. Their father, Alan Snr, was also a goalkeeper and played for Preston North End.

England goalkeepers Billy Moon and Teddy Taylor both had relatives who played Test cricket for England. In Moon's case it was his brother Leonard while Charlie Hallows was Taylor's cousin.

Former England and Nottingham Forest full back Jim Iremonger was a tall bloke but his brother Albert, who played for Notts County, was taller. At 6' 5", Albert was one of the tallest goalkeepers ever to play League football. He also scored an own goal after taking a penalty at the opposite end of the pitch...

Former Spurs and England keeper Ted Ditchburn's father was once a champion boxer.

Reg Birkett, the first football international to play rugby union for England, came from a strong rugby playing family. Both his son and his brother were also rugby union internationals.

Balding Bulgarian goalie and former Reading 'keeper Borislav Mihaylov followed in his father's footsteps when he went between the sticks. His Dad kept goal for the national side during the 1960s.

Wolves' Michael Oakes father is former Manchester City defender Alan Oakes. Michael's cousin, Andy Oakes, played for Derby County.

Spanish giants Barcelona can boast another father and son goalkeeping dynasty with current shot-stopper Jose Reina following in his father's footsteps. Miguel Reina played for the Catalan side in the 1970s as well as keeping goal for Athletico Madrid later in his career.

Aston Villa's Peter Enckelman's father, Göran, played for Finland against England at Wembley in 1976.

Former Manchester United and England goalie Gary Bailey had a lot to live up to. His dad, Roy, was Ipswich Town's Championship-winning custodian in 1962.

Another player with a lot to live up to is Chelsea's Carlo Cudicini. Father Fabio was capped by the Italian national side and is a legend at AC Milan.

Italian keeper Gianluigi Buffon comes from a very sporting family - his dad was a shot-putter, his mother used to throw the discus while his two sisters play in Italy's top volleyball league! What's more, former AC Milan and Inter goalkeeper Lorenzo Buffon is a distant cousin.

The first pair of brothers to play together at international level were James and Robert Smith of South Norwood Football Club, who played for Scotland in the first ever internatial against England way back in 1872. Robert Smith started the game outfield but replaced captain Bob Gardner in goal at the start of the Second Half. Both he and Gardner kept a clean sheet in a 0-0 draw.

Former Spurs player David Howells played alongside his goalkeeping brother Gareth in the Tottenham youth team. Gareth later went on to play for Torquay United and currently turns out for non-league Aldershot.

It has often been said that there is nothing harder than following in your father's footsteps. Thankfully, Pele's son, Edinho, saw sense and decided to become a goalkeeper, playing for the same team as his dad, Santos.

Saudi Arabia's long-serving keeper Mohammad Al-Deayea replaced his brother in the Saudi National team before going on to play in two World Cup finals.

Southampton and Wales goalkeeper Paul Jones followed his eldest brother Mark into League football. His brother once had a spell with Hereford United.

The Dunne brothers both played for Manchester United during the 1960s. Goalkeeper Pat made several appearances during United's Championship winning season of 1964/65 before being replaced by Alex Stepney. He went on to play for the Plymouth Argyle and the Republic of Ireland while fullback Tony stay behind at Old Trafford and was part of the team that won the European cup in 1968.

Born in Southampton, both Aaron and Darryl Flahaven played for the Saints youth team before finding first team success at Portsmouth and Southend United respectively.

Kasey Keller's dad was a semi-pro softball pitcher in the States.

Celtic's Ronnie Simpson, who was first capped by Scotland in 1967, followed his father Jimmy, who played for Rangers, into the national side, although Jimmy had more sense than to go in goal...

One the most talented players ever to play for Bulgaria, Georgi Sokolov, was the son of a goalkeeper, the legendary - in Bulgarian football at least! - Apostol Sokolov.

Joe and George Sealey, have both followed the example set by their late father Les, the ex-Manchester United, Aston villa and Luton Town custodian, and are trainee goalkeepers at one of their father's former clubs, West Ham United. It's also worth noting that Les Sealey's uncle was former West Ham United striker Alan Sealey.

Manchester City legend Tony Book's brother, Kim, also played professional football and was the unfortunate goalkeeper between the sticks for Northampton Town when George Best ran riot for Manchester United in an 8-2 victory.

Goalkeeper Hans Klodt played alongside his brother, winger Bernhard, in the FC Schalke 04 side that dominated German football in the 1930s.

French international goalkeeper Fabien Barthez's father was a top-class Rugby Union player. Fabien himself used to play rugby before taking up football.

Former Bolton Wanderers and England goalkeeper John Sutcliffe's brother Charles was also a keeper, turning out for Sheffield United in the 1925 F.A. Cup Final.

Ipswich Town youngster Carl Pentney hopes to go one better than his dad, Lloyd, by making his League debut before too long. Despite playing non-league football with the likes of Clacton Town, Harwich & Parkeston and Wivenhoe Town, the nearest Lloyd came to the Coca-Cola Championship was the Rymans League.

Dynamo Kiev keeper Nikolai Trusevich played in the same all-conquering Kiev side as his brother-in-law, Iosif Livshitz. Trusevich later played for FC Start against the German military, including the infamous 'Death Match', during the Second World War after he was taken prisoner.

There's only two John Lukics... Former Arsenal and Leeds United goalkeeper John Lukic's son, also called John, was signed by Grimsby Town in the summer of 2005. John is also a goalkeeper like his father, er, John.

Uruguayan international and Nacional de Montevideo goalkeeper Sebastián Viera also followed in his father's footsteps. Mario Viera was also a goalkeeper for some note and played for his country in the 1979 FIFA World Youth Championship in Japan.

Crawley Town goalkeeper Scott Ward, on the other hand, decided not to following in the footsteps of his brothers, Darren and Elliot, both of whom are centre halves for Crystal Palace and West Ham United respectively.

When New Youngs met Air Force in a Sri Lankan FA Cup tie in June 2006, there was a bit of sibling rivalry involved. New Youngs lined-up with Damith Dayawansa between the posts while Air Force had his brother Saman as their goalkeeper. The game was eventually abandoned after Damith was arrested for going AWOL from his military unit. His unit? The Air Force, of course!

Football was in the blood of Icelandic brothers Johannes and Alti Edvaldsson. Johannes turned out for Celtic and Motherwell while Alti plied his trade in Germany with Borussia Dortmund and Fortuna Dusseldorf. Both were capped at international level. Their father, Evald Mikson, was also a footballer and played in goal for Estonia. He fled to Iceland at the end of the Second World War after collaborating with the Nazis.

Manchester City legend Frank Swift's brother, Fred, was also a goalkeeper and turned out for Oldham Athletic. During the summer months they ran a pleasure boat together on Blackpool seafront!

Rosenborg goalkeeper Espen Johnsen's younger brother, Marius, plays in defence for Start and Norway.

Malcolm Webster, who had spells with Arsenal, Fulham, Southend United and Cambridge, was goalkeeping coach at Norwich City when his son, Ben, had a trial with The Canaries in 1999. He now plays for Soham Town Rangers.

Jose Mourinho may not have played football professionally but his father, Felix, kept goal for Portugal, and gave "The Chosen One" his first job as a scout at Rio Ave.

Thomas Ravelli's twin brother, Andreas, was also a professional footballer, playing alongside his brother at IFK Göteborg. Both were capped by Sweden, although goalkeeper Thomas won 143 caps to his brother's 41.

Welsh international Leigh Richmond Roose was the brother-in-law of Jack Jenkins, a Welsh rugby union international.

Pat Jenning's son, also called Pat, has played professionally with Eircom League clubs UCD and Derry City.

Former Spanish international Luis Arconada's brother, Gonzalo, is now manager of Real Sociedad.

The much-travelled Andy Dibble, who kept goal for seventeen different clubs during his career including Middlesbrough and Manchester City, followed his father Alan into goals after initially playing as a left back at school.

Franck Songo'o, the son of former Cameroon international Jacques Songo'o - who played in every World Cup between 1990-2002, can be seen strutting his stuff as a midfielder with Portsmouth at Fratton Park.

Josh Lillis followed his father's footsteps by signing professional forms with Scunthorpe United. However Josh decided to be a goalkeeper rather than centre forward like his dad, Iron's legend Mark Lillis.

The Brazilian Football Federation obviously like to keep it in the family. When former international goalkeeper Aymoré Moreira became coach of the national side, eventually leading them to World Cup glory in 1962, one of his predecessors was his brother Zezé. A third brother, Ayrton, was alos a respected coach in Brazil.

Dutch brothers, Ruud, who kept goal for Barcelona and Roda JC, and Danny, who played for NEC, Roda and AZ Alkmaar amongst others, both carved out respectable professional careers during the 1990s.

American internationl Nick Rimando is married to female soccer star Jacqui Little, who plays for Washington Freedom.

When former Manchester United Youth team midfielder David Fox joined Blackpool in January 2006, he teamed up with his dad Peter, The Seasiders' goalkeeping coach who used to keep goal for Stoke City in the 1980s.

Some might say Liverpool have got it in for this family, but having dispensed with the services of goalkeeper David James some years ago, the Merseyside club saw fit to release his nephew, striker James Frayne, in the summer of 2006.

During the 1950 and 60s, the Unity Club of Belize benefited from the footballing talents of Keith Gardiner and his goalkeeping brother, Charlie.

Liverpool and England goalkeeper Scott Carson's brother, Grant, is also a keeper and currently on the books of Carlisle United.

The Cooper family have strong links with Dallas football. Having played for Blackburn Rovers, Kenny Cooper Senior joined the Dallas Tornado in the North American Soccer League and became an NASL All-Star. His son, also called Kenny, is now a centre forward for FC Dallas in the MLS.

Croatian international Joey Didulica's brother, John, is a former player and the current CEO of the Australian Professional Footballers' Association.

Donald Farquharson, son of Tom Farquharson who played in goal for Cardiff City when they won the FA Cup in 1927, emigrated to Canada and become one of the leading exponents of Masters Athletics in the 1970s.

French footballing brothers Sébastien and Nicholas Frey both ply their trade in Italy. Sébastien keeps goal for Fiorentina while Nicholas plays for Modena in Serie B. Their father, Raymond, and grandfather, André, also played professionally.

The Late Niccolò Galli, who played for Arsenal and Bologna, was the son of former Italian international goalkeeper Giovanni Galli.

Goalkeeping is in the blood of the Henderson family. Wayne Henderson currently plays for Brighton & Hove Albion and is a Republic of Ireland international while his nephew Stephen is on Aston Villa's books. Wayne's father Paddy kept goal for Shamrock Rovers in the 1960s while his older brothers, Dave and Stephen, both played with some success in the League of Ireland.

China have benefitted from the goalkeeping expertise of the Jiang family with brothers Jin and Hong both turning out for the national side.

Australian brothers Jason and Michael Petkovic have both been capped by the Socceroos, having played for the same junior club, Spearwood, in Western Australia. Jason later turned out for Perth Glory while Michael kept goal for South Melbourne.

Celestine Babayaro's goalkeeping brother, Emmanuel was part of the Nigeria squad that won gold at the 1996 Olympic Games.

Maccabi Haifa's Nir Davidovich followed in the footsteps of his father, Benjamin, who also played in goal for Haifa after the Second World War.

Dynamo Moscow goalkeeper Vasily Frolov has a lot to live up to. His grandfather was Lev Yashin.

Norwich City and Scotland keeper Paul Gallacher is the son of Jim Gallacher, a goalkeeper who played Scottish League Football for 22 years between 1968 and 1990, firstly with Arbroath and more famously with Clydebank.

Sparta Prague's Zdenek Zlámal's followed his uncle František between the sticks and it was his uncle, who kept SK Slavia Prague in the 1970s, who bought him his first pair of gloves.

Another Sparta Prague keeper who followed the family tradition is Zlámal's teammate Milan Švenger, who's father was also a professional goalkeeper, donning the gloves for FK Jablonec 97 and FC Bohemians 1905.

Israeli Under-21 goalkeeper Ohad Levita Hapoel and his grandfather, Yair Levita, both kept goal for Kfar-Saba FC.

Hartlepool United's Danish keeper Jan Budtz, who has also kept goal for Doncaster Rovers, has a twin brother, Ole, who is a defender with Aarhus.

Former Celtic and Motherwell goalkeeper Gordon Marshall followed his father, also a goalkeeper called Gordon, into the game. But while Gordon Senior was capped by England at under-23 level, Gordon junior elected to play for Scotland, winning one full cap against the United Stated in May 1992. His brother Scott also became a professional footballer and went on to play for Southampton and Celtic, but elected not to become a keeper like the rest of his family.

Liverpool's David Martin is the son of former West Ham defender Alvin Martin.