FORMER Blackburn Rovers goalkeeper John Barton has died, aged 72.

Mr Barton, who signed for the club from Preston in 1966, had battled colon cancer and died at his home in Orrell, near Wigan, on Sunday.

MORE TOP STORIES:

Having made his league debut for Preston North End at Arsenal in 1958, aged just 16, Mr Barton made 54 league and cup appearances at Deepdale before signing for Rovers for a fee of £6,000.

He was first choice keeper for the 1966/67 season, replacing Fred Else who was released after making 221 appearances in five years.

Mr Barton was an ever-present in Rovers’ promotion-chasing team of that season, keeping 16 clean sheets as they narrowly missed out on promotion to the old First Division.

He lost his first team place to Scotland international Adam Blacklaw the following season, who was in turn replaced by Roger Jones in 1970.

Mr Barton made 72 league and cup appearances in six years at Ewood before quitting football in 1972.

In a statement on the club’s website, a Blackburn Rovers spokesman said: “The club would like to offer its condolences to John’s family and friends at this sad time.”

Rovers legend Bryan Douglas, who played alongside the goalkeeper before his retirement in 1969, said: “He was a good, honest professional.

“He started off at Preston and played as a 16-year-old in the first team.

“He came to us and played quite a few games.”

And Rovers’ record appearance holder Derek Fazackerley remembers Mr Barton from his early days with the club.

He said: “John was at the club in my early years and he was the number two goalkeeper.

“I actually remember him more from his playing days at Preston as I was North End fan in those days.

“He was a reliable goalkeeper who spent a lot of time as back-up but when called upon he never let the team down.

“He was a good bloke to have in the dressing room and as a northerner he called a spade a shovel.

“His family had an undertakers business and I remember in the afternoons he would go and help out with that.

“One day he was in the dressing room with his head in his hands and he said, ‘I dropped one yesterday’.

“I said, ‘you drop crosses all the time John’, and he said ‘not a cross, a coffin!’”