For our Monthly Meeting in July 2025, we were delighted to welcome David Pleat who it turned out was related to one of our members! Born in 1945, David had played football for England Schoolboys and for the England International Team. He began his playing career with his home team club – Nottingham Forest – making his debut at 17 years of age. He scored a goal against Cardiff City in his first appearance, and never looked back.

From Nottingham Forest, he moved on to Luton Town, Shrewsbury Town, Exeter City and Peterborough, scoring 26 goals in 105 games. An injury stopped his playing career, so he turned to coaching and to management. He managed Luton Town twice, and managed Tottenham Hotspurs. During this stage of his career, he managed 900 league games, winning 355 of them.

When management came to an end, he became a Consultant Talent Scout, finishing his time in that role with Tottenham Hotspurs in 2024. He is now a Consultant Talent Scout for Glasgow Celtic. His media career started in 1986, and to his credit he has covered 7 consecutive World Cups as a commentator on TV and Radio. In 2021, David was voted Luton Town’s Greatest Manager, having seen the Club rise to the Premier League during his tenure. He offered to sign copies of his book “Just One More Goal” at the meeting, and kindly donated his fee to the Motor Neurone Disease Association.