Dennis John 1935-2013

FORMER Argyle defender Dennis John has passed away at the age of 78.

Dennis, who joined the club as a 17-year-old, spent five years at Home Park between 1952-1957.

At 21, he made his debut for the Pilgrims in a 3-1 defeat of Rotherham but was to find opportunities for first-team action limited because of the consistent form of Paddy Ratcliffe in the same position.

Dennis left Argyle in 1957 after making three first-team appearances. He joined Swansea Town shortly after and made four appearances for the Welsh outfit before moving on again, this time to Scunthorpe.


The defender enjoyed success with Scunthorpe as he was a regular in a side who finished 15th in the old Division Two and then ninth in the next campaign. He made 88 appearances for the Iron before moving to Millwall, then of Division Three.

Dennis’s time at Millwall took in four seasons and more than 100 appearances. In his second campaign, the club was relegated before achieving back to back promotions in the following two seasons.

Dennis played a big part in the Lions’ side that went 59 home games unbeaten from August 24, 1964 and to January 14, 1967, a run ended, ironically, by Argyle.

The club sends its condolences to the family and friends of Dennis.