Richie Powling began his career at Arsenal, joining as an apprentice in August 1971.
The promising young defender turned heads in the reserves at an early age and made his debut for the first team in a 2-0 defeat to QPR in October 1973.
Powling played twice that season but struggled to turn his early promise into regular first-team football.
The England youth international was a regular in the 1975/76 season as Arsenal struggled to a 17th place finish in Division One but appeared infrequently thereafter.
Powling suffered a serious knee injury which hampered his first-class career and he was forced to retire in summer 1981.
He later played for Barnet and Grays Athletic before becoming manager of Tiptree United and Sudbury Town.
Richie Powling
