Keith John Reames (19 February 1942 – 6 May 2008) was an English football manager and administrator who was chairman of Lincoln City from 1985 to 2000. He remains, to date, their longest-serving chairman; he also managed the club from 1998 to 2000.
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Keith John Reames | ||
Date of birth | 19 February 1942 | ||
Place of birth | Lincoln, England | ||
Date of death | 6 May 2008 | (aged 66)||
Place of death | Lincoln, England | ||
Managerial career | |||
Years | Team | ||
1998–2000 | Lincoln City |
Reames also held high positions within the Football Association (FA) and Football League during the 1990s (chairman of the FA Referees Committee and director of the Football League).[1]
Reames was chairman of Lincoln City for 15 years, from 1985 to 2000, and remains to date their longest-serving chairman.[1] After Lincoln City had sold their ground to the local council in 1982 for £225,000,[2] Reames bought it back from the council in 2000,[1] ensuring the existence and continuity of Lincoln City as a viable professional football club and business.[3][4]
Reames also oversaw the complete rebuilding of Sincil Bank, and guided Lincoln back to the Football League in 1988.[1] He was also responsible for appointing the first full-time black professional manager in the Football League in Keith Alexander (1993).
Upon resigning as chairman of Lincoln City in November 2000, Reames left £400,000 in trust for the club's future.[1]
Reames also managed Lincoln from November 1998 to March 2000, winning 25 out of 75 Football League games.[1] Reames' managerial achievements include winning the October 1999 Manager of the Month Award.[1]
After leaving Lincoln, Reames was also chairman of Gainsborough Trinity, and managing director of Wrexham.[1]
Reames died on 6 May 2008 from cancer. He left behind a wife Beth, sons Paul and Thomas, and daughters Kate, Sarah and Clare.[5]