*Indicates unconfirmed information. Figures in brackets after English team names indicate all appearances made and goals scored in competitive matches for Football League clubs from 1888 onwards. For Scottish League clubs the figures show details of all competitive appearances and goals scored from 1946/47 onwards.
Eddie Clayton
Appearances: 271+10 Goals: 33
Date / Year of birth: 7th May 1937
Position: Midfielder
Season of first appearance: 1970/71
Season of last appearance: 1974/75
Also played for: Eton Manor, Tottenham Hotspur (99+4,20), Southend United (80+3,18), Ashford Town and Aylesbury United
Classy, cultured midfielder born in Bethnal Green, London who started his career with Eton Manor before signing amateur forms for Tottenham in March 1955. Having completed his National Service Eddie became a full-time professional in December 1957.
He made his debut for Spurs at Everton on 5.4.58 and scored twice in a 4-3 win. Eddie also scored in his next match - against West Bromwich Albion - and went on to spend over ten years at White Hart Lane. He made 92 1st Division appearances, scoring 20 goals, and also made nine FA Cup appearances, one League Cup appearance and played in one European game - a 3-1 win at Feyenoord on 8.11.61. In addition Eddie scored 130 goals in a total of 236 appearances for Spurs' reserve, 'A' and 'B' teams. He was understudy to John White in Spurs' famous double-winning squad in 1960/61 and he was reserve for the 1967 FA Cup Final, the 13th man in the squad at a time when only one substitute was permitted.
Eddie left White Hart Lane to join Southend in March 1968 and he was a fixture in their side before moving to Ashford for a short spell in April 1970. He scored twice in five appearances for the Nuts & Bolts.
He then signed for Margate in June 1970 and acting manager Almer Hall said "He should prove a big asset to us." Eddie was keen to move into part-time football permanently as he owned a clothing business in London and wanted to devote more time to it.
He made his debut on the opening day of the 1970/71 season - a 3-0 win at Telford in the Southern League on 15.8.70 - and Eddie impressed immediately. He was praised by the Isle of Thanet Gazette for displaying "superb ball artistry" and the paper also said he was "a mine of power and determination". Eddie was later referred to as a "constant inspiration" and he was said to be "the side's greatest asset" but that didn't stop him from becoming what the local paper described as "the whipping boy" of the Hartsdown Park crowd for a spell during the season. He made a total of 50 appearances (one as sub) during the campaign and on 21.11.70 Eddie played as Margate lost 2-0 at Dagenham in the FA Cup 1st Round.
He scored six goals and they included a superb solo effort in a 3-0 home win over Kettering on 3.4.71 when Eddie ran from the halfway line and beat two players before lashing in a shot from 15 yards. He also scored what the local paper called "a truly golden goal" in a 3-1 home defeat at the hands of Hereford on 30.4.71. Eddie embarked on a "fantastic solo run" from inside his own half before crashing home a shot from the edge of the penalty area.
He was appointed as club captain for the 1971/72 season and Eddie enjoyed another outstanding campaign. He was an inspirational figure in Margate's midfield and made 63 appearances, scoring seven goals. He was runner-up to Barry Brown in the voting for the club's 'Player of the Year' award and also had a spell as caretaker player-manager in October 1971 following Gerry Baker's departure and prior to the arrival of Les Riggs. Eddie's 15 yard volley that found the net in a 3-2 home defeat at the hands of Nuneaton on 25.9.71 was described as "splendid" by the Thanet Times and on 4.10.71 his "midfield mastery was a joy to behold" according to a press report on a 2-1 home defeat against Hastings. Eddie was also praised for his "immaculate prompting" during the season and on 20.11.71 he featured in Margate's infamous 11-0 defeat at Bournemouth & Boscombe in the FA Cup 1st Round.
Eddie continued to mastermind Margate's midfield during the 1972/73 campaign and manager Les Riggs said that "Both on and off the field he inspires by personal performance." The local press called Eddie a "master craftsman" and he made 52 appearances, scoring nine goals. On 26.9.72 he was sent off in a Southern League Cup tie at Gravesend & Northfleet and that was notable as previously Eddie had only ever been booked once in his career.
On 18.11.72 he was in the Margate side that beat Swansea 1-0 in an FA Cup 1st Round tie at Hartsdown Park and Eddie also featured in a 1-0 win at Walton & Hersham in the 2nd Round on 9.12.72. He then played in perhaps Margate's biggest ever match - a 6-0 defeat against visitors Tottenham in the 3rd Round on 13.1.73. The game was particularly significant for Eddie given his long spell with Spurs earlier in his career.
During the 1973/74 season Eddie made a further 60 appearances (four as sub) to take his total for the club past 200. He continued to be an inspirational captain and was described as being a "wily veteran" by the Thanet Times during the campaign. Eddie scored seven goals including a hat-trick as Margate beat Tunbridge Wells 8-0 in a Kent Senior Cup tie at Hartsdown Park on 19.1.74. He also managed to get sent off again, this time during a 3-1 defeat at Dartford on 27.10.73.
The 1974/75 season saw Eddie winding down his Margate career and he made 56 appearances, four of them as a substitute. However his class was still apparent and the local press described Eddie as a "midfield master" during the campaign. He scored four goals and the best of them came in a 3-3 draw with Weymouth at Hartsdown Park on 16.11.74, according to the Thanet Times Eddie "gracefully slammed home" a 20 yard effort. At the end of the season Eddie announced his retirement, partly because he wanted to become a full-time PE teacher, and Margate manager Les Riggs marked the occasion by saying "I have never in all my years as a manager, had a better professional player." The Isle of Thanet Gazette was equally fulsome in its praise and said that Eddie was "one of the most cultured players ever to turn out for Margate".
However Eddie changed his mind about hanging up his boots and joined Aylesbury for the start of the 1975/76 season. He made his debut for the Ducks against Feltham in an Athenian League Division 2 game and marked the occasion with a goal. He went on to make a total of 17 appearances in all competitions and scored eight goals, four of them penalties, before leaving Aylesbury at the end of November 1975.
In a 1974 player profile in Margate's programme Eddie said that his ambition was to lead Margate out at Wembley, that Margate had a great crowd and that he really enjoyed playing for the club.
As late as December 1978 Eddie's presence was still being missed and Margate's then manager Jack Smith was quoted as saying "It's a tough job to find a player of his calibre, but we urgently need a Clayton to steady the side." In 1986 Thanet United president Bob Griffiths said that Eddie was "A superb footballer, one of the most gifted we have had here."
In November 1997 Eddie returned to Hartsdown Park as a guest when Margate played Fulham in the FA Cup.
In 2009 he was living in East Ham, London and was Vice President of Upminster Cricket Club. He played golf regularly, sometimes with former Spurs team-mates including Jimmy Greaves.
|
SEASON (CLUB) |
FULL (MAX) |
SUB |
GLS |
FAC |
FAT |
SLC |
KSC |
KFC | |
|
1970/71 (MFC) |
49 (72) |
1 |
6 |
SOUTHERN LEAGUE PREMIER DIVISION (13TH OF 22) |
1R |
1R |
SF |
QF |
GR |
| Played in FA Cup 1st Round (21.11.70 - lost 2-0 at Dagenham). | |||||||||
|
SEASON (CLUB) |
FULL (MAX) |
SUB |
GLS |
FAC |
FAT |
SLC |
KSC |
KFC | |
|
1971/72 (MFC) |
63 (69) |
0 |
7 |
SOUTHERN LEAGUE PREMIER DIVISION (9TH OF 22) |
1R |
1R |
SF |
2R |
GR |
| Played in FA Cup 1st Round (20.11.71 - lost 11-0 at Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic). | |||||||||
|
SEASON (CLUB) |
FULL (MAX) |
SUB |
GLS |
FAC |
FAT |
SLC |
KSC |
KFC | |
|
1972/73 (MFC) |
51 (64) |
1 |
9 |
SOUTHERN LEAGUE PREMIER DIVISION (7TH OF 22) |
3R |
3QR |
1R |
2R |
GR |
| Played in FA Cup 1st
Round (18.11.72 - beat Swansea City 1-0 at home).
Played in FA Cup 2nd Round (09.12.72 - won 1-0 at Walton & Hersham). Played in FA Cup 3rd Round (13.01.73 - lost 6-0 at home to Tottenham Hotspur). | |||||||||
|
SEASON (CLUB) |
FULL (MAX) |
SUB |
GLS |
FAC |
FAT |
SLC |
KSC |
KMT | |
|
1973/74 (MFC) |
56 (65) |
4 |
7 |
SOUTHERN LEAGUE PREMIER DIVISION (17TH OF 22) |
4QR |
2R |
SF |
W |
GR |
|
SEASON (CLUB) |
FULL (MAX) |
SUB |
GLS |
FAC |
FAT |
SLC |
KSC |
KMT | |
|
1974/75 (MFC) |
52 (66) |
4 |
4 |
SOUTHERN LEAGUE PREMIER DIVISION (7TH OF 22) |
4QR |
2R |
RU |
2R |
GR |
| Played in Southern
League Cup Final 1st Leg (05.04.75 - lost 2-0 at home to Kettering
Town). Played in Southern League Cup Final 2nd Leg (12.04.75 - drew 1-1 at Kettering Town). | |||||||||