Richard Asa Hartford (born 24 October 1950) is a Scottish former football player and coach. He started his professional career with

West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pl ...

. His early progress led to a proposed transfer to

Leeds United Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire in England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of England's football league system, and plays its home matches at Elland Road ...

in November 1971, but this collapsed when a medical examination discovered a heart condition. Hartford instead moved to Manchester City in 1974. He helped City win the 1976 League Cup Final. After a brief spell with

Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest Football Club is an association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. Nottingham Forest was founded in 1865 and have been playing their home games at the City Ground, on the banks of the River Tren ...

, Hartford moved to Everton in 1979 and then had a second spell with Manchester City. After playing for

Fort Lauderdale Sun Fort Lauderdale Sun was a U.S. soccer team which played two seasons in the United Soccer League. In 1984, the team was known as the Fort Lauderdale Sun. Before the 1985 season they changed their name to the South Florida Sun. Origins The United S ...

, Hartford joined

Norwich City Norwich City Football Club (also known as The Canaries or The Yellows) is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. The club competes in the EFL Championship following their relegation from the Premier League in the 20 ...

. His shot resulted in the only goal of the 1985 League Cup Final. Hartford was also a regular in the Scotland national team, earning 50 caps between 1972 and 1982. He was selected for the Scotland squads in the 1978 and 1982 World Cups. Towards the end of his playing career, Hartford became a coach. He was the

player/manager A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the sq ...

Stockport County Stockport County Football Club are a professional football club in Stockport, England, who compete in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1883 as Heaton Norris Rovers, they were renamed Stockport Co ...

and

Shrewsbury Town Shrewsbury Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of English football. The club plays its home games at the New Meadow, having mo ...

. Since retiring as a player, Hartford has worked in a variety of coaching and scouting roles.

Career

He first played for

Drumchapel Amateurs Drumchapel Amateur Football Club is a football club from the village of Duntocher, near Clydebank in Scotland. Formed in 1950 in the Drumchapel area of the city of Glasgow, they are nicknamed ''"The Drum"''. The club presently competes in the C ...

in Glasgow, but began his professional career at

in 1967. During his time with West Brom, the team won the 1968 FA Cup Final (although he did not play in the final), were beaten FA Cup semi-finalists in 1969 and reached the

League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...

final in 1970. A proposed transfer to

Don Revie Donald George Revie OBE (10 July 1927 – 26 May 1989) was an England international footballer and manager, best known for his successful spell with Leeds United from 1961 until 1974, which immediately preceded his appointment as England manage ...

in November 1971 was cancelled, when the Leeds doctor found that Hartford had a hole in-the-heart condition during a pre-transfer medical examination. He was eventually transfer listed by then West Brom coach

Don Howe Donald Howe (12 October 1935 – 23 December 2015) was an English football player, coach, manager and pundit. As a right back Howe featured for clubs West Bromwich Albion and Arsenal together with the England national football team in his pla ...

, alongside favourites

Len Cantello Len Cantello (born 11 September 1951) is a former football midfielder. Career West Bromwich Albion: 1967–1979 Cantello joined West Bromwich Albion as an apprentice in 1967. Aged 18, Cantello played in the 1970 League Cup Final. Cantello sco ...

and

Jeff Astle Jeffrey Astle (13 May 1942 – 19 January 2002) was an English professional footballer who played the majority of his career as a centre-forward for West Bromwich Albion. Nicknamed "the King" by the club's fans, he played 361 games for them and ...

, in April 1974. Hartford moved on to Manchester City for £210,000, making his debut for City in a 4–0 victory against

West Ham West Ham is an area in East London, located east of Charing Cross in the west of the modern London Borough of Newham. The area, which lies immediately to the north of the River Thames and east of the River Lea, was originally an ancient ...

. He helped City win the 1976 League Cup Final. At the beginning of the 1979–80 season he was transferred to

Brian Clough Brian Howard Clough ( ; 21 March 1935 – 20 September 2004) was an English football player and manager, primarily known for his successes as a manager with Derby County and Nottingham Forest. He is one of four managers to have won the Engl ...

(to replace

Archie Gemmill Archibald Gemmill (born 24 March 1947) is a Scottish former footballer. During his career, he won the European Cup and three English league titles, and captained his national side. Gemmill scored the third Scotland goal in a 3–2 win again ...

) for £500,000, only to be sold on to Everton for £400,000 after just three games with Forest. In October 1981 John Bond brought him back to Manchester City for £375,000. His second stint with City was less successful, as he suffered an ankle injury and the club were relegated in 1983. Hartford left City in 1984 and signed for American club

. He returned to English football soon afterwards with

. In the 1985 League Cup Final, Hartford's shot was deflected by Sunderland's

Gordon Chisholm Gordon William Chisholm (born 8 April 1960 in Glasgow) is a Scottish professional football former player and manager. Chisholm played as a central defender for Sunderland, Hibernian, Dundee and Partick Thistle. After retiring as a player, ...

for the only goal of the match. They were relegated in the same season. He then had stints with Bolton Wanderers and

Oldham Athletic Oldham Athletic Association Football Club is a professional football club in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. The history of Oldham Athletic be ...

, and then took up coaching/managerial roles with

and

International career

Hartford made his full international debut for

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

on 26 April 1972, in a

friendly match An exhibition game (also known as a friendly, a scrimmage, a demonstration, a preseason game, a warmup match, or a preparation match, depending at least in part on the sport) is a sporting event whose prize money and impact on the player's or ...

with

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

. Hartford made six appearances for Scotland during 1972, but was not selected again until October 1975. He became a regular in the international side in 1977, as Scotland defeated

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

and

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...

to qualify for the 1978 World Cup in Argentina.

Brian Glanville Brian Lester Glanville (born 24 September 1931) is an English football writer and novelist. He was described by ''The Times'' as "the doyen of football writers—arguably the finest football writer of his—or any other—generation," and by Ame ...

, in his frequently updated ''The Story of the World Cup'', wrote "The Scots had an abundance of fine midfield players at a time when most other countries looked for them desperately;

Bruce Rioch Bruce David Rioch (; born 6 September 1947) is a football manager and former player for the Scotland national team. His last managerial post was at AaB in the Danish Superliga in 2008. As a player, he made more than 550 appearances in the Fo ...

Don Masson Donald Sandison Masson (born 26 August 1946) is a Scottish former footballer. Club career Masson began his career with Middlesbrough in 1964. He was signed by Notts County manager Billy Gray in 1968 in a joint deal for £7000 along with Bo ...

, Asa Hartford, Archie Gemmill,

Lou Macari Luigi Macari (born 7 June 1949) is a Scottish former footballer and manager. He began his playing career at Celtic where he was one of the Quality Street Gang, the outstanding reserve team that emerged in the late 1960s that also included Ken ...

Graeme Souness Graeme James Souness (; born 6 May 1953) is a Scottish former professional football player and manager, and current TV pundit. A midfielder, Souness was the captain of the successful Liverpool team of the early 1980s, player-manager of Ranger ...

". Hartford played in all Scotland games in Argentina. His side lost 3–1 to Peru, drew 1–1 with

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

and defeated eventual runners-up

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

3–2, which meant that

Ally MacLeod Alistair Reid "Ally" MacLeod (26 February 1931 – 1 February 2004) was a Scottish professional football player and manager. He is perhaps best known for his time as the Scotland national football team manager, including their appearance at t ...

's team exited the competition after the first round. Hartford's international career came to an end after the 1982 World Cup, where he recorded his 50th and final cap for Scotland in the game against

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

. This appearance secured Hartford a place on the national team's roll of honour, as the 8th player to make 50 appearances for Scotland. Hartford did not appear in any other matches at the 1982 World Cup, as Scotland were again eliminated after the group stage.

Coaching and managerial career

Hartford served

(1987–89) and

(1990–91) as a

before his retirement as a player. He subsequently joined ex-international teammates Kenny Dalglish (at

Blackburn Rovers Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. Th ...

Joe Jordan Joseph Jordan (born 15 December 1951) is a Scottish football player, coach and manager. He is currently a first-team coach at AFC Bournemouth. A former striker, he played for Leeds United, Manchester United, and Milan, among others at club ...

and

(at Stoke City where he spent four matches as caretaker manager) in various coaching/managerial roles. He became assistant manager at Manchester City in 1995, working with Alan Ball. He was caretaker manager in September 1996, after Ball left, but he did not express any interest in becoming manager on a permanent basis. He stayed with City for several years as their reserve team coach, until Stuart Pearce brought in his own coaching staff in May 2005. Hartford became a first team coach with Blackpool in December 2005, but left the club in May 2006. On 29 June 2007 it was announced that he had been appointed assistant manager at

Macclesfield Town Macclesfield Town Football Club was an English professional football club based in Macclesfield, Cheshire, that was wound-up after a High Court ruling on 16 September 2020. Initially known as Macclesfield F.C., the club was formed in 1874 ...

but both he and Ian Brightwell were sacked in February 2008 to be replaced by Keith Alexander. In April 2008 he was given a role with

Accrington Stanley Accrington Stanley Football Club is a professional association football club based in Accrington, Lancashire, England. The club competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. They have spent their complete his ...

coaching the junior teams and the reserves, but was made redundant from this role in October 2011. He subsequently worked for

Birmingham City Birmingham City Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, it was renamed Small Heath in 1888, Birmingham in 1905, and Birmingham City in 1943. Sin ...

as a scout.

Career statistics

As a player

*Sourced from :A. The "Other" column constitutes appearances and goals in the Anglo-Italian Cup,

Anglo-Scottish Cup The Anglo-Scottish Cup was a tournament arranged for teams in the English and Scottish football leagues during the summer for several years during the 1970s. It was created in 1975 as a new incarnation of the Texaco Cup, with a similar format t ...

, FA Charity Shield,

Football League Trophy The English Football League Trophy, known for sponsorship purposes as the Papa Johns Trophy after restaurant chain Papa John's Pizza, is an annual English association football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL Le ...

Football League play-offs The English Football League play-offs are a series of play-off matches contested by the four association football teams finishing immediately below the automatic promotion places in the second, third and fourth tiers of the English football leagu ...

Texaco Cup The Texaco Cup, officially known as the International League Board Competition, was an association football competition started in 1970, involving sides from England, Scotland, and Ireland that had not qualified for European competitions. It wa ...

UEFA Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay ...

UEFA Cup Winners' Cup The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tourn ...

Watney Cup The Watney Mann Invitation Cup (normally referred to as simply the Watney Cup) was a short-lived English football tournament held in the early 1970s. It was held before the start of the season, and was contested by the teams that had scored th ...

As a manager

Honours

Club

Manchester City * Football League Cup: 1976 Norwich City * Football League Cup: 1985

Individual

Scotland national football team roll of honour The International Roll of Honour is a list established by the Scottish Football Association recognising players who have gained 50 or more international caps for Scotland. The roll of honour was launched in February 1988, when 11 players had alrea ...

: 1982

References

; Specific ; General *Glanville, Brian – World Cup. The Story of the, Faber & Faber, London, 2005.

External links

*
Career information at ex-canaries.co.uk
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hartford, Asa 1950 births Living people Sportspeople from Clydebank Footballers from West Dunbartonshire Scottish footballers Scotland international footballers Association football midfielders West Bromwich Albion F.C. players Manchester City F.C. players Nottingham Forest F.C. players Everton F.C. players Norwich City F.C. players Bolton Wanderers F.C. players Oldham Athletic A.F.C. players Shrewsbury Town F.C. managers Fort Lauderdale Sun players Blackburn Rovers F.C. non-playing staff Blackpool F.C. non-playing staff Bolton Wanderers F.C. non-playing staff 1978 FIFA World Cup players 1982 FIFA World Cup players English Football League players Scottish expatriate footballers United Soccer League (1984–85) players English Football League managers Drumchapel Amateur F.C. players Scotland under-21 international footballers Scotland under-23 international footballers Manchester City F.C. non-playing staff Scottish expatriate sportspeople in the United States Expatriate soccer players in the United States Scottish football managers