William Hartas Fenton (23 June 1926 – 16 April 1973) was an English

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

. He played as a left-winger in the immediate post-Second World War period. The highest level he played at was with

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. T ...

, but spent most of his professional career with

York City York City Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of York, North Yorkshire, England. As of the 2022–23 season, the team compete in the National League, at the fifth tier of the English football league sys ...

Career

Born in

Hartlepool Hartlepool () is a seaside and port town in County Durham, England. It is the largest settlement and administrative centre of the Borough of Hartlepool. With an estimated population of 90,123, it is the second-largest settlement in County ...

County Durham County Durham ( ), officially simply Durham,UK General Acts 1997 c. 23Lieutenancies Act 1997 Schedule 1(3). From legislation.gov.uk, retrieved 6 April 2022. is a ceremonial county in North East England.North East Assembly �About North East E ...

, Fenton started his career with

Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. As the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. In Barnsley, the population was 96,888 while the wider Borough has ...

, whom he signed for in November 1944. After leaving Barnsley he returned to his native North-East, playing for

Horden Colliery Welfare Horden Community Welfare Football Club, usually abbreviated to Horden CW is a football club based in Horden, County Durham, England. The club was formed as Horden Colliery Welfare in 1908 and joined the North Eastern League in 1935, reaching th ...

. In December 1948 Fenton joined

, then in the

Second Division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...

. He was not a regular at the club, playing only 33 times in the next two and a half seasons. Fenton signed for

in May 1951 for a small fee, and in his first season scored 31 goals, setting a new record for the club, which was previously held by

Reg Baines Reginald E. Baines (3 June 1907 – 21 October 1974) was an English footballer. Baines started his career with York City whilst the club was playing in the Midland League. He then played for Selby Town and Scarborough, until eventually re ...

. He was part of the team which played in the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...

semi-final in 1955. Fenton stayed with York City for several seasons, writing himself into the club's history books by scoring 124 goals in 278 games, making him the third highest goalscorer in the club's history after Norman Wilkinson and

Keith Walwyn Kenford Keith Ian Walwyn (17 February 1956 – 15 April 2003), more commonly known as Keith Walwyn, was a Kittitian footballer who played as a striker. Career Born in Nevis, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Walwyn had trials for Barnsley and Preston Nor ...

. After leaving York, Fenton went on to play for another

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is the largest ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county (lieutenancy area) in England, covering an area of . Around 40% of the county is covered by National parks of the United Kingdom, national parks, including most of ...

side,

Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to: People * Scarborough (surname) * Earl of Scarbrough Places Australia * Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth * Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong * Scarborough, Queensland, su ...

, whom he signed for in July 1958. He scored 12 goals in 29 appearances for the

Midland League The Midland Football League is an English football league that was founded in 2014 by the merger of the former Midland Alliance and Midland Combination. The league has four divisions that sit at levels 9–12 of the football pyramid. History Th ...

side in all competitions, including 10 goals in the league in the 1958–59 season. Fenton died in

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

at the age of 46 on 16 April 1973. The Billy Fenton Memorial Trophy is presented annually by his widow Margo to York City's Clubman of the Year.

Honours

*1954-55 -

semi-finalist (York City)

References

1926 births 1973 deaths Footballers from Hartlepool English men's footballers Men's association football wingers Barnsley F.C. players Darlington Town F.C. players Blackburn Rovers F.C. players York City F.C. players Scarborough F.C. players English Football League players {{England-footy-midfielder-1920s-stub