Clifford Charles Holton (29 April 1929 – 31 May 1996) 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 ...

. Born in

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

, Holton played as a full back for non-league

Oxford City Oxford City Football Club is a semi-professional English association football club based in Marston, Oxford. They currently compete in the National League South, the sixth tier of English football, and play their home matches at Marsh Lane. ...

as a youth, before joining Arsenal in October 1947 at the age of 18. He spent three seasons in Arsenal's' reserve team, eventually converting to a centre forward, although his progress was restricted in part by

national service National service is the system of voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act 1939. The ...

. He made his debut against Stoke City on 26 December 1950; initially a bit-part player, he became an established regular in the side in 1951–52 and remained there for three seasons. He was in the Arsenal side to reach the FA Cup Final in 1952. With 22 goals (19 of them in the league) he helped Arsenal to a First Division title in 1952–53. However, he lost his place in the Arsenal side in 1954–55, before returning the following season ( 1955–56), having been converted into a utility man – playing in

defence Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense indus ...

midfield Midfield is the part of a sports field that lies approximately in the center. In American football, association football (soccer) and field hockey, it is the area in and around the center circle, as well as the players who occupy that region. In ...

or up front. He continued to figure for Arsenal for another three seasons and on 6 October 1956, he scored four goals in a home match against Manchester City, becoming the first player since Jack Lambert to score more than three in a game at

Highbury Highbury is a district in North London and part of the London Borough of Islington in Greater London that was owned by Ranulf brother of Ilger and included all the areas north and east of Canonbury and Holloway Roads. The manor house was sit ...

. In all he scored 88 goals in 217 matches for Arsenal. Although he was often tipped for an

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

place, he never won a cap for his country. Holton was sold to

Watford Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne. Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, and ...

in October 1958 for £9,000, a somewhat surprising move, considering Watford were in the newly formed Fourth Division at the time. Holton spent three seasons with the Hornets, mostly at centre forward. He formed a successful partnership with Dennis Uphill, scoring a club record 48 goals in 1959–60, which also saw the club promoted to the Third Division. Holton was then controversially sold to

Northampton Town Northampton Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in the town of Northampton, England. The team plays in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1897, the club competed in the Midland ...

in 1961 where he scored a club record 36 goals in 1961–62, thus achieving the rare feat of holding the all-time goals in a season record at two different clubs. Holton went on to play for

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building ...

, signing in December 1962 and was part of the Palace side which achieved promotion to the second tier in 1964, with 43 appearances that season scoring 20 goals. He then signed for Watford (for a second time) on 6 May 1965, before moving on to

Charlton Athletic Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, south-east London, which compete in . Their home ground is The Valley, where the club have played since 1919. They have also played at The Mount in ...

(in a deal which saw Stewart Scullion move in the opposite direction) and subsequently

Leyton Orient Leyton Orient Football Club is a professional football club based in Leyton, East London, England, who compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. They are the second oldest football club in London to play at a profession ...

. He finally retired in 1968, due in part to a knee injury, and left the game completely to take up a career in

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad range of more speciali ...

. He died suddenly while on holiday in 1996, at the age of 67.

Honours

* First Division: 1952–53 * FA Charity Shield:

1953 Events January * January 6 – The Asian Socialist Conference opens in Rangoon, Burma. * January 12 – Estonian émigrés found a government-in-exile in Oslo. * January 14 ** Marshal Josip Broz Tito is chosen President of Yug ...

References

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External links

Cliff Holton Stats at neilbrown.comCliff Holton at holmesdale.net
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holton, Cliff 1929 births Military personnel from Oxfordshire 20th-century British Army personnel English footballers Men's association football forwards Arsenal F.C. players Watford F.C. players Northampton Town F.C. players Crystal Palace F.C. players Charlton Athletic F.C. players Leyton Orient F.C. players 1996 deaths Footballers from Oxford London XI players English Football League players English cricketers Oxfordshire cricketers FA Cup final players