David "Bronco" Layne (born

Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...

, 29 July 1939) is an English former

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 ...

most famous for playing for

Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an offshoot of ...

and his involvement in the

British betting scandal of 1964 The British betting scandal of 1964 was a scandal in English association football in which ten professional players were gaoled for offences arising from match fixing. History Former Scottish youth international and Swindon Town F. C., Swindon T ...

Playing career

Rotherham United

Layne started his career playing part-time for

Rotherham United Rotherham United Football Club, nicknamed The Millers, is a professional football club based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The club's colours were initially yellow and black, but changed to red and white around 1 ...

in the summer of 1957. He only played eleven matches for the Millers over two seasons, but still managed to score four goals before he was given a free transfer. Layne's nickname was inspired by a popular American

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

TV series, ''

Bronco A bucking horse is any breed or either gender of horse with a propensity to buck. They have been, and still are, referred to by various names, including bronco, broncho, and roughstock. The harder they buck, the more desirable they are for rod ...

'' which was broadcast in the UK just as Layne was establishing his career. The protagonist, ''Bronco Layne'', was played in the series by

Ty Hardin Ty Hardin (born Orison Whipple Hungerford Jr.; January 1, 1930August 3, 2017) was an American actor best known as the star of the 1958 to 1962 ABC/Warner Bros. Western television series ''Bronco''. Early life Hardin was born in New York City, ...

Swindon Town

He joined

Swindon Town Swindon Town Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Swindon, Wiltshire, England. The team currently competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club has played home matches at ...

. Layne became a prolific goalscorer whilst at Swindon, netting 28 goals in 41 games.

Bradford City

He attracted the attention of

Bradford City Bradford City Association Football Club is an English professional football club in Bradford, West Yorkshire. The team competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system and are currently managed by Mark Hughes. Th ...

who paid a club record £6,000 for his signature midway through the 1960–61 season. Layne broke the Bantams' goalscoring record in 1961–62 scoring 34 league goals over the course of the season. His goalscoring prowess was now attracting the attention of bigger clubs and he moved in the summer of 1962. Bradford recouped £22,500 for Layne, setting the record for highest fee received by the club at the time.

Sheffield Wednesday

Layne spent two seasons at

and was the club's top scorer in both with 58 goals in 81 games over the two-year period. Layne's career was however cut short in its prime when he became involved in the

. Layne was found guilty of match fixing and betting against his own team and along with several other players was gaoled and banned from football for life. The ban was lifted eight years later. Layne rejoined Wednesday in 1972 but failed to earn a place on the team.

Hereford United

He was sent on loan to

Hereford United Hereford United Football Club was an association football club based in Hereford, England. They played at Edgar Street for their entire history. They were nicknamed 'The Whites' or 'The Lilywhites', after their predominantly white kit, or 'The ...

. After only four games at the club he retired from league football.

Matlock Town

He joined

Matlock Town Matlock Town Football Club is a association football, football club based in Matlock, Derbyshire, Matlock, Derbyshire, England. Nicknamed 'the Gladiators', they are currently members of the and play at Causeway Lane. History The club was esta ...

where he spent the rest of his career before being forced to retire through injury.

After playing

In 2006, it was reported that he was working as a pub landlord in Sheffield.Broadbent, Rick
"Swan still reduced to tears by the fix that came unstuck: Our correspondent talks to one of the players jailed after the betting scandal that rocked football,"
''The Times'' (22 July 2006).

References

Notes

Sources consulted

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Layne, David 1939 births Living people Footballers from Sheffield English footballers Rotherham United F.C. players Swindon Town F.C. players Bradford City A.F.C. players Sheffield Wednesday F.C. players Hereford United F.C. players Matlock Town F.C. players Association football forwards Sportspeople convicted of crimes Publicans