Harry Haslam (30 July 1921 – 11 September 1986) was a

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 ...

and manager in the Football League between the 1940s and 1980s. Haslam played for

Rochdale Rochdale ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, at the foothills of the South Pennines in the dale on the River Roch, northwest of Oldham and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough ...

as an amateur, before moving to

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 ...

in 1946-47, for whom he made two League appearances. After a short spell with

Brighton & Hove Albion Brighton & Hove Albion Football Club (), commonly referred to simply as Brighton, is an English professional football club based in the city of Brighton and Hove. They compete in the Premier League, the top tier of the English football league ...

he moved to

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 ...

for 1948-49, with whom he made 7 League appearances, before joining

Guildford City Guildford City Football Club (formerly Guildford United and AFC Guildford) is a football club based in Guildford, Surrey, England. The club was established in 1921, folded in 1974 and was reformed in 1996. Guildford City play in the . Histo ...

. He managed

Tonbridge Tonbridge ( ) is a market town in Kent, England, on the River Medway, north of Royal Tunbridge Wells, south west of Maidstone and south east of London. In the administrative borough of Tonbridge and Malling, it had an estimated populat ...

in the 1960s, winning the

Kent Senior Cup The Kent Senior Cup is an English football competition played between senior clubs in the county of Kent. It is administered by the Kent County Football Association. History The Kent Badge preceded the Kent Senior Cup, and was won in its three ...

in 1964–65, and went on to manage the club on a record 552 occasions. Haslam became manager of

Luton Town Luton Town Football Club () is a professional association football club based in the town of Luton, Bedfordshire, England, that competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1885, it is nicknam ...

in 1972 and he led them to promotion to the Football League First Division for 1974-75. In 1978, he became manager of

Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history of cutlery production. The team have played home games at ...

, and he remained in charge until 1980. Under Haslam's management, Sheffield United almost signed Argentinian footballer

Diego Maradona Diego Armando Maradona (; 30 October 196025 November 2020) was an Argentine professional football player and manager. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of the sport, he was one of the two joint winners of the F ...

who was then 17 years old. However the agreed fee was increased and Maradona, who had made his way to the airport, had to remain in Argentina for the time being.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Haslam, Harry 1921 births 1986 deaths English Football League players Rochdale A.F.C. players Oldham Athletic A.F.C. players Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. players Leyton Orient F.C. players Guildford City F.C. players English Football League managers Luton Town F.C. managers Sheffield United F.C. managers Association football defenders English footballers English football managers