James Allan Holton (11 April 1951 – 4 October 1993) was a
Scottish 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 ...
who played as a
centre-back. Holton played for
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 ...
,
Manchester United,
Miami Toros
The Miami Toros was a professional soccer team in the North American Soccer League from 1972 to 1976. The club was founded in 1967 as the Washington Darts, and moved to Miami, where they played the 1972 season in the NASL's Southern Division ...
,
Sunderland,
Coventry City
Coventry City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Coventry, West Midlands, England. The team currently compete in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. The club is nicknamed t ...
and
Detroit Express
The Detroit Express was a soccer team based in suburban Detroit that played in the now defunct North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1978 to 1980. Its home field was the Pontiac Silverdome. The Express were co-owned by Jimmy Hill, Roger ...
.
He played in 15 international matches for
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
scoring two goals. One of those goals came in a win against
Czechoslovakia
, rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי,
, common_name = Czechoslovakia
, life_span = 1918–19391945–1992
, p1 = Austria-Hungary
, image_p1 ...
that helped Scotland qualify for the
1974 FIFA World Cup. He played in all three Scotland games at that tournament.
Playing career
Early years
Holton was born in
Lesmahagow,
South Lanarkshire, and trained with
Celtic as a youngster but was not offered a contract. At the age of 16 Holton had trials 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 ...
who signed him as an amateur in December 1967. He then signed a professional contract four months later. He progressed steadily through the junior and youth teams over the next three years. However he never made it past playing for their reserve side in the Central League. At the end of the 1970–71 season he was released by the club.
["A truly memorable figure in United's history"]
17 July 2013.
Shrewsbury Town
Holton was quickly signed by former
Manchester United goalkeeper
Harry Gregg
Henry Gregg, (27 October 1932 – 16 February 2020), was a Northern Irish professional footballer and manager. A goalkeeper, he played for Manchester United during the reign of Sir Matt Busby, with a total of 247 appearances for the club. He ...
who was managing
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 ...
in England's third tier. Gregg had been impressed watching Holton in the West Bromwich Albion reserve team. Gregg told Holton when he signed him, "You're going to make it. I'm sure you can make it right to the top too." Holton made his Shrewsbury debut at Bournemouth on the opening day of the 1971–72 season. He quickly became a first-team regular.
[
Shrewsbury sent a letter to the Scottish Football Association to notify new Scotland manager ]Tommy Docherty
Thomas Henderson Docherty (24 April 1928 – 31 December 2020), commonly known as The Doc, was a Scottish football player and manager. Docherty played for several clubs, most notably Preston North End, and represented Scotland 25 times betw ...
that Holton may be of interest for the Scotland national under-23 team. Docherty watched Holton play at Gay Meadow
Gay Meadow was the home ground of Shrewsbury Town football club in Shropshire, England. Just outside the town centre, on the banks of the River Severn, it opened in 1910.
The ground closed at the end of the 2006-07 Football League season and t ...
. By the end of his spell at Shrewsbury Holton had appeared in 67 league games scoring four goals.[
]
Manchester United
In December 1972 Docherty replaced Frank O'Farrell
Francis O'Farrell (9 October 1927 – 6 March 2022) was an Irish football player and manager. He played as a wing half for Cork United, West Ham United and Preston North End. He made over 300 appearances in the Football League before joining ...
managing struggling Manchester United near the bottom of England's top flight. On 10 January 1973 he signed the now 20-year-old Holton for £80,000. Near unbeatable in the air and aggressive in the tackle, he offered a formidable physical presence that compensated for his lack of delicacy in possession of the ball. He was criticised by some opposing fans for his combative ways.["Obituary: Jim Holton" independent.co.uk 5 October 1993]
/ref> At United he was a favourite among fans who taunted opponents with the chant: ''Six foot two, eyes of blue, Big Jim Holton's after you.'' This was despite Holton being and having brown eyes.["Memories of Sky Blues giant Jim Holton"]
Coventry Telegraph, 3 October 2014.
United were relegated in 1974, the season after Holton's arrival. Holton then broke his leg after 15 minutes in the 4–4 draw against 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 ...
on 7 December 1974.[Sheffield Wednesday 4 v Manchester United mufcinfo.com]
/ref> He broke his leg a second time when making his comeback in the reserves. Others took advantage of his absence to establish themselves in the first team with United now sweeping all aside in the league. They won promotion straight back up to the top flight at the first attempt. He played in 63 league games for United scoring five goals in those games.[ After the leg break he never played for the Manchester United first team again. This was despite being at Old Trafford a further 18 months.]
/ref>
Miami Toros and Sunderland
In the summer of 1976 Holton played for the Miami Toros
The Miami Toros was a professional soccer team in the North American Soccer League from 1972 to 1976. The club was founded in 1967 as the Washington Darts, and moved to Miami, where they played the 1972 season in the NASL's Southern Division ...
of the North American Soccer League (NASL). He played 16 games scoring once.["Holton, Jim" National Football Teams]
/ref>
He then moved to Sunderland on loan in September 1976 before transferring to Sunderland permanently the following month for a fee of £40,000. He stayed six months until March 1977 playing 15 league games for the Wearsiders.["Jim HOLTON Sunderland appearances" Sporting Heroes]
/ref>
Coventry City, Detroit Express and Sheffield Wednesday
He stayed in England's top flight with a transfer to Coventry City
Coventry City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Coventry, West Midlands, England. The team currently compete in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. The club is nicknamed t ...
. He debuted on 19 April 1977 in a 1–1 draw at home to his former club, West Brom. Holton featured in eight league games that season as Coventry fought out a relegation battle. Coventry were in a three-way dogfight to stay up that involved their final-day opponents, Bristol City
Bristol City Football Club is a professional football club based in Bristol, England, which compete in the , the second tier of English football. They have played their home games at Ashton Gate since moving from St John's Lane in 1904. The ...
. Kick-off was delayed due to the large crowd. Some reports alleged the kick-off was intentionally delayed by Coventry chairman Jimmy Hill
James William Thomas Hill, OBE (22 July 1928 – 19 December 2015) was an English footballer and later a television personality. His career included almost every role in the sport, including player, trade union leader, coach, manager, director ...
. Holton's former club, Sunderland, lost away to Everton. This meant a draw between Coventry and Bristol City at Highfield Road
Highfield Road was a football stadium in the city of Coventry, England. It was the home ground for Coventry City F.C. for 106 years.
History
It was built in 1899 in the Hillfields district, close to the city centre, and staged its final game ...
would keep both of those sides up and relegate Sunderland. News of Sunderland's defeat was displayed on the Highfield Road scoreboard with the score 2–2 at the time between. Both teams then tamely played out a mutually beneficial draw.["Fans' revenge on Fulham legend Jimmy Hill"](_blank)
Sunderland Echo, 20 October 2008.
In Holton's first full season with Coventry the Sky Blues finished seventh in the First Division. this was their second-highest ever league finish narrowly missing out on a 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 ...
place. In a little over three years with Coventry Holton made 91 league appearances.["Jim Holton, Coventry City appearances"]
Sporting Heroes.
He returned to the NASL for a spell with the Detroit Express
The Detroit Express was a soccer team based in suburban Detroit that played in the now defunct North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1978 to 1980. Its home field was the Pontiac Silverdome. The Express were co-owned by Jimmy Hill, Roger ...
in 1980. He played 21 games scoring three goals. This was to be his last time playing first team senior football.
His last senior club was Sheffield Wednesday but due to injury he never played for their first team.[
]
International
Holton collected 15 full international caps scoring twice for Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
between May 1973 and October 1974.[ He made his full international debut in a 2–0 win against ]Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...
in their first match of the 1972–73 British Home Championship
The 1972–73 British Home Championship international Home Nations football tournament was, like its predecessor in 1972, a victim of The Troubles in Northern Ireland which had erupted following Bloody Sunday the previous year. As with the prev ...
. In a 1974 FIFA World Cup qualification match against Czechoslovakia
, rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי,
, common_name = Czechoslovakia
, life_span = 1918–19391945–1992
, p1 = Austria-Hungary
, image_p1 ...
at Hampden Park on 26 September 1973, Holton scored the equalising goal in a 2–1 win for Scotland.[ ]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 ...
scored the winning goal, as Scotland qualified for their first World Cup finals since 1958
Events
January
* January 1 – The European Economic Community (EEC) comes into being.
* January 3 – The West Indies Federation is formed.
* January 4
** Edmund Hillary's Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition completes the third ...
.[
Holton put Scotland ahead in a 1–1 draw against ]West Germany
West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...
on 14 November 1973.[ The friendly at Hampden Park was one of three games to mark the centenary of the Scottish Football Association. Holton played in all three group games for Scotland at the 1974 FIFA World Cup in West Germany. They won 2–0 against ]Zaire
Zaire (, ), officially the Republic of Zaire (french: République du Zaïre, link=no, ), was a Congolese state from 1971 to 1997 in Central Africa that was previously and is now again known as the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Zaire was, ...
, drew 0–0 with then-reigning champions 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 ...
and 1–1 with Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
.[ Scotland were unbeaten but failed to progress to the second round due to inferior goal difference.][
Holton played for Scotland on 30 October 1974 in a 3–0 friendly win over ]East Germany
East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...
at Hampden Park. Less than six weeks after the East Germany game, Holton suffered his leg break at Manchester United. He never played for Scotland again after that making the East Germany cap his last. Scotland's record with Holton playing was eight wins, three draws and four defeats.[
]
After playing
Holton stayed in Coventry
Coventry ( or ) is a city in the West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its city status until the Middle Ages. The city is governed b ...
after retiring from professional football, working as a pub landlord at The Rising Sun and then The Old Stag in the city centre.["Jim Holton" Coventry Telegraph 3 OCT 2013]
/ref> He died on 4 October 1993, aged 42. He had been for a run in the countryside around Baginton and suffered a heart attack shortly afterwards when at the wheel of his car. His funeral was attended by over 1,000 people including John Sillett
John Charles Sillett (20 July 1936 – 30 November 2021) was an English football player and manager. He played for Chelsea, Coventry City and Plymouth Argyle. He won the Championship with Chelsea in 1955, playing alongside his brother Peter ...
, Steve Ogrizovic, Tommy Docherty and Joe Jordan.[ He was survived by his wife and two children.][
]
Career statistics
International appearances
International goals
:''Scores and results list Scotland's goal tally first.''
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Holton, Jim
1951 births
1993 deaths
People from Lesmahagow
Association football defenders
Scottish footballers
Scotland international footballers
1974 FIFA World Cup players
Celtic F.C. players
West Bromwich Albion F.C. players
Shrewsbury Town F.C. players
Manchester United F.C. players
Sunderland A.F.C. players
Coventry City F.C. players
Miami Toros players
Detroit Express players
Sheffield Wednesday F.C. players
English Football League players
North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players
Scottish expatriate footballers
Expatriate soccer players in the United States
Footballers from South Lanarkshire
Scotland under-23 international footballers
Scottish expatriate sportspeople in the United States