Tony Ford (born 26 November 1944) is an English former

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

player and manager. As a player, he appeared in

the Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...

for both of

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

's professional clubs during a career curtailed by injury. As manager, he took brief charge of

Third Division In sport, the Third Division, also called Division 3, Division Three, or Division III, is often the third-highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Association football *Belgian Thir ...

club

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 ...

and Heart of Midlothian of the

Scottish Premier Division The Scottish Football League Premier Division was, from 1975 until 1998, the top division of the Scottish Football League and the entire Scottish football league system. It lay above the Scottish Football League First, Second and (from 1994) Th ...

Career

Ford started his professional career with

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 ...

in 1961, having joined the club as an apprentice. Predominantly a

right back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

he made 171 league appearances for the first team and scored 10 goals. He moved across the River Avon to Bristol Rovers in 1969, for a fee of £4,000, and was appointed

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

, but was forced to retire because of injury in 1971, having appeared only 28 times in the league for Rovers. He was awarded a benefit match in July of that year, a game between the two Bristol teams which Rovers won 3–1 at Ashton Gate. He subsequently moved into coaching, his first appointment being with

Plymouth Argyle Plymouth Argyle Football Club is a professional football club based in the city of Plymouth, Devon, England. As of the 2021–22 season, the team are competing in League One, the third tier of English football. They have played at Home Park, ...

. In 1973, Ford moved to

as assistant to former Bristol City coach

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 Si ...

, newly appointed as manager, whom Ford knew from his playing days. Sillett left

Edgar Street Edgar Street is a football stadium in Hereford and was the home of Hereford United Football Club from the club's formation in 1924 until December 2014, when the club was wound up. It is now the home of Hereford FC, a phoenix club formed to rep ...

in 1978 and Ford was appointed

caretaker manager In association footballing terms, a caretaker manager or interim manager is somebody who takes temporary charge of the management of a football team, usually when the regular Manager (association football), manager is dismissed or leaves for a ...

. Unable to stop their

relegation In sports leagues, promotion and relegation is a process where teams are transferred between multiple divisions based on their performance for the completed season. Leagues that use promotion and relegation systems are often called open leagues. ...

, he was not offered the position permanently. Ford's next port of call was Heart of Midlothian, where he became Bobby Moncur's assistant. Moncur resigned in 1981 when

Wallace Mercer Alexander Wallace Mercer (4 June 1946 – 17 January 2006) was chairman of the Scottish football club Heart of Midlothian from 1981 to 1994. Hearts Mercer became chairman on 25 May 1981 when he bought a controlling interest in Hearts for £265,00 ...

gained executive control of the

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

side and Ford was appointed manager when Mercer failed to convince either

Jock Wallace John Martin Bokas Wallace (6 September 1935 – 24 July 1996) was a Scottish professional footballer and manager. Wallace played as a goalkeeper, and has the unique distinction of being the only player ever to play in the English, Welsh and Sco ...

, then at Leicester City, or Dundee United's Jim McLean to move to Tynecastle. Again though Ford's managerial tenure was to be brief and he was dismissed in December 1981, his five months in charge including defeats to minnows such as

East Stirlingshire East Stirlingshire Football Club is a Scotland, Scottish association football club based in the town of Falkirk. The club was founded in 1881 and competes in the , in the fifth tier of the Scottish football league system. The club's origins ca ...

. Ford's son

Mike Mike may refer to: Animals * Mike (cat), cat and guardian of the British Museum * Mike the Headless Chicken, chicken that lived for 18 months after his head had been cut off * Mike (chimpanzee), a chimpanzee featured in several books and documenta ...

played in the Football League for

Cardiff City Cardiff City Football Club ( cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Dinas Caerdydd) is a professional association football club based in Cardiff, Wales. It competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1899 as R ...

and

Oxford United Oxford United Football Club is a professional football club in the city of Oxford, England. The team plays in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The chairman is Grant Ferguson, the manager is Karl Robinson and th ...

. He has two other children, Daren and Louise (twins), and 8 grandchildren.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ford, Tony 1944 births Living people English men's footballers Men's association football defenders Bristol City F.C. players Bristol Rovers F.C. players English Football League players English football managers Hereford United F.C. managers Heart of Midlothian F.C. managers Scottish Football League managers