Colin Harry Appleton (7 March 1936 – 31 May 2021) 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, rugb ...

and

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activitie ...

. He was captain of the celebrated Leicester side nicknamed the "ice kings" which chased the double in 1962–63 and he also captained the club to their first ever major honour, winning the 1964 League Cup. He later played for

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 ...

and Barrow, before playing for and managing Scarborough. He went on to manage

Hull City Hull City Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England, that compete in the . They have played home games at the MKM Stadium since moving from Boothferry Park in 2002. The club's t ...

Swansea City Swansea City Association Football Club (; cy, Clwb Pêl-droed Cymdeithas Dinas Abertawe) is a professional football club based in Swansea, Wales that plays in the Championship, the second tier of English football. Swansea have played their ho ...

Exeter City Exeter City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Exeter, Devon, England. The team play in , the third tier of the English football league system. Known as "the Grecians", the origin of their nickname is subject to ...

and Bridlington Town.

Career

Playing career

Leicester City

Appleton began his career as a youngster with his hometown club of Scarborough before joining

Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city lies on the River Soar and close to the eastern end of the National ...

in March 1954, just days after his 18th birthday, after being recommended to manager

Norman Bullock Norman Bullock (8 September 1900 – 22 October 1970) was an English professional footballer, who played as both a forward and a defender, and manager. He began his career playing local amateur football before signing for Bury in 192 ...

by then Scarborough manager and former Leicester player Reg Halton. He made his first team debut just six months later against

Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

, though he made just five senior appearances over the next two years as he tried to balance his football schedule with his

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 ...

. However, in the 1956–57 season he began to see more first team action, helping Leicester on their to the

Second Division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...

title. However, it was not until the appointment of Matt Gillies in November 1958 until Appleton's career at Leicester really began to blossom. Under Gillies, Appleton made the number 6 shirt his own and forged a fearsome half-back line partnership with

Frank McLintock Francis McLintock MBE (born 28 December 1939) is a former Scotland international footballer, football manager and businessman. He also worked as a sports agent and football pundit in his later life. He began his career in Scottish Junior footb ...

and Ian King. He helped Leicester reach the

1961 FA Cup Final The 1961 FA Cup Final was the 80th final of the FA Cup. It took place on 6 May 1961 at Wembley Stadium and was contested between Tottenham Hotspur and Leicester City. Tottenham won the match 2–0, with Bobby Smith and Terry Dyson scoring ...

against

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...

, managed by fellow 'Scarborian' Bill Nicholson. The Spurs side also contained Malton-born

Terry Dyson Terry Dyson (born 29 November 1934) is a retired footballer who played as a winger. Career Dyson was spotted playing football for the British Army during National Service After being demobbed in 1955 he joined Tottenham Hotspur from non-leagu ...

. Gillies made him club captain soon after, which saw him captain one of the most celebrated sides in the club's history as Leicester chased the double in 1962–63. Though it would eventually amount to nothing as Leicester eventually collapsed at the end of the league season and ended up finishing in a disappointing 4th position, the club then lost 3–1 to

Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The ...

in the FA Cup final. However Appleton did captain Leicester to their first ever major trophy, winning the 1964 League Cup and also scored in the first leg of the 1965 League Cup final, as they reached the competition's final for the second consecutive season, however he could not prevent his team losing to Chelsea, going down 3–2 on aggregate. He was awarded a testimonial at Leicester in 1964 in recognition of his services to the club and moved on to

two years later after 12 years with the club.

Post-Leicester City

A season long spell at Charlton, which included a brief reunion with Ian King, was followed by a two-year spell as player-manager of Barrow, before rejoining his hometown team of Scarborough in 1969 as player/manager.

Managerial career

Appleton helped guide the club to victory in the

FA Trophy The Football Association Challenge Trophy, commonly known as the FA Trophy, is a men's football knockout cup competition run by and named after the English Football Association and competed for primarily by semi-professional teams. The com ...

, including scoring the winning goal in the semi-final to see the club reach the final, also being named the club's player of the season in what would turn out to be his final as a player. He was named the club's permanent manager two years later and led them to a further two

triumphs. Making his three FA Trophy successes a record at the time. His success in charge of Scarborough saw

appoint him in 1982 and he led the club to promotion from the Fourth Division in his first season in charge. He then almost guided the club to back-to-back promotions, finishing fourth in the Third Division in his second season in charge, missing out on promotion by a single goal.

managed to entice him away from Hull City, though Appleton won just four of his 18 games in charge of the Swans and was sacked after just six months in charge. Appleton then had a two-year spell in charge of

before a brief and unsuccessful return to Hull City before officially retiring from the game. He had failed to win the respect of his players at Hull, and the 'big characters' at the club joked around at his expense, whilst on the pitch the club slid to bottom of the Second Division.

Death

Appleton died on 31 May 2021, aged 85.

Honours

As a player

Leicester City *

: 1956–57 *

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football compet ...

runner-up:

1961 Events January * January 3 ** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and consular relations with Cuba (Cuba–United States relations are restored in 2015). ** Aero Flight 311 (K ...

1963 Events January * January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Co ...

League Cup In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarc ...

, runner-up:

1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is sworn in for a full term ...

As a manager

Scarborough *

: 1973, 1976, 1977 Hull City * Fourth Division runner-up (promoted): 1982–83

References

External links

*
Leicester City FC profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Appleton, Colin 1936 births 2021 deaths Sportspeople from Scarborough, North Yorkshire English footballers Association football defenders Scarborough F.C. players Leicester City F.C. players Charlton Athletic F.C. players Barrow A.F.C. players English football managers Barrow A.F.C. managers Scarborough F.C. managers Hull City A.F.C. managers Swansea City A.F.C. managers Exeter City F.C. managers Grimsby Town F.C. non-playing staff English Football League players Footballers from North Yorkshire English Football League representative players FA Cup Final players