Hugh John Richard Billington (24 February 1916 – 1988) was a professional

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 ...

best known as a player for

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 ...

and

Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...

Playing career

Born in

Ampthill Ampthill () is a town and civil parish in Bedfordshire, England, between Bedford and Luton, with a population estimate of 8,100 (Mid year estimate 2017 from the ONS). It is administered bAmpthill Town Council The ward of Ampthill which also i ...

and raised in

Luton Luton () is a town and unitary authority with borough status, in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 census, the Luton built-up area subdivision had a population of 211,228 and its built-up area, including the adjacent towns of Dunstable a ...

, Billington was signed by Luton Town from local side Waterlows, for whom he had scored 80 goals during 1937–38. He started the 1938–39 season in Luton's reserves, but after 14 goals in 15 games he was given his chance in the first team. On 5 November 1938, Hugh Billington made his league debut for Luton at

Tranmere Rovers Tranmere Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. The team compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1884 as Belmont Football Club, they ado ...

, and Billington scored twice as Luton won 3–2. He finished that season with 28 league goals from 27 Division Two matches, which made him the division's top scorer for that season. The war interrupted his career. He scored regularly for Luton after the war, and was transferred to

for £8,000 in 1948. After three years with Chelsea, he spent a season with

Worcester City Worcester City Football Club is an English football club based in Worcester, Worcestershire. The club play in the Midland Football League, the ninth tier of English football. Established in 1902, the club play at Claines Lane. Worcester City's ...

before retiring. He remained in Luton until his death in 1988.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Billington, Hugh 1916 births 1988 deaths English Football League players Luton Town F.C. players Chelsea F.C. players People from Ampthill Men's association football forwards English men's footballers Footballers from Bedfordshire