Ray Middleton (6 September 1919 – 1977) was an English football

goalkeeper In many team sports which involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper (sometimes termed goaltender, netminder, GK, goalie or keeper) is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting o ...

and manager, and brother of Matt Middleton. Born in Boldon Colliery Middleton began his career at

North Shields North Shields () is a town in the Borough of North Tyneside in Tyne and Wear, England. It is north-east of Newcastle upon Tyne and borders nearby Wallsend and Tynemouth. Since 1974, it has been in the North Tyneside borough of Tyne and Wea ...

where he attracted the attentions of

Chesterfield Chesterfield may refer to: Places Canada * Rural Municipality of Chesterfield No. 261, Saskatchewan * Chesterfield Inlet, Nunavut United Kingdom * Chesterfield, Derbyshire, a market town in England ** Chesterfield (UK Parliament constitue ...

who signed him for £50.Ray Middleton
/ref> He established himself as first choice keeper but saw his career interrupted by

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, remaining in the area to work as a miner during the conflict. Highly rated as a player despite not playing top-flight football, he appeared four times for England B and, unusually given their

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 ...

status, played alongside clubmate Stanley Milburn in one fixture. Off the pitch Middleton ran a

grocer A grocery store ( AE), grocery shop ( BE) or simply grocery is a store that primarily retails a general range of food products, which may be fresh or packaged. In everyday U.S. usage, however, "grocery store" is a synonym for supermarket, a ...

shop in

Old Whittington Old Whittington is a village in the Borough of Chesterfield in Derbyshire, England. Old Whittington is north of Chesterfield and south-east of Sheffield. The population of the Old Whittington ward at the 2011 Census was 4,181. The village ...

and became involved in local Labour Party politics, even becoming the only active Football League player to serve as a Justice of the Peace. The Spireites' relegation in 1951 saw him leave the club to move to top-flight

Derby County Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Derby, Derbyshire, England. In 2022, it was announced that DCFC was acquired by Clowes Developments (UK) Ltd, a Derbyshire-based property group. Founded in 188 ...

, where he made 115 appearances. Released by the club in 1954 he moved to non-league

Boston United Boston United Football Club is a semi-professional association football club based in Boston, Lincolnshire, England. The club participates in the National League North, at the sixth tier of the English football league system. The club is known ...

as a player-manager, even leading the club to a famous 6–1 win over Derby in the

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 competi ...

. He attracted the attention of

Hartlepool United Hartlepool United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Hartlepool, County Durham, England. The team competes in EFL League Two, League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. They were founded i ...

who appointed him as their manager in 1957. He began promisingly with a 2–1 win over

Accrington Stanley Accrington Stanley Football Club is a professional association football club based in Accrington, Lancashire, England. The club competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. They have spent their complete his ...

although his record proved mediocre and after a 5–1 defeat at

Doncaster Rovers Doncaster Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. The team compete in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club play their home games at ...

in October 1959 he left the club.Managerial record
/ref> Middleton returned to Boston, initially for a spell as manager before taking up the post of secretary. He held this position until his death in 1977.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Middleton, Ray 1919 births 1977 deaths English footballers North Shields F.C. players Derby County F.C. players Boston United F.C. players English Football League players England men's B international footballers English football managers Boston United F.C. managers Hartlepool United F.C. managers British businesspeople in retailing English legal professionals English miners Labour Party (UK) politicians People from Old Whittington Footballers from Derbyshire People from The Boldons Footballers from Tyne and Wear Men's association football goalkeepers British sportsperson-politicians