TWIH: An Evening With Colin Appleton

Last Friday night, I had the very great privilege of representing Leicester City Football Club at a function entitled ‘An Evening with Colin Appleton’ in his home town of Scarborough.

The occasion was the launch of his autobiography,The Colin Appleton Story, as told to the author Steve Adamson.

I was there because between 1954 and 1966, Colin Appleton played 333 times for Leicester. He played most of his games at left-half, wearing the number 6 shirt with great distinction.  

He was a member of the side which won the old Second Division title in 1957, when several Club records were broken. For nine years after that, he played in the old First Division under manager Matt Gillies. He captained the Leicester City side which was a realistic contender for the League and FA Cup Double in 1962/63. This side contained some really great players, such as Gordon Banks, John Sjoberg, Richie Norman, Frank McLintock, Ian King, Howard Riley, Graham Cross, Ken Keyworth, Davie Gibson and Mike Stringfellow.

His Cup record was also impressive. He played in the 1961 and 1963 FA Cup Finals, captaining the side in 1963. He captained Leicester City to their League Cup triumph in 1964. The following season he led the team to the League Cup Final against Chelsea.

In addition, he was selected for the FA Tour of New Zealand and the Far East in 1961, along with players such as Sir Bobby Moore and Sir Tom Finney.  Later that year, he was in first Leicester City team to compete competitively in Europe when they met Glenavon and Atletico Madrid in the old European Cup Winners’ Cup.

When Colin left Leicester in May 1966, he dropped down a division to play for Charlton Athletic. He became player-manager at Barrow and then at Scarborough, whom he led to three FA Trophy victories at Wembley. He later coached at Grimsby and managed Hull City (twice), Swansea and Exeter.

I watched Colin play throughout his time at the Club. I also met him at his home near Scarborough a couple of years ago to interview him for the Leicester City Matchday Magazine.

The three hour interview was fascinating. It gave insights into the world of top class football half a century ago. Amongst many other things, Colin told me:

“Oldham wanted to sign me as a 17-year-old, but Reg Halton, my Scarborough manager and ex-Leicester City player said ‘you’re not going there’ and recommended me to Leicester (in November 1953).

“I caught the train to Leicester. My dad took me to the station on his way to work. I’d never been on a train before. I’d hardly ever been out of Scarborough. At Leicester station a super fellow called ‘Channy’ (Leicester City’s record goalscorer Arthur Chandler) met me. He took me to my lodgings at 155 Upperton Road.

“I played as a triallist in midweek games. When I was kept on (in March 1954), my parents were brilliant. They backed me all the way. I needed to get my joinery apprenticeship transferred from Scarborough to Leicester. This was organised by (Leicester City Director) Mr. Sharp at Chithams, a joinery firm opposite the prison.

“Six months later (September 1954) I made my debut against Manchester City. Matt Gillies was playing at centre half. My dad took the day off. His train got into Leicester at about 2.15pm. He had never been on a train before. The players said to me, ‘Your dad’s at the dressing room door.’ He watched the match but he had to go back for his train before I saw him again.

“I lived for football. Don Walker, Frank McLintock (a painter and decorator), Eddie Russell and Ron Jackson (who were both teachers) and me were all part-timers. We were First Division footballers and only trained on Tuesday and Thursday nights!

“I finished my apprenticeship when I was 21 and then joined the army. It was either that or go down the pits. I got a letter to report to the Derbyshire Regiment, but someone got me transferred to the Royal Leicesters at Glen Parva Barracks. Howard Riley was there. I was called up on the Monday and on Thursday I was on the way to Singapore to play for the army. Howard and I were playing with top players in the army like John White and Bobby Charlton.”

A thoughtful and reflective man, Colin has a deep interest in coaching, as his meticulously kept handwritten notebooks testify. He even owns a coaching manual written in Russian, as it contains useful diagrams!

This knowledge stood him in good stead both as a captain and, later, as a manager. However, he received little coaching himself

“I can’t recall being coached in my life other than by my dad when he came back from the war. He was a decent footballer but couldn’t do much about it as he had to work. I’d got a pair of second hand Manfield-Hotspur boots. We’d go to the promenade wall at Scarborough. It had steps. He had me kicking a ball against the wall and it would come back at you from different angles. You had to use different feet. I loved it. There was no pressure on me other than the pressure I put on myself. The best way to improve is to play with better players as I did as a youngster at Leicester playing alongside (ex England internationals) Johnny Morris and Jack Froggatt.”

Colin didn’t have much training for the role of club captain either.

“We never used to have in depth team talks so what does a captain do? My approach was to get out and play. Also, did they expect more of me off the pitch? Building up to the Cup Final I was on a players’ pool committee. You start thinking, Am I an agent? Am I a promoter? I hope it didn’t affect my performance. Also, how can a captain have a go at someone in the dressing room and expect them to go out and play better, because to do that you have to be in a good frame of mind.

“Prior to the 1963 Cup Final I had to go to Wembley for the press people on the Wednesday before. They had me walking up the steps with the cup. Bearing in mind what happened, I should have said ‘I’m not doing that!’

“I also remember that on the day, as the teams were lining up, the Duke of Edinburgh came towards me and had to remind me that I had to introduce the players!”

It was in recognition of to Colin’s distinguished time at Filbert Street that I was asked to say a few words at the book launch in Scarborough. This gave me the opportunity to convey Leicester City’s tribute to Colin, and to present him with a modern Leicester City shirt, with ‘APPLETON  6’  printed on the back.

*To obtain a copy of “The Colin Appleton Story” please send a cheque for £10.00 plus £1. 60 postage payable to S.Adamson: 30 Ashville Avenue, Scarborough, North Yorkshire YO12 7NF.

LEAD.Colin Appleton shakes hands with Manchester United captain Noel Cantwell before the 1963 FA Cup Final.

1. Colin Appleton, followed by Gordon Banks, leads out the Leicester team for the 6^thRound FA cup-tie against Norwich at Carrow Road in 1963.

2 .Colin(number 6) in action in the 1963 FA Cup 6th round tie at Carrow Road, with team mates (left to right) Frank McLintock, John Sjoberg and Graham Cross.

3. Manager Matt Gillies and captain Colin Appleton lead out the Leicester City team at Wembley for the 1963 FA Cup Final against Manchester United.

4.Colin Appleton introducing Richie Norman to the Duke of Edinburgh before the 1963 FA Cup Final.

5.A dejected Colin Appleton leaves the field with John Sjoberg and Davie Gibson after the 1963 FA Cup Final defeat by Manchester United

6. Colin Appleton at the function in Scarborough last week.