Tommy Lawton was once considered to be the next Dixie Dean. He had a remarkable goalscoring record, becoming the First Division’s top goalscorer twice, despite being only a teenager. The outbreak of World War II prevented him from fulfilling his potential, however he still had a magnificent wartime goalscoring record, scoring 152 goals in 115 games for Everton. After the war, he left Everton for Chelsea for a fee of £11,500 in 1945 and then he joined Third Division South side Notts County for a British record fee of £20,000. He then had spells at Brentford and Arsenal before becoming player-manager of Kettering. He won the Southern League title in his debut season by 8 points, which was enough to impress his former team Notts County and hired him as their manager in 1957 after the season finished. From then on, it all went wrong.
Joe Mercer
Everton Versus The FA
For any footballer, representing your country is a huge honour. But from a club’s perspective, they are wary of their players’ selections, nowadays because of injuries. But in the past, internationals often coincided with club games.