How I met Britain's most expensive footballer on Bank Top station

They were a lowly Third Division (South) outfit at the time, but they were big news: a month before, they had signed the former England player Tommy Lawton from First Division Chelsea for a British record fee of £20,000 – an outrageous sum that was 25 per cent higher than the previous record.

Lawton had lost his best years to the Second World War, but still in 14 seasons as a professional, he scored 260 goals in 433 league and cup appearances for Burnley, Everton and Chelsea, and 22 goals in 23 internationals for England – a pretty impressive record.

Tommy Lawton in his England shirt

In the 1946-47 season, he set a Chelsea record by scoring 26 goals in 34 league games, but then in November 1947, he surprised the footballing world by dropping down two divisions to Notts County, where he was reunited with a favourite manager and promised a job outside the game when his career ended.

On December 13, 1947, Notts County were drawn against Stockton, of the North Eastern League, in the 2nd Round of the FA Cup at their Meadow Lane ground in Nottingham. It was the first, and indeed only, time “the Ancients”, as the Stocktonians were called because they had been founded in 1882, had progressed so far in the world famous competition.

And, surprise, surprise, the Ancients held County to a 1-1 draw and so it was back to Stockton’s Victoria Ground the following week for the replay.

Having the most expensive British footballer on its patch was obviously big news for The Northern Echo, and a photographer was waiting on Bank Top station as the County team changed trains for Stockton.

Reg watched as the photographer set up his picture, but before it could be taken, Lawton spotted the lad and called him over to join the team for the snap.

Reg Hunt is the young lad at the front, apparently clutching an early mobile phone... Tommy Lawton is behind him in the hat

That night, Reg rushed home and said to his dad: “Guess who I was photographed with today… Tommy Lawton.”

Seventy-five years later, Reg can still remember his father’s succinct reply: “Don’t be so bloody stupid.”

On the pitch, there was to be no giant-killing, as County easily won the replay 4-1, but come Monday morning, Reg was able to slay his father’s cynicism because there in the Echo was his picture next to the nation’s first £20,000 footballer. Suddenly Reg, not Tommy Lawton, was the talk of the town as his doubting dad spread the news to everyone he knew.

IN recent weeks we’ve been looking at a recently rediscovered 1904-05 team photo of Darlington St Augustine’s (above), who played in the Northern League in the best stadium in the North East at Chesnut Grove on the banks of the Skerne in what is today Valley Street.

READ MORE: THE STORY OF THE SAINTS

READ MORE: THE STAR AMONG THE SAINTS

The goalkeeper in the picture is Harry Sheardown, whose grandson, Derek Easby, has got in touch from Middleton-in-Teesdale.
“He married Lucy Gannon, who was related to the honorary secretary and honorary treasurer who both also appear on the team picture,” says Derek. “They lived at Kitchener Street and he worked in the railway shops in North Road, and he was also a brilliant snooker player – he played in the Engineers’ Club at the bottom of Corporation Road.
“He and Lucy had seven children, one of whom was my mother, Isabella, and she married Cyril Easby, a telegraphist at the Echo.”

Goalkeeper Harry Sheardown is in the white jersey in the Darlington St Augustine's team from 1904-05. On his left is P Murphy, and to his right is Isaac Rule and Bob Guthrie, who won the World Cup twice with West Auckland