Allan John Clarke (born July 31, 1946 in Short Heath, Willenhall, West Midlands) was one of English football's greatest goalscorers who shot to fame in the much-admired and feared Leeds United team of the 1970s. July 31 is the 212th day (213th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 153 days remaining. ... 1946 (MCMXLVI) was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... Short Heath is an area of Birmingham, England. ... Map sources for Willenhall at grid reference SO9698 Willenhall is a small town in the West Midlands of England, with a population of approximately 40,000. ... The County of West Midlands is a metropolitan county in western central England, the United Kingdom, formed in 1974. ... Leeds United Football Club is the only professional association football club in the city of Leeds in West Yorkshire. ... The 1970s decade refers to the years from 1970 to 1979, inclusive. ...

Early career

Clarke started his career at Walsall and made his debut aged 16, then moved to Fulham. Such was his early promise that Leicester City then paid 150,000 pounds for Clarke in 1968 when he had yet to play at the highest level. He spent just one season at Leicester, reaching his apex in an appearance in the 1969 FA Cup final which Leicester lost to Manchester City. Weeks later, he was on his way to Leeds when Don Revie offered 165,000 pounds to Leicester, and so began one of the deadliest goalscoring careers in English football. Walsall Football Club are an English football club that competes in the 2006/07 season in Football League Two. ... Fulham Football Club (FFC) are a football team based in Fulham, London. ... Leicester City Football Club, nicknamed the Foxes, are an English football team, playing in the Football League Championship. ... 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1968 calendar). ... 1969 (MCMLXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1969 calendar). ... The FA Cup - this is the fourth trophy, in use since 1992, and identical in design to the third trophy introduced in 1911. ... Manchester City Football Club is an English football club based in the city of Manchester. ... Don Revie, OBE, (10 July 1927 - 26 May 1989), was a football player for Leicester City, Hull City, Sunderland, Manchester City and Leeds United as a deep lying centre-forward. ...

Heyday

Clarke peaked at Elland Road and he scored 26 goals in his first season (and earned the predatory nickname "Sniffer", which stuck throughout his career) as Leeds chased a dream "treble" of League championship, FA Cup and European Cup though ultimately they won nothing. Clarke hit the post in the FA Cup final at Wembley (with strike partner Mick Jones following up to score the rebound) and then went on a mazy run through several Chelsea defenders in the replay to set up a goal for Jones again, but Leeds still lost. The title had already gone to Everton on the last day of the season, and the European Cup campaign ended with defeat to Celtic in the semi-final. // A nickname is a short, clever, cute, derogatory, or otherwise substitute name for a person or things real name (for example, Bob, Rob, Robby, Robbie, Robi, Bobby, Rab, Bert, Bertie, Butch, Bobbers, Bobert, Beto, Bobadito, and Robban (in Sweden), are all short for Robert). ... From 1889 until 1992, this was the highest division overall of organized football in England. ... Champions League Logo The UEFA Champions League is an annual international inter-club football competition between Europes most successful clubs, regarded as the most prestigious club trophy in the sport. ... Wembley Stadium is a football stadium located in Wembley, London. ... Mick Jones (born Worksop, England, 24th April 1945) was a strong, traditional centre forward who led the line for the great Leeds United team of the 1960s and 1970s. ... Chelsea Football Club (also known as The Blues or previously as The Pensioners), founded in 1905, are an English Premier League football team. ... Everton Football Club is located in the city Liverpool in Merseyside, England. ... Celtic Football Club (pronounced seltik, in IPA) AIM: CCP is a Scottish football club, competing in the Scottish Premier League, the highest form of competition in Scotland. ...

International recognition

The summer of 1970 gave Clarke an opportunity to take some consolation from an eventful but ultimately fruitless club season - he was called up for England's 1970 World Cup squad in Mexico, despite being uncapped, and made his debut for his country (and scored) against Czechoslovakia in the heat and pressure of a World Cup first round match, something which would be unthinkable today. 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1970 calendar). ... First international Scotland 0 - 0 England (Partick, Scotland; 30 November 1872) Largest win Ireland 0 - 13 England (Belfast, Ireland; 18 February 1882) Worst defeat Hungary 7 - 1 England (Budapest, Hungary; 23 May 1954) World Cup Appearances 12 (First in 1950) Best result Winners, 1966 European Championship Appearances 7 (First in... 1970 (MCMLXX) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1970 calendar). ... The FIFA World Cup Trophy, which has been awarded to the world champions since 1974. ...

European success

Clarke became an England regular thereafter and was in the Leeds side which won its second Fairs Cup in 1971 - scoring in the final against Juventus - while again missing out on the League championship in the last week of the season and losing to lowly Colchester United in the fifth round of the FA Cup (after which he was told by club medics that he was suffering from pleurisy). But in 1972, his place in Leeds folklore would arrive. The UEFA Cup is a football competition for European club teams, organized by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). ... 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (the link is to a full 1971 calendar). ... Juventus Football Club (Latin for Youth, pronounced yoo-VEHN-toos) is one of Italys oldest and most successful football clubs, based in Turin. ... Colchester United Football Club is an English football team who, after finishing 2nd in League One will compete in the Championship in 2006/07. ... Pleurisy, also known as pleuritis, is an inflammation of the pleura, the lining of the pleural cavity surrounding the lungs, which can cause painful respiration and other symptoms. ... 1972 (MCMLXXII) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ...

His most famous goal

Leeds reached the FA Cup final again in the competition's centenary year and at Wembley they would face Arsenal, who were the Cup holders and had also denied Leeds the title the previous year. In a tight and largely unexciting game, Clarke threw himself at a Jones cross midway through the second half, and the diving header nestled into the corner of the net. He had hit the crossbar with another diving header earlier in the game. Leeds won 1-0 and Clarke finally had a winners' medal to go with his two for finishing runner-up. Naturally for Leeds, there still had to be some sourness to temper the sweet, and they lost the League title and the chance of emulating Arsenal's "double" when they lost to Wolverhampton Wanderers three days after winning the Cup. A centenary is an event to celebrate the 100th anniversary of an event. ... Arsenal Football Club (also known as Arsenal, The Arsenal or The Gunners) are an English professional football club based in north London. ... Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. are a Wolverhampton-based football club playing at Molineux. ...

1973 - a bad year

Clarke played again at Wembley - and lost - when Leeds were surprisingly beaten 1-0 by Sunderland in the 1973 FA Cup final. Later that year, he was in the England team which needed to beat Poland at Wembley to qualify for the 1974 World Cup. A goal down, England were awarded a penalty from which Clarke coolly scored, but he was among many England players thwarted by the charmed and brilliant Polish goalkeeper Jan Tomaszewski. A 1-1 draw was not enough and England did not go to the World Cup. Sunderland Association Football Club (Sunderland AFC or SAFC) is a professional football club, based at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland, Tyne & Wear, North-East England. ... 1973 (MCMLXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday. ... 1974 (MCMLXXIV) was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... Jan Tomaszewski (born January 9, 1948) is a retired Polish footballer, who was nicknamed Tomek. A goalkeeper, Tomaszewski is best remembered by some for his performance for Poland against England, in a qualifier for the 1974 World Cup, which England needed to win. ...

Domestic winner, European loser

Clarke was again Leeds' top scorer as he finally earned a title medal in 1974 as Leeds sauntered to the crown on a record run of 29 opening matches without defeat. The following year he won his 19th and final England cap - he scored a healthy ten goals during his international career - and helped Leeds to the European Cup final. 1974 (MCMLXXIV) was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... Champions League Logo The UEFA Champions League is an annual international inter-club football competition between Europes most successful clubs, regarded as the most prestigious club trophy in the sport. ...

Leeds lost the match to Bayern Munich 2-0 and were denied a clear penalty when Clarke was hacked down by Franz Beckenbauer in the penalty area. This was the last time the great 1960s and 1970s Leeds generation would be in contention for an honour in the game. The Revie side started to break up - their manager had left in 1974 for the England job - and Clarke himself left the club in 1978 after 351 appearances and 151 goals, with a knee injury curtailing his ability to play at top-flight level. His last major act in a Leeds shirt was to score in the 1977 FA Cup semi-final, but the game ended 2-1 to Manchester United. FC Bayern Munich (German: FC Bayern München) is a German football club based in Munich, the capital of the state of Bavaria. ... Franz Beckenbauer (born September 11, 1945) is a famous German football player, coach and manager, nicknamed der Kaiser (the emperor) because of his elegant style, his leadership qualities and his domination on the football pitch. ... The 1960s decade refers to the years from 1960 to 1969, inclusive. ... The 1970s decade refers to the years from 1970 to 1979, inclusive. ... 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday. ... For the album by Ash, see 1977 (album). ... Manchester United Football Club is a world famous English football club. ...

Management and beyond

He went to Barnsley as player manager and under him they won promotion in 1979, an impressive enough achievement for Leeds to ask their most famous goalscorer to come back as manager in 1980. This proved a bad move, as sadly, Clarke also became remembered by Leeds fans as the man who took the club to relegation in 1982. Barnsley Football Club is an English football league team, based in the town of Barnsley, South Yorkshire and nicknamed the Tykes. ... 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Clarke has pursued business interests in recent years through being a travelling salesman for MTS Nationwide; a firm based at Wakefield, West Yorkshire. He has, however, remained an outspoken critic of the game, and like all the Leeds players of the Revie era, has remained fiercely protective of the reputation of both the manager and the club. He has become crippled by arthritic knees in recent years. Statistics Population: 79,885 Ordnance Survey OS grid reference: SE335205 Administration Metropolitan Borough: City of Wakefield Metropolitan county: West Yorkshire Region: Yorkshire and the Humber Constituent country: England Sovereign state: United Kingdom Other Ceremonial county: West Yorkshire Historic county: Yorkshire (West Riding) Services Police force: West Yorkshire Police Ambulance service... West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county in England, corresponding roughly to the core of the West Riding of the traditional county of Yorkshire. ... this is a very painful thing my name is lauren!!!!! haha muaha muaha muahaha Arthritis (from Greek arthro-, joint + -itis, inflammation; plural: arthritides) is a group of conditions where there is damage caused to the joints of the body. ... For other uses, see Knee (disambiguation). ...

Clarke was the second of five brothers to play the professional game - four of whom played for Walsall across three decades. Frank was the only Clarke brother not to represent Walsall, playing for Shrewsbury Town, Queens Park Rangers, Ipswich Town and Carlisle United; Derek played for Walsall, Oxford United and Orient; Kelvin played for Walsall; and the youngest sibling, Wayne Clarke, played for Walsall towards the end of his career after very successful spells with Wolverhampton Wanderers, Everton (where he won the League championship in 1987) and Manchester City. He also represented England at schoolboy level. Walsall Football Club are an English football club that competes in the 2006/07 season in Football League Two. ... Frank James Clarke (born 15 July 1942) is the eldest of five brothers who played in the English Football League. ... Shrewsbury Town Football Club is an English football club currently playing in Football League Two, the fourth tier of English football. ... Queens Park Rangers Football Club is an English football team, from Loftus Road, Shepherds Bush, Hammersmith in London. ... Ipswich Town Football Club is the professional football club of Ipswich, Suffolk, England. ... Carlisle United F.C. are an English football team based in Carlisle, Cumbria, who are to play in the Football League One next season, after this season gaining promotion from the Football League Two. ... Derek Clarke (born 19 February 1950) was an English professional footballer. ... Oxford United F.C. is an English football team currently playing in Football League Two. ... Leyton Orient F.C. are an English football team recently promoted to League One of the Football League. ... Kelvin Leslie Clarke (born 16 July 1957) was an English footballer. ... Wayne Clarke (born 28 February 1961) was an English professional footballer. ... 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... First international Scotland 0 - 0 England (Partick, Scotland; 30 November 1872) Largest win Ireland 0 - 13 England (Belfast, Ireland; 18 February 1882) Worst defeat Hungary 7 - 1 England (Budapest, Hungary; 23 May 1954) World Cup Appearances 12 (First in 1950) Best result Winners, 1966 European Championship Appearances 7 (First in...