Douglas Hunt
Encyclopedia
Douglas ‘Doug’ Hunt was a professional footballer whose career lasted from 1934 to 1948. Hunt was a centre forward who played for Tottenham Hotspur
, Barnsley
, Sheffield Wednesday
and Leyton Orient
. Hunt lost some of his best years as a footballer to World War II
being only 25 when war was declared. In his 14 year career he made 169 appearances including cup ties and scored 73 goals. Hunt holds a special place in the annals of Sheffield Wednesday being the only player in their history to score six goals in a competitive match. On retiring from playing, Hunt was a manager and a coach in non-league football
for 38 years.
village of Shipton Bellinger
. His football career started in the early 1930s in the Hampshire League
with Winchester City
where he took over the centre forward’s shirt after Ted Drake
had left to start his league career at Southampton
. Hunt’s ability as a goalscorer was spotted by Tottenham Hotspur
and he signed for the north London
club in March 1934.
and did not make his Tottenham debut until Christmas Day 1934 in a 3-0 away defeat at Grimsby Town
. Hunt made 12 appearances that season scoring 4 goals as Tottenham struggled and were eventually relegated from Division One
at the end of the 1934-35 campaign. In his three seasons at Tottenham, Hunt never found himself as an automatic choice finding himself behind George Hunt
and then Johnny Morrison in the pecking order for first choice centre forward. He had an excellent record for Tottenham’s reserve team, scoring 56 goals in 74 matches and in March 1937 he signed for Second Division
Barnsley
for a fee of £1700 in an effort to get regular first team football.
’s first signing for Sheffield Wednesday for a fee of £3875.
and played in all the remaining 12 league games that season, scoring six goals as he provided a remedy for Wednesday’s problem centre forward position which had been bothering them all season. He also took over from Horace Burrows
as club penalty taker. Some of his goals were vital, he scored the winner at Nottingham Forest
, then scored a vital brace in Wednesday’s penultimate match of the season, a 2-1 home victory against Burnley
which lifted the team out of the bottom three. He then scored the winner in the following Saturday’s 2-1 win at Tottenham to ensure safety.
The 1938-39 season saw Wednesday involved in a thrilling promotion chase which saw them miss out on promotion by one point. Hunt had a fine season scoring 26 League goals in 30 appearances and finishing as club top scorer for the campaign. However it is the match against Norwich City
on November 19, 1938 which has left Hunt with a unique place in Sheffield Wednesday history.
the previous Saturday. Hunt however was bang in form having scored four goals in a Sheffield and Hallamshire County Cup
semi-final tie 12 days earlier against Rotherham United
. There were three main factors why Wednesday had such a crushing 7-0 victory on that day, firstly Norwich had a terrible away record having failed to pick up a single point on their travels. Secondly, Wednesday‘s England
international inside right
Jackie Robinson
had one of his finest games for the club and created five of the six goals that Doug Hunt scored. Thirdly, Norwich’s centre half Peter Burke was injured after 15 minutes and was a “passenger” for the rest of the game on the left wing. With no substitutes allowed, this left the Wednesday forwards and Hunt in particular with plenty of room.
Hunt missed an easy chance in Wednesday’s first attack but within two minutes of Burke’s injury he had put Wednesday one up. After 25 minutes he scored a second when he beat Norwich’s offside
trap and ran on to beat keeper Harry Dukes. Hunt completed a hat-trick six minutes before half time after picking up a pass from Robinson and shooting home from the edge of the penalty area
, he then added his and the teams fourth a minute before the break. Hunt’s fifth came after 65 minutes when he connected with Bill Fallon’s corner, hitting the post but reacting quickly to knock in the rebound. Bill Fallon scored Wednesday’s sixth goal after 80 minutes and with three minutes remaining Hunt scored his sixth and Wednesday’s seventh to created a new individual goal scoring record in a competitive match for Sheffield Wednesday.
. During the war he returned to his home county of Hampshire
and joined the army. He made guest appearances for Brentford
, Tottenham Hotspur, Aldershot
, Fulham
and West Ham
winning the London War Cup
with Brentford in 1942. He returned to Sheffield after leaving the army and played five games for Wednesday in the wartime league of 1945-46. He was put on the transfer list in February 1946 and accepted the post of player-coach at Leyton Orient in April of that year with a transfer fee of £620 changing hands.
. For the following campaign he was appointed assistant-manager but still put in 22 appearances for the first team at inside right. He left Orient to become manager at Gloucester City
between 1948 and 1953 before moving to Tonbridge
in January 1954 whom he took to two Southern League Cup finals in 1955 and 1957. He also signed Ron Saunders
for Tonbridge in July 1956 starting him on the road to becoming a top player and manager. In 1958 he moved to Yeovil Town
as trainer-coach staying there for more than 25 years, being granted a Testimonial match
in 1976, before retiring in 1986, aged 72. Doug Hunt died on May 30, 1989, aged 75 in Yeovil
.
Tottenham Hotspur F.C.
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club , commonly referred to as Spurs, is an English Premier League football club based in Tottenham, north London. The club's home stadium is White Hart Lane....
, Barnsley
Barnsley F.C.
Barnsley Football Club are a professional English football club based in the town of Barnsley, South Yorkshire. Nicknamed the Tykes, they were founded in 1887 under the name Barnsley St. Peter's...
, Sheffield Wednesday
Sheffield Wednesday F.C.
Sheffield Wednesday Football Club are a football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, who are currently competing in the Football League One in the 2011-12 season, in England. Sheffield Wednesday are one of the oldest professional clubs in the world and the fourth oldest in the...
and Leyton Orient
Leyton Orient F.C.
Leyton Orient F.C. are an English professional football club in East London. They currently play in Football League One and are known to their fans as the O's.Leyton Orient have spent one season in the top flight of English football, in 1962–63...
. Hunt lost some of his best years as a footballer to World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
being only 25 when war was declared. In his 14 year career he made 169 appearances including cup ties and scored 73 goals. Hunt holds a special place in the annals of Sheffield Wednesday being the only player in their history to score six goals in a competitive match. On retiring from playing, Hunt was a manager and a coach in non-league football
Non-league football
Non-League football is football in England played at a level below that of the Premier League and The Football League. The term non-League was commonly used well before 1992 when the top football clubs in England all belonged to The Football League; all clubs who were not a part of The Football...
for 38 years.
Playing career
Hunt was born in the small HampshireHampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
village of Shipton Bellinger
Shipton Bellinger
Shipton Bellinger is a village and civil parish in Hampshire, England.Shipton Bellinger is located around north-east of the town of Amesbury and north-east of the city of Salisbury. It lies on the A338 and is close to that road's junction with the A303...
. His football career started in the early 1930s in the Hampshire League
Hampshire League
Hampshire League is a name used for two distinct football competitions based in Hampshire, England. There are two leagues; Hampshire Premier Football League named 'Puma Engineering Hampshire Premier Football League' for sponsor purposes and the division below which is the Hampshire League 2004 or...
with Winchester City
Winchester City F.C.
Winchester City Football Club are an English football team based in Winchester, Hampshire and playing in the Wessex League Premier Division. The team is currently managed by Guy Butters and their motto is "Many in Men, One in Spirit",-History:...
where he took over the centre forward’s shirt after Ted Drake
Ted Drake
Edward Joseph "Ted" Drake was an English football player and manager. As a player, he first played for Southampton but made his name playing for Arsenal in the 1930s, winning two league titles and an FA Cup, as well as five caps for England. He was also a cricketer, but only ever played sparingly...
had left to start his league career at Southampton
Southampton F.C.
Southampton Football Club is an English football team, nicknamed The Saints, based in the city of Southampton, Hampshire. The club gained promotion to the Championship from League One in the 2010–2011 season after being relegated in 2009. Their home ground is the St Mary's Stadium, where the club...
. Hunt’s ability as a goalscorer was spotted by Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur F.C.
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club , commonly referred to as Spurs, is an English Premier League football club based in Tottenham, north London. The club's home stadium is White Hart Lane....
and he signed for the north London
North London
North London is the northern part of London, England. It is an imprecise description and the area it covers is defined differently for a range of purposes. Common to these definitions is that it includes districts located north of the River Thames and is used in comparison with South...
club in March 1934.
Tottenham Hotspur
Hunt was initially assigned to play for Tottenham’s nursery side Northfleet UnitedNorthfleet United F.C.
Northfleet United Football Club was a football club based in Northfleet, Kent.Founded in 1890, Northfleet United joined the Kent League in 1906-07 and were runners-up in their inaugural season. They followed that with three championship titles in 1907-08, 1908-09 and 1919-20...
and did not make his Tottenham debut until Christmas Day 1934 in a 3-0 away defeat at Grimsby Town
Grimsby Town F.C.
Grimsby Town Football Club is an English football club based in the seaside town of Cleethorpes, in North East Lincolnshire, England, who compete in the Conference National. They were formed in 1878 as Grimsby Pelham and later became Grimsby Town...
. Hunt made 12 appearances that season scoring 4 goals as Tottenham struggled and were eventually relegated from Division One
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
at the end of the 1934-35 campaign. In his three seasons at Tottenham, Hunt never found himself as an automatic choice finding himself behind George Hunt
George Hunt (forward)
George Samuel Hunt was an English footballer who played at inside or centre forward.Born in Barnsley, Yorkshire, Hunt spent his early career playing for local sides in his native county, having trials with both Barnsley and Sheffield United, both of whom rejected him...
and then Johnny Morrison in the pecking order for first choice centre forward. He had an excellent record for Tottenham’s reserve team, scoring 56 goals in 74 matches and in March 1937 he signed for Second Division
Football League Second Division
From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
Barnsley
Barnsley F.C.
Barnsley Football Club are a professional English football club based in the town of Barnsley, South Yorkshire. Nicknamed the Tykes, they were founded in 1887 under the name Barnsley St. Peter's...
for a fee of £1700 in an effort to get regular first team football.
Barnsley
Hunt stayed at Barnsley for a year, the 1937-38 season saw the team in a relegation struggle but Hunt’s form was good scoring 15 goals in 29 appearances and in March 1938 he became Jimmy McMullanJimmy McMullan
Jimmy McMullan was a Scottish football player and manager. McMullan won 16 Scotland caps as a player at half-back and was part of the famous "Wembley Wizards" side of 1928.-Early life:...
’s first signing for Sheffield Wednesday for a fee of £3875.
Sheffield Wednesday
Hunt exchanged one relegation battle for another as Wednesday were also down near the bottom of the Second Division. He made his debut on March 5, 1938 against Manchester UnitedManchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
and played in all the remaining 12 league games that season, scoring six goals as he provided a remedy for Wednesday’s problem centre forward position which had been bothering them all season. He also took over from Horace Burrows
Horace Burrows
Horace Burrows was a professional footballer who played for Mansfield Town and Sheffield Wednesday. Burrows was a left half whose league career lasted from 1932 to 1939, his career was curtailed by the outbreak of World War II...
as club penalty taker. Some of his goals were vital, he scored the winner at Nottingham Forest
Nottingham Forest F.C.
Nottingham Forest Football Club is an English Association Football club based in West Bridgford, Nottingham, that plays in the Football League Championship...
, then scored a vital brace in Wednesday’s penultimate match of the season, a 2-1 home victory against Burnley
Burnley F.C.
Burnley Football Club are a professional English Football League club based in Burnley, Lancashire. Nicknamed the Clarets, due to the dominant colour of their home shirts, they were founder members of the Football League in 1888...
which lifted the team out of the bottom three. He then scored the winner in the following Saturday’s 2-1 win at Tottenham to ensure safety.
The 1938-39 season saw Wednesday involved in a thrilling promotion chase which saw them miss out on promotion by one point. Hunt had a fine season scoring 26 League goals in 30 appearances and finishing as club top scorer for the campaign. However it is the match against Norwich City
Norwich City F.C.
Norwich City Football Club is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. As of the 2011–12 season, Norwich City are again playing in the Premier League after a six-year absence, having finished as runner up in the Championship in 2010–11 and winning automatic promotion.The...
on November 19, 1938 which has left Hunt with a unique place in Sheffield Wednesday history.
"Hunt's game" - six goals in one match
Despite their high finish, Wednesday had a slow start to the 1938-39 campaign, being well down the League in 14th place before the visit of Norwich, they had lost heavily 5-1 at West BromWest Bromwich Albion F.C.
West Bromwich Albion Football Club, also known as West Brom, The Baggies, The Throstles, Albion or WBA, are an English Premier League association football club based in West Bromwich in the West Midlands...
the previous Saturday. Hunt however was bang in form having scored four goals in a Sheffield and Hallamshire County Cup
Sheffield and Hallamshire County Cup
The Sheffield and Hallamshire County Cup was a county cup competition involving the professional sides within the Sheffield and Hallamshire County Football Association...
semi-final tie 12 days earlier against Rotherham United
Rotherham United F.C.
Rotherham United Football Club are an English professional football club based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, who compete in League Two, the fourth tier of English football. The club's colours have traditionally been red and white, although these have evolved through history...
. There were three main factors why Wednesday had such a crushing 7-0 victory on that day, firstly Norwich had a terrible away record having failed to pick up a single point on their travels. Secondly, Wednesday‘s England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
international inside right
Inside forward
In football, the position of inside forward was popularly used in the late nineteenth and first half of the 20th centuries. The inside forwards would support the centre forwards, running and making space in the opposition defence, and, as the passing game developed, supporting him with passes...
Jackie Robinson
Jackie Robinson (footballer)
John Allan "Jackie" Robinson was an English footballer player and player-coach. He played as an inside forward, and signed for Sheffield Wednesday in 1934 at the age of 16. He went on to play for Sunderland and Lincoln City, also taking up managerial duties in his brief time at Lincoln...
had one of his finest games for the club and created five of the six goals that Doug Hunt scored. Thirdly, Norwich’s centre half Peter Burke was injured after 15 minutes and was a “passenger” for the rest of the game on the left wing. With no substitutes allowed, this left the Wednesday forwards and Hunt in particular with plenty of room.
Hunt missed an easy chance in Wednesday’s first attack but within two minutes of Burke’s injury he had put Wednesday one up. After 25 minutes he scored a second when he beat Norwich’s offside
Offside (football)
Offside is a law in football which states that if a player is in an offside position when the ball is touched or played by a teammate, he may not become actively involved in the play...
trap and ran on to beat keeper Harry Dukes. Hunt completed a hat-trick six minutes before half time after picking up a pass from Robinson and shooting home from the edge of the penalty area
Penalty area
The penalty area , is an area of an association football pitch. It is rectangular and extends to each side of the goal and in front of it. Within the penalty area is the penalty spot , which is from the goal line, directly in-line with the centre of the goal...
, he then added his and the teams fourth a minute before the break. Hunt’s fifth came after 65 minutes when he connected with Bill Fallon’s corner, hitting the post but reacting quickly to knock in the rebound. Bill Fallon scored Wednesday’s sixth goal after 80 minutes and with three minutes remaining Hunt scored his sixth and Wednesday’s seventh to created a new individual goal scoring record in a competitive match for Sheffield Wednesday.
Wartime
Hunt played in the first three matches of the 1939-40 season before official football was suspended because of World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. During the war he returned to his home county of Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
and joined the army. He made guest appearances for Brentford
Brentford F.C.
Brentford Football Club are a professional English football club based in Brentford in the London Borough of Hounslow. They are currently playing in Football League One....
, Tottenham Hotspur, Aldershot
Aldershot F.C.
Aldershot Football Club was an English Football League club, which was wound up in the High Court in March 1992. They became the first Football League club since Accrington Stanley to resign from the League during the course of a season. The club was nicknamed the Shots for both the last syllable...
, Fulham
Fulham F.C.
Fulham Football Club is a professional English Premier League club based in southwest London Fulham, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. Founded in 1879, they play in the Premier League, their 11th current season...
and West Ham
West Ham United F.C.
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club based in Upton Park, Newham, East London. They play in The Football League Championship. The club was founded in 1895 as Thames Ironworks FC and reformed in 1900 as West Ham United. In 1904 the club relocated to their current...
winning the London War Cup
London War Cup
The London War Cup was an English football competition held with the aim of helping to fill the gaping hole left in English football by the FA Cup's cancellation. It was one of several competitions held to provide football matches to entertain the public while the major competitions were...
with Brentford in 1942. He returned to Sheffield after leaving the army and played five games for Wednesday in the wartime league of 1945-46. He was put on the transfer list in February 1946 and accepted the post of player-coach at Leyton Orient in April of that year with a transfer fee of £620 changing hands.
Latter career
He had a good first season with Leyton Orient (1946–47) scoring 13 League goals in 39 appearances, finishing joint top scorer with Wally Pullen as Orient finished in the bottom half of Division Three SouthFootball League Third Division South
The Football League Third Division South was a level of English professional football which ran in parallel to Third Division North from 1921 to 1958....
. For the following campaign he was appointed assistant-manager but still put in 22 appearances for the first team at inside right. He left Orient to become manager at Gloucester City
Gloucester City A.F.C.
Gloucester City Association Football Club is an English semi-professional association football club currently based in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire in South West England, via groundshare agreement....
between 1948 and 1953 before moving to Tonbridge
Tonbridge Angels F.C.
Tonbridge Angels Football Club is an English football club who play at Longmead Stadium in Tonbridge, Kent, since moving from the Angel Ground in 1980....
in January 1954 whom he took to two Southern League Cup finals in 1955 and 1957. He also signed Ron Saunders
Ron Saunders
Ron Saunders is a retired English football player and former successful manager. He remains the only manager to have taken charge of Aston Villa, Birmingham City and West Bromwich Albion, normally bitter rivals....
for Tonbridge in July 1956 starting him on the road to becoming a top player and manager. In 1958 he moved to Yeovil Town
Yeovil Town F.C.
Yeovil Town F.C. are an English association football team based in Yeovil, Somerset. The club play in League One after having won the League Two championship in 2004–05...
as trainer-coach staying there for more than 25 years, being granted a Testimonial match
Testimonial match
A testimonial match or testimonial game, often referred to simply as a testimonial, is a practice in some sports, notably football and especially in the United Kingdom, where a club puts on a match in honour of a player for service to the club....
in 1976, before retiring in 1986, aged 72. Doug Hunt died on May 30, 1989, aged 75 in Yeovil
Yeovil
Yeovil is a town and civil parish in south Somerset, England. The parish had a population of 27,949 at the 2001 census, although the wider urban area had a population of 42,140...
.