Ian Howat
Encyclopedia
Ian Howat is a former Welsh
professional footballer who played in The Football League
for Chester City
and Crewe Alexandra
. He later appeared for several non-league clubs.
youth policy, Howat made his Chester debut as a substitute in a Football League Third Division
fixture against Mansfield Town
on 16 October 1976. Later in the season he scored twice during the club’s run to the FA Cup
fifth round and netted the winner against Port Vale
in the Debenhams Cup
final at the end of the season. In his time at the club, Howat had spells playing in attack alongside fellow forwards including Paul Crossley
, Ian Edwards
, Ian Mellor
, Peter Henderson
, Ian Rush
and Trevor Phillips
without establishing himself as a first-team regular. He memorably found the target when Chester won 2–1 at Wrexham
in April 1978, ending his hometown club’s unbeaten home league record.
In February 1982 Howat moved to Crewe Alexandra
, but left the club at the end of the season. This marked the end of his Football League
career and Howat joined Bangor City
in the Alliance Premier League
. His spell with Bangor included an appearance at Wembley Stadium
in May 1984 in the FA Trophy final against Northwich Victoria
.
A cartlidge operation the following season ruled Howat out of action for a couple of years, but he subsequently returned to play for Welsh non-league sides Oswestry Town
, Bangor City
(second spell), Caernarfon Town
, Newtown
, Holywell Town
and Llansantffraid
. His achievements in later years included scoring 17 times in the first season of the League of Wales
for Holywell
.
Bangor City
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
professional footballer who played in The Football League
The Football League
The Football League, also known as the npower Football League for sponsorship reasons, is a league competition featuring professional association football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest such competition in world football...
for Chester City
Chester City F.C.
Chester City Football Club was an English football team from Chester. The club was founded as Chester F.C., and joined the Football League in 1931, spending most of their time in the lower divisions. They changed their name to Chester City in 1983. Chester won their first league title in 2004, the...
and Crewe Alexandra
Crewe Alexandra F.C.
Crewe Alexandra Football Club is an English professional football club based in Crewe, Cheshire. Nicknamed The Railwaymen due to the town's links with the rail industry, they currently play in Football League Two, the fourth tier of English football, and are based at the Alexandra Stadium.The club...
. He later appeared for several non-league clubs.
Playing career
A product of Chester’sChester City F.C.
Chester City Football Club was an English football team from Chester. The club was founded as Chester F.C., and joined the Football League in 1931, spending most of their time in the lower divisions. They changed their name to Chester City in 1983. Chester won their first league title in 2004, the...
youth policy, Howat made his Chester debut as a substitute in a Football League Third Division
Football League Third Division
The Football League Third Division was the 3 tier of English Football from 1920 until 1992 when after the formation of the Football Association Premier League saw the league renamed The Football League Division Two...
fixture against Mansfield Town
Mansfield Town F.C.
Mansfield Town Football Club is an English football club from the former mining town of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire. The club was formed in 1897 as Mansfield Wesleyans and changed its name to Mansfield Wesley in 1906 before settling on Mansfield Town in 1910...
on 16 October 1976. Later in the season he scored twice during the club’s run to the FA Cup
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly known as the FA Cup, is a knockout cup competition in English football and is the oldest association football competition in the world. The "FA Cup" is run by and named after The Football Association and usually refers to the English men's...
fifth round and netted the winner against Port Vale
Port Vale F.C.
Port Vale Football Club is an English football club currently playing in Football League Two. They are based in Burslem, Staffordshire — one of six towns that make up the city of Stoke-on-Trent. The club's traditional rivals in the city are Stoke City, and games between the two clubs are known as...
in the Debenhams Cup
Debenhams Cup
The Debenhams Cup was one of several short-lived football competitions introduced in the 1970s and 1980s, along with the Watney Cup, Texaco Cup, Anglo-Scottish Cup, the Screen Sport Super Cup and Simod Cup...
final at the end of the season. In his time at the club, Howat had spells playing in attack alongside fellow forwards including Paul Crossley
Paul Crossley (footballer)
Paul Crossley was an English professional footballer. He usually played as a winger.-Career:...
, Ian Edwards
Ian Edwards (footballer)
Robert Ian Edwards is a Welsh former footballer who played as a striker. He was capped by Wales and played in The Football League for four clubs.-Playing career:...
, Ian Mellor
Ian Mellor
Ian Mellor is an English former professional footballer. He was born in Sale, England.Mellor, a left-winger, began his career with Manchester City before moving to Norwich City in 1973 for a fee of £65,000. The Canaries were struggling against relegation in their first season in English football's...
, Peter Henderson
Peter Henderson (footballer)
Peter Henderson is a former English professional footballer who mainly played as a winger. He played in The Football League for three clubs, with most of his appearances being made for Chester City....
, Ian Rush
Ian Rush
Ian James Rush, MBE, is a retired football player from Flint, Wales. He is best remembered as a player for Liverpool, where he was among the top strikers in the English game in the 1980s and 1990s. He also had spells playing at Chester City, Juventus, Leeds United, Newcastle United, Sheffield...
and Trevor Phillips
Trevor Phillips (footballer)
Trevor Phillips was an English professional footballer who played in The Football League for four clubs between 1969 and 1984.Phillips was raised in the Oakwell area of Barnsley and attended Grove Street School...
without establishing himself as a first-team regular. He memorably found the target when Chester won 2–1 at Wrexham
Wrexham A.F.C.
Wrexham Football Club are a professional football team based in Wrexham, north-east Wales, who play in the English football pyramid.Founded in 1872, they are one of the oldest surviving football clubs in Britain and the oldest professional club in Wales...
in April 1978, ending his hometown club’s unbeaten home league record.
In February 1982 Howat moved to Crewe Alexandra
Crewe Alexandra F.C.
Crewe Alexandra Football Club is an English professional football club based in Crewe, Cheshire. Nicknamed The Railwaymen due to the town's links with the rail industry, they currently play in Football League Two, the fourth tier of English football, and are based at the Alexandra Stadium.The club...
, but left the club at the end of the season. This marked the end of his Football League
The Football League
The Football League, also known as the npower Football League for sponsorship reasons, is a league competition featuring professional association football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest such competition in world football...
career and Howat joined Bangor City
Bangor City F.C.
Bangor City Football Club are a semi-professional Welsh football club from the City of Bangor. The club compete in the Welsh Premier League, being ever present since the league was founded in 1992....
in the Alliance Premier League
Conference National
Conference National is the top division of the Football Conference in England. It is the highest level of the National League System and fifth highest of the overall English football league system...
. His spell with Bangor included an appearance at Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium
The original Wembley Stadium, officially known as the Empire Stadium, was a football stadium in Wembley, a suburb of north-west London, standing on the site now occupied by the new Wembley Stadium that opened in 2007...
in May 1984 in the FA Trophy final against Northwich Victoria
Northwich Victoria F.C.
Northwich Victoria Football Club are an English football club who play at the Victoria Stadium in Wincham, Northwich, Cheshire in the Northern Premier League Premier Division, the seventh tier of the English football league system.Northwich are an old club, founded in 1874 and named in honour of...
.
A cartlidge operation the following season ruled Howat out of action for a couple of years, but he subsequently returned to play for Welsh non-league sides Oswestry Town
Oswestry Town F.C.
Oswestry Town F.C. was a football club, formerly playing in the League of Wales.The club was founded as Oswestry United in 1860, which meant they were one of the world's oldest football clubs. Matches were latterly played at Park Hall stadium, Oswestry, after a spell at Victoria Road...
, Bangor City
Bangor City F.C.
Bangor City Football Club are a semi-professional Welsh football club from the City of Bangor. The club compete in the Welsh Premier League, being ever present since the league was founded in 1992....
(second spell), Caernarfon Town
Caernarfon Town F.C.
Caernarfon Town F.C. is a football team, playing in the Cymru Alliance. The club ia nicknamed The Canaries because of its yellow and green strip. Caernarfon Town plays at The Oval, Caernarfon, Gwynedd.-History:...
, Newtown
Newtown F.C.
Newtown Association Football Club is a Welsh football club who currently play in the Welsh Premier League, with a reserve team currently playing in the Mid Wales Football League....
, Holywell Town
Holywell Town F.C.
Holywell Town F.C. is a football club representing the Flintshire town of Holywell in Wales. They are nicknamed the The Wellmen, and play their home games at Halkyn Road, Holywell...
and Llansantffraid
The New Saints F.C.
The New Saints of Oswestry Town & Llansantffraid Football Club , also known as The New Saints or simply TNS is a full-time-professional British football club representing Llansantffraid-ym-Mechain in Powys, Wales and Oswestry in Shropshire, England . They play in the Welsh Premier League...
. His achievements in later years included scoring 17 times in the first season of the League of Wales
League of Wales
The Welsh Premier League is the national football league for Wales. It has both Professional and Semi-Professional status clubs and is at the top of the Welsh football league system. Prior to 2002, the league was known as the League of Wales, but changed its name as part of a sponsorship deal...
for Holywell
Holywell Town F.C.
Holywell Town F.C. is a football club representing the Flintshire town of Holywell in Wales. They are nicknamed the The Wellmen, and play their home games at Halkyn Road, Holywell...
.
Honours
Chester City- Debenhams CupDebenhams CupThe Debenhams Cup was one of several short-lived football competitions introduced in the 1970s and 1980s, along with the Watney Cup, Texaco Cup, Anglo-Scottish Cup, the Screen Sport Super Cup and Simod Cup...
winners: 1976–19771976-77 in English footballThe 1976–77 season was the 97th season of competitive football in England.-Overview:The Football League revamped the tie-breaking criteria for teams level of points, replacing the traditional goal average tie-breaker with one based on goal difference to try to encourage more scoring...
Bangor City
- FA Trophy runners-up: 1983–19841983-84 in English footballThe 1983–84 season was the 104th season of competitive football in England.- First Division :Liverpool had a great first season under the management of Joe Fagan as they wrapped up their third successive league title and the 15th in their history...
.