Roy Clarke

Roy Clarke was born in Newport, Monmouthshire, to a mining family. At school he excelled at sports, representing Wales in a schoolboy baseball international, and winning a local table tennis championship. Upon leaving school Clarke followed his father's career path and became a miner, as one of the Bevin boys. In his free time he played for a local amateur football team, Albion Rovers. Here he was spotted by Cardiff City, who signed him as an amateur in December 1942. In 1945 he received his first taste of playing against top-class opposition, a touring Dynamo Moscow. His team suffered a heavy defeat; the match finished 10–1 to the Soviets. The following year he represented the Welsh national team for the first time, playing in a "Victory international" against Ireland. Clarke played as an outside-left for Cardiff City in 39 league matches, scoring 11 goals (1942–1947). When league football resumed after the war, Clarke was an integral part of the Cardiff City team which gained promotion from the Third Division in 1946–47. In May 1947 he transferred to newly crowned Second Division champions Manchester City, the fee £12,000. He made his debut in Manchester City's final match of the season, against Newport County, his home town club. Clarke made his next appearance in the First Division against Wolverhampton Wanderers on the opening day of the 1947–48 season, scoring his first goal for the club in the process. This meant he had completed the unusual feat of playing three…

He later managed Northwich Victoria for a brief period, before returning to Manchester, where he opened a sports shop in Fallowfield. Through his friendship with Bert Trautmann he gained a contract to become the first Adidas merchant in the area, but the shop closed a few years later as Clarke wished to concentrate upon activities at Manchester City. Clarke became the manager of the Manchester City social club in 1966; he and his wife Kathleen ran the social club together for nearly 25 years. The social club was open seven days a week, providing an opportunity for players, management and supporters to form closer bonds. It received praise in Arthur Hopcraft's 1968 book The Football Man, for providing a counterpoint to football clubs who "largely ignored [their fans] except when they were inside the ground". During his time at the social club Clarke was a founder of two other Manchester City organisations: the Development Association, which acts as a fund for ground improvements and youth development, and the Former Players' Association, which was co-founded with Paddy Fagan and Roy Little, Clarke serving as secretary. In 2004, he was inducted into the Manchester City Hall of Fame, receiving a lifetime achievement award. Towards the end of his life he suffered from Alzheimer's disease, and died on 13 March 2006, leaving a wife and three daughters.

Manchester City

FA Cup: 1955–56