Heroes & Villains – Burnley
Hero – Ray Pointer
Pointer played for Burnley 270 times and holds the post-war record goalscoring record. He scored 133 goals in his time at Turf Moor, second only to George Beel, who scored 178 times for Burnley between 1922 and 1932.
The striker was nicknamed ‘The Blonde Bombshell’ by the Burnley fans and was capped three times for England, scoring twice.
Pointer was part of the side that won the First Division Championship in the 1959/60 season. He was also in the side that lost in the 1962 FA Cup Final to Tottenham Hotspur.
Villain – Tony Woodworth
I had a little look around on some Burnley fan sites and came across the name of Tony Woodworth. Sadly, I couldn’t find a photo of him.
This is perhaps a bit of a mean choice but Woodworth only played in one match. He was a goalkeeper and played in a home game against Hereford United, stepping in for regular stopper Joe Neenan.
It was a real nightmare debut for Woodworth as Burnley lost 6-0! I have chosen the programme cover from this game as the photo above. Woodworth’s name didn’t even feature on the back team sheet as Neenan was expected to start.
Woodworth may well point to the fact that this was statistically the worst ever Burnley side. The team ended the 1986/87 season in 22nd place in the old Division Four, missing out on relegation to non-league by a single point.
The unfortunate goalkeeper was released at the end of the season and moved into non-league football.
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