Tributes to former Bishop Auckland footballer Tony Claydon

His second wife, Gladys, said: “He was a brilliant husband, but he loved his football, especially at the Belvedere Club in Bishop Auckland, where he spent around 50 years of his life, either playing football for them, running the team or serving on the club committee. Tony suffered with dementia in his later years but it didn’t affect him too much.

“Just before he died we had a lovely evening in the Welcome Pub in Bishop Auckland. a lot of his friends were in, and he enjoyed mixing and talking to them.”
Gladys added: “Tony fell and broke his hip which needed an operation in Darlington Hospital.

“He was then transferred to Bishop Auckland Hospital, but picked up an infection, as well as Covid-19, and it was all too much for him.”

Harry Ellison, a lifelong friend, said: “We knocked about together a lot in our younger days. On a weekend we would meet up in the Belvedere Club along with Malcolm Laskey, Les Bentley and Tony Hathaway. We both played for the Queens Head Sunday football team which might have been one of the first Sunday teams in Bishop Auckland.

From left, back row, A Iceton, W Liddle, R Hull, A Milroy, A Butterfield, J Lee; front row, J Barker, J Redhead, G Siddle, J Fenwick, T Claydon. Tony Claydon gave Bishop Auckland the lead, but Derek Gardener equalised for Crook in the 60th minute with a penalty. Further Crook goals came from Jimmy Goodfellow, Albert Clapperton and Wilson Hepplewhite. John Fenwick scored a late consolation for Bishop, with the final score 4-2 to Crook

“I played outside left and Tony played left half. Tony was a strong lad and he could hit a football. I remember his debut for Bishop Auckland against Spennymoor, Bishop won 5-2 and Tony hit an absolute screamer into the back of the net.

“He eventually moved to the Belvedere team on a Sunday which was run by Ray Stephenson and Michael O’Grady, when they played in the CIU League. When that league folded they joined the Durham League and Tony was influential in bringing in top class players like John Peverall, Brian Conlon, Alan Shoulder, Alan Porter, John Fenwick, Ray Stelling, John Weir, Colin Mills, Fisher Richardson, plus Michael and John Barker.”

John Fenwick, a former team-mate of Tony’s at Bishop Auckland Football Club, and the Belvedere, said: “Tony, John Barker, and myself all made our debuts together at Bishop Auckland when we were just 17 years of age. Tony had class, and sometimes he just strolled around the pitch like Franz Beckenbauer, spraying passes left, right, and centre.”

Alan Milroy, the goalkeeper at Bishop Auckland when Tony played said: “Tony was a steady and a most reliable player.” while Ron Evans, the physio at Kingsway in those days, added: “Tony was a nice, quiet lad, with a huge football talent. I’m not sure that he got a fair crack of the whip at Kingsway.”

Tony was educated at St Anne’s School in Bishop Auckland and then at the Barrington School.

He worked in the pits, was also employed at Bakelite, where he played football, and on the building sites. He leaves his second wife Gladys, daughter Lyndsey, brother Walter, sisters Jennifer and Christine plus grandchildren Finlay, Maisie, Mylee, Emmie, Aysha and Ryan.

John Wilkinson

We are also saddened to hear of the death of John Wilkinson, a former amateur footballer with Ferryhill Athletic, Spennymoor United and Whitby Town.

John was a good friend of the column, loaned a number of photographs for us to use, and always enjoyed talking about the Northern League in the 1960s.