Brian Clough

Did You Know?

• Clough was the sixth of nine children, born in a council house in Grove Hill, Middlesbrough.
• He considered applying for the Wolverhampton Wanderers manager job in November 1995 but nothing came of it.
• In 1994, he wrote that Liverpool fans brought the Hillsborough disaster on themselves, but later said he was misinformed.

Playing career

Clough began playing for Great Broughton Juniors and, while working for ICI, Billingham Synthonia, scoring three goals in four games. He then served in the RAF between 1953 and 1955, playing football in the forces and for Middlesbrough's third team when on leave. He debuted for Middlesbrough in the 1955–56 season and became a prolific striker, scoring 204 goals in 222 league matches. He scored 40 or more goals in four consecutive seasons and was Division Two top scorer in 1958–59 and 1959–60.

Clough regularly submitted transfer requests from the 1957–58 season and had tense relationships with teammates, once sarcastically asking how many goals they needed to win after a 6–6 draw. He accused some teammates of betting against the team. At Middlesbrough, he became acquainted with goalkeeper Peter Taylor. In July 1961, a transfer request was accepted and he moved to Sunderland for £55,000, scoring 34 goals in the 1961–62 season and 63 goals in 74 matches overall.

In December 1962, he tore medial and cruciate ligaments in a collision with a goalkeeper. He returned two years later but managed only three games before retiring at age 29. His manager at Sunderland, Alan Brown, was a disciplinarian who influenced Clough's later managerial style.

Management career

After coaching Sunderland's youth team, Clough became manager of Hartlepools United in October 1965 at age 30, the youngest manager in the league. He immediately appointed Peter Taylor as his assistant. Hartlepools had finished in the bottom two of the Fourth Division five times in six seasons and faced financial difficulties; Clough raised money in local pubs and applied for a coach driver's licence. In November 1966, chairman Ernest Ord sacked Taylor, then Clough, but a boardroom coup ousted Ord and reinstated both. Hartlepools finished eighth in 1966–67. The duo then joined Second Division Derby County on 1 June 1967. Derby had been in the Second Division for a decade and outside the top flight for five years, with their only major trophy being the 1946 FA Cup. Hartlepools were promoted for the first time in their history the following season.

Personal life and family

Clough was a lifelong socialist who appeared on miners' picket lines, donated to trade union causes, canvassed for his local MP, and chaired the Anti-Nazi League. He declined two Labour Party approaches to stand as a parliamentary candidate. He married Barbara Glasgow on 4 April 1959; they had three children: Simon (born 15 June 1964), Nigel (born 19 March 1966), and Elizabeth (born 31 May 1967). During the 1980s, the family mentored underprivileged brothers Craig and Aaron Bromfield; Craig lived with the Cloughs for a time until he was found stealing. Nigel became a professional footballer under his father at Forest and later managed Derby County. Clough was appointed an OBE in the 1991 Birthday Honours. He was a friend of cricketer Geoffrey Boycott. Barbara died on 20 July 2013 from a head injury after falling in a hospital car park while being treated for cancer.

Legacy

In August 2005, the A52 linking Nottingham and Derby was renamed Brian Clough Way. Tram No. 215 on the Nottingham Express Transit system was named Brian Clough. A statue of Clough was unveiled in Middlesbrough's Albert Park on 16 May 2007. Another statue was erected in Nottingham's Old Market Square on 6 November 2008, unveiled by his widow before over 5,000 people. A tribute website, brianclough.com, was set up in August 2008. In 2007 and 2008, roads on a redevelopment site in Middlesbrough were named after former Middlesbrough players including Clough. Derby County and Nottingham Forest compete for the Brian Clough Trophy, with proceeds going to East Midlands charities. A statue of Clough and Peter Taylor was unveiled at Pride Park on 27 August 2010.