By David John
A FEW weeks ago The NLP reported how Bradford Park Avenue were trying to get in touch with their greatest living player, ex-Derby County and England striker Kevin Hector.
Well we love a happy ending, so are delighted to announce the club was inundated with help from readers and as a result Kevin is pictured below wearing the 2015-16 Avenue shirt which is being dedicated to him and his achievement half a century ago.
In the 1965-66 season Hector was the leading goalscorer in the whole of the Football League netting 44 times, plus one in the FA Cup.
He scored in 27 games, hitting Barnsley for five and Aldershot and Chester for hat-tricks along the way, and was part of a side that amassed 102 goals and still only finished 11th in the old Division Four.
“We only failed to score in six of the 46 league games but the problem was we leaked goals as well, keeping only three clean sheets,” recalls Hector, now 70.
“I could have scored 50 but I blobbed in the last two games. It was great fun though and besides me Bobby Ham, Jim Fryatt and Albert Broadbent were also in double figures and we had a tough taskmaster of a manager in Jimmy Scoular.”
As a result of The NLP article Kevin met up with Avenue directors John Helm and Joe Mosley, and has agreed to attend the club’s first preseason friendly against FC Halifax Town, fittingly a club where his old strike partner Ham is now a director.
Delighted to be honoured by the dedication of the shirt to his feat 50 years ago, Hector has not been in touch with Avenue for over 20 years but is delighted to be re-connected with the club that gave him his break which ultimately led to international stardom.
