Andrew Paul Payton (born 23 October 1967) is an English former professional footballer. A striker, Payton played for seven professional clubs in England and Scotland, scoring 200 goals in over 500 appearances, and gaining the nickname the ''Padiham Predator''.

Playing career

After being released by hometown club

Burnley Burnley () is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, with a 2021 population of 78,266. It is north of Manchester and east of Preston, at the confluence of the River Calder and River B ...

at the age of 15,Andy Payon
Burnley F.C. Payton began his career as an apprentice at

Hull City Hull City Association Football Club is a professional association football club based in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. They compete in the , the second level of the English football league system. They play their home ...

, signing a professional contract in 1985. He joined

Middlesbrough Middlesbrough ( ), colloquially known as Boro, is a port town in the Borough of Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire, England. Lying to the south of the River Tees, Middlesbrough forms part of the Teesside Built up area, built-up area and the Tees Va ...

for £700,000 in November 1991, which remained Hull's record sale for 15 years, before signing for

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Foot ...

in August 1992. After a year at Celtic, he returned to England to play for

Barnsley Barnsley () is a market town in South Yorkshire, England. It is the main settlement of the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley and the fourth largest settlement in South Yorkshire. The town's population was 71,422 in 2021, while the wider boroug ...

. In 1996

Huddersfield Town Huddersfield Town Association Football Club is a professional association football club based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England. They compete in , the third tier of English football league system, English football. Huddersfield Town we ...

signed him for £325,000, before selling him to

as part of a swap deal with Paul Barnes in 1998. After five years at Burnley, including a loan spell at

Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside town in Lancashire, England. It is located on the Irish Sea coast of the Fylde peninsula, approximately north of Liverpool and west of Preston, Lancashire, Preston. It is the main settlement in the Borough of Blackpool ...

where he scored once against Bury, he ended his career in non-league football with

Stalybridge Celtic Stalybridge Celtic Football Club is an English football club based in Stalybridge, Greater Manchester. They are currently members of the and play at Bower Fold. The team traditionally plays in a blue and white strip. In 1921, Stalybridge Celti ...

and then

Colne Colne () is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Borough of Pendle in Lancashire, England. The town is northeast of Nelson, Lancashire, Nelson, northeast of Burnley and east of Preston, Lancashire, Preston. The ...

Coaching career

After retiring from playing, Payton gained a UEFA A Coaching License and coached at Colne,

Padiham Padiham ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish on the River Calder, Lancashire, River Calder, in the Borough of Burnley in Lancashire, England, Lancashire, England. It is located north west of Burnley, and north ea ...

and

Northwich Victoria Northwich is a market town and civil parish in the Cheshire West and Chester borough of Cheshire, England. It lies on the Cheshire Plain, at the confluence of the rivers River Weaver, Weaver and River Dane, Dane, east of Chester, south of Warr ...

. He was appointed manager of

Garstang Garstang is an ancient market town and civil parish within the Wyre borough of Lancashire, England. It is north of the city of Preston and the same distance south of Lancaster. In 2011, the parish had a total resident population of 4,26 ...

in May 2019,Payton is relishing opportunity of top job
Lancashire Telegraph, 24 May 2019 but left the club in August.Garstang FC part company with manager Andy Payton
The Garstang Courier, 22 August 2019

Career statistics

References

External links

Andy Payton article
Amber Nectar {{DEFAULTSORT:Payton, Andy 1967 births Living people English men's footballers English Football League players Scottish Football League players Men's association football forwards Hull City A.F.C. players Middlesbrough F.C. players Celtic F.C. players Barnsley F.C. players Huddersfield Town A.F.C. players Burnley F.C. players Blackpool F.C. players Stalybridge Celtic F.C. players Colne F.C. players Garstang F.C. managers English football managers People from Whalley, Lancashire