Derek Marshall Hawksworth (16 July 1927 – 24 March 2021) was a

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played in the position of winger for

Sheffield United Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The club competes in the Championship, the second tier of English football. They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history ...

Football career

Hawksworth started his career with

Bradford Park Avenue Bradford (Park Avenue) Association Football Club, sometimes abbreviated as BPA AFC, is an association football club based in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. The team currently competes in , at the eighth tier of the English football league ...

in 1946, before moving to

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 ...

, although he never made an appearance for either club. In 1948, he moved to

Bradford City Bradford City Association Football Club is an English professional football club in Bradford, West Yorkshire. The club competes in , the third tier of English football, and is managed by Graham Alexander. The club was founded in 1903 and ...

and made 75 appearances with 20 goals for the

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a Metropolitan counties of England, metropolitan and Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It borders North Yorkshire to the north and east, South Yorkshire and De ...

side. Hawksworth was 23 when he signed for Sheffield United in 1950 in a double transfer along with fellow winger Alf Ringstead, for a total outlay of £15,000. He was strong, fast and dangerous near goal, and was at his best in an

outside-left In the sport of association football, a forward (attacker or striker) is an outfield position which primarily plays further up the pitch than midfielders and defenders. As with any attacking player, the role of the forward relies heavily on bein ...

position, but served United well in all the other forward positions. He played an integral part in United's 7–3 defeat of

Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an off ...

in the

Steel City derby The Steel City derby, or the Sheffield derby is a local derby between Sheffield United and Sheffield Wednesday, the two professional football league teams in the city of Sheffield, England. the teams have met 146 times in competitive games, ...

Bramall Lane Bramall Lane is a association football, football stadium in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which is the home of Sheffield United F.C., Sheffield United. The stadium was originally a cricket ground, built on a road named after the Bramall ...

on 8 September 1951, scoring an equaliser and a fourth goal in a match never to be forgotten by Blades fans. In total, he played 255

league League or The League may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Leagues'' (band), an American rock band * ''The League'', an American sitcom broadcast on FX and FXX about fantasy football * ''League of Legends'', a 2009 multiplayer online battle a ...

matches for Sheffield United, and scored 88 league goals in his seven years at Bramall Lane. He was transferred to Huddersfield Town in 1958 in an exchange deal, which saw Ronnie Simpson moving to

United United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two f ...

. He played 55 league matches, scoring 14 goals for the Terriers. In 1959, he signed for Lincoln City, scoring 14 times in 36 league matches. He ended his career back with Bradford City, for one final year. Scoring eight goals from 44 appearances for the Bantams.

Death

Hawksworth died peacefully at home on 24th March 2021, aged 93, following a short illness. He was surrounded by his family and had received many well wishes from friends.

Honours

Club

Sheffield United *

Football League Second Division The Football League Second Division was the second level division in the English football league system between 1892 and 1992. Following the foundation of the FA Premier League, the Football League divisions were renumbered and the third tier ...

: 1952–53

References

* Clarebrough, Denis (1989). ''Sheffield United F.C., The First 100 years''. Sheffield United Football Club. . * Young, Percy A. (1962). ''Football in Sheffield''. Stanley Paul & Co Ltd. . * A to Z Encyclopedia, Sheffield United Match Day Programme, 22 March 1986. * They Played at the Lane, Sheffield United Match Day Programme, 17 September 1988. {{DEFAULTSORT:Hawksworth, Derek 1927 births 2021 deaths English men's footballers English Football League players Men's association football wingers Bradford (Park Avenue) A.F.C. players Colchester United F.C. players Sheffield United F.C. players Bradford City A.F.C. players Huddersfield Town A.F.C. players Lincoln City F.C. players Footballers from Bradford