Isaac Clarke (9 January 1915 – 2 April 2002) was an English

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 ...

and football manager. He is most notable for scoring the goal which won

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

their first League title.

Career

Clarke, called Ike everywhere he went, was born at

Tipton Tipton is an industrial town in the metropolitan borough of Sandwell, in the county of the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. It had a population of 38,777 at the 2011 UK Census. It is located northwest of Birmingham and southeas ...

during the First World War on 9 January 1915. He began playing in an amateur Wolverhampton league for Toll End Westley, and then signed as a professional for

West Bromwich Albion West Bromwich Albion Football Club (), commonly known as West Brom or The Albion, is a professional association football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second level of the Englis ...

, then a First Division club, in 1937. Clarke was officially on their books for ten years, but most of that career was lost through the Second World War. By the end of his time there he had played 108 games and scored 39 goals. As football began again in fits and starts after the War had ended Clarke moved to

in November 1947. West Bromwich was in the Second Division by then, and it is recorded that the

Fratton Park Fratton Park is a association football, football ground in Portsmouth, Hampshire, England, and is the home of Portsmouth F.C., Portsmouth Football Club. Fratton Park's location on Portsea Island is unique in English professional football, as it ...

faithful initially weren't very impressed that £7,000 had been spent on a striker already in his thirties from a lower division. Clarke was to win them over and become one of the most popular players on the side. He was a big brave center-forward in the classic British tradition, but also had a good footballing brain and some skill, and linked up what was the formidable forward line that Pompey boasted at that time. He stayed at Portsmouth for six years and was an important part of the team that won back-to-back Championships in 1948–49 and 1949–50. It was Clarke's winner in a 2–1 victory against

Bolton Wanderers Bolton Wanderers Football Club ( ) is a professional association football, football club based in Horwich, Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the Englis ...

on 23 April 1949 that clinched the points that took Pompey to their first-ever

First Division 1st Division or First Division may refer to: Military Airborne divisions *1st Parachute Division (Germany) *1st Airborne Division (United Kingdom) * 1st Airmobile Division (Ukraine) * 1st Guards Airborne Division Armoured divisions *1st Armoure ...

title. The following season, Clarke's contribution was greater in Pompey's need to defend the title, he played in 37 games and finished top scorer with 17 goals. Clarke went on to serve Pompey sporadically in the 1950s and in all he clocked up 129 appearances, 116 in the League, and 58 goals, 49 in the League. In 1953 Clarke gave up playing full-time football at the age of 38 and looked for his first job in management.

Yeovil Town Yeovil Town may refer to: * Yeovil, a town in Somerset, England, with a council named Yeovil Town * Yeovil Town F.C., an English football team based in Yeovil, Somerset * Yeovil Town W.F.C., an English women's football team affiliated with Yeovil T ...

in the

Southern Football League The Southern League is a football competition featuring semi-professional clubs from East Anglia, the South and Midlands of England, and South Wales. Together with the Isthmian League and the Northern Premier League it forms levels seven a ...

was advertising for a new manager, The Supporters Club offered to help with the wages of the new appointee, and a tied house was thrown in. On 10 May 1953 Clarke became The Glover's fourth manager since the War. His first season in charge ended with Yeovil finishing third in the Southern League and Clarke himself made 48 appearances scoring 20 goals at the age of 36. The next season Clarke took Yeovil to the Southern League and Southern League cup double. Although Clarke had led Yeovil to their most successful season in terms of trophies just four seasons earlier Clarke was relieved of his managerial duties at the end of the 1956–57 season. After Yeovil Town Clarke moved to Kent. He took over the helm at

Sittingbourne Sittingbourne is an industrial town in the Swale district of Kent, southeast England, from Canterbury and from London, beside the Roman Watling Street, an ancient trackway used by the Romans and the Anglo-Saxons. The town stands next to th ...

and won the Kent League, Kent League Division One Cup,

Kent Senior Cup The Kent Senior Cup is an English football knock-out competition played between senior clubs in the county of Kent. It is administered by the Kent County Football Association (KCFA). History Now known as the Kent Senior Cup it was originall ...

and the Thames & Medway Combination League Championship. He took Sittingbourne into the Southern League Division One in 1959–60 and they missed out on promotion on goal average and the same fate awaited them the following season, again missing out on promotion to the Premier Division on goal average. He later took charge of Canterbury City, becoming their longest serving manager before retiring to

Herne Bay Herne Bay is a seaside town on the north coast of Kent in South East England. It is north of Canterbury and east of Whitstable. It neighbours the ancient villages of Herne, Kent, Herne and Reculver and is part of the City of Canterbury loca ...

in Kent, where he lived until his death in April 2002 at the age of 87.

Honours

Player

;

champion: 1948–49, 1949–50 *

FA Charity Shield The Football Association Community Shield (formerly the Charity Shield) is English football's annual match contested at Wembley Stadium between the champions of the previous Premier League season and the holders of the FA Cup. If the Premier ...

champion:

1949 Events January * January 1 – A United Nations-sponsored ceasefire brings an end to the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. The war results in a stalemate and the division of Kashmir, which still continues as of 2025 * January 2 – Luis ...

(Shared)

Managerial

;

(Player-manager) * Southern League champion: 1954–55 * Southern League Cup champion: 1954–55 * Somerset Professional Cup champion: 1953–54, 1954–55, 1955–56, 1956–57 (Shared) ;

* Kent League champion: 1957–58, 1958–59 * Kent League Division One Cup: 1957–58 *

champion: 1957–58 * Thames & Medway Combination League Championship champion: 1958–59

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Clarke, Ike 1915 births 2002 deaths Footballers from Tipton English men's footballers Men's association football forwards English Football League players English football managers West Bromwich Albion F.C. players Portsmouth F.C. players Yeovil Town F.C. players Yeovil Town F.C. managers Sittingbourne F.C. managers Canterbury City F.C. managers Kent Football League (1894–1959) players 20th-century English sportsmen

Career

Honours

Player

Managerial

See also

References