Tony Betts
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Anthony Thomas Betts (born 31 October 1953) is an English former
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 as a
forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People *Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Smal ...
. He played in the
Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in Association football around the world, the w ...
, the
North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League (NASL) was the top-level major professional soccer league in the United States and Canada that operated from 1968 to 1984. It is considered the first soccer league to be successful on a national scale in the ...
, and the Major Indoor Soccer League. He began his career at
Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club (commonly referred to as simply Villa) is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club, founded in 1874, compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The team have p ...
, featuring in the 1972
FA Youth Cup The Football Association Youth Challenge Cup is an English football competition run by The Football Association for under-18 sides. Only those players between the age of 15 and 18 on 31 August of the current season are eligible to take part. It ...
final. He was
loan In finance, a loan is the tender of money by one party to another with an agreement to pay it back. The recipient, or borrower, incurs a debt and is usually required to pay interest for the use of the money. The document evidencing the deb ...
ed out to
Southport Southport is a seaside resort, seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. It lies on the West Lancashire Coastal Plain, West Lancashire coastal plain and the east coast of the Irish Sea, approximately north of ...
in 1974–75 before he emigrated to America to play for the
Portland Timbers The Portland Timbers are an American professional Association football, soccer club based in Portland, Oregon. The Timbers compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. The Timbers have p ...
. He helped the Timbers to the final of the Soccer Bowl in 1975 before briefly returning to England with
Port Vale Port Vale Football Club are a professional football club based in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England, which compete in , the third tier of the English football league system. Vale are named after the valley of ports on the Trent and Mersey Canal ...
and Boldmere St. Michael's. He returned to Portland Timbers for two more seasons before joining the
Minnesota Kicks The Minnesota Kicks was a professional soccer team that played at Metropolitan Stadium in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington, Minnesota, from 1976 to 1981. The team was a member of the now defunct North American Soccer League (1968–84), No ...
in 1979. He then spent the last three years of his career with indoor football club
Buffalo Stallions The Buffalo Stallions were a soccer team based out of Buffalo, New York, that played in the Major Indoor Soccer League from 1979 to 1984. Their home arena was Buffalo Memorial Auditorium. It was the last professional club for which the Portu ...
.


Career

Betts started his career as a professional at
Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club (commonly referred to as simply Villa) is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club, founded in 1874, compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The team have p ...
in March 1972 and played for the "Villans" in the 1972
FA Youth Cup The Football Association Youth Challenge Cup is an English football competition run by The Football Association for under-18 sides. Only those players between the age of 15 and 18 on 31 August of the current season are eligible to take part. It ...
final win over
Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...
, playing alongside players such as
John Gidman John Gidman (born 10 January 1954) is an English former footballer who played for Aston Villa, Everton, Manchester United, Manchester City, Stoke City and Darlington. Gidman was a product of the Liverpool and Aston Villa youth systems. He repr ...
, Alan Little, and
Brian Little Brian Little (born 25 November 1953) is an English football manager and former player. As a player, Little was a striker who spent his entire career for Aston Villa in a career that spanned from 1971 to 1980. He made 247 league appearances, ...
. He also scored three goals in three games for
England Youth England national under-18 football team, also known as England under-18s or England U18(s), represents England in association football at under-18 age level and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England ...
. He made four
Second Division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...
appearances at
Villa Park Villa Park is a association football, football stadium in Aston, Birmingham, with a seating capacity of 42,918. It has been the home of Premier League club Aston Villa F.C., Aston Villa since 1897. The ground is less than a mile from both Witt ...
under the stewardship of
Ron Saunders Ronald Saunders (6 November 1932 – 7 December 2019) was an English football player and manager. He played for Everton, Tonbridge Angels, Gillingham, Portsmouth, Watford and Charlton Athletic during a 16-year playing career, before moving ...
. He was
loan In finance, a loan is the tender of money by one party to another with an agreement to pay it back. The recipient, or borrower, incurs a debt and is usually required to pay interest for the use of the money. The document evidencing the deb ...
ed out to Alan Ball's
Southport Southport is a seaside resort, seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. It lies on the West Lancashire Coastal Plain, West Lancashire coastal plain and the east coast of the Irish Sea, approximately north of ...
of the Fourth Division, scoring once in eight league appearances in the 1974–75 campaign. His
contract A contract is an agreement that specifies certain legally enforceable rights and obligations pertaining to two or more parties. A contract typically involves consent to transfer of goods, services, money, or promise to transfer any of thos ...
with Aston Villa was cancelled in April 1975. He moved to the United States to play for the
Portland Timbers The Portland Timbers are an American professional Association football, soccer club based in Portland, Oregon. The Timbers compete in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. The Timbers have p ...
in
1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 – Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...
, who were managed by former Villa
manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...
Vic Crowe Victor Herbert Crowe (31 January 1932 – 21 January 2009) was a Welsh international football player and later football manager. Career Crowe was born in Abercynon, South Wales but moved to Handsworth, Birmingham with his family when he was t ...
. He scored seven goals in 18 games, helping the Timbers to the top of the Western Conference of the
North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League (NASL) was the top-level major professional soccer league in the United States and Canada that operated from 1968 to 1984. It is considered the first soccer league to be successful on a national scale in the ...
. He scored the
golden goal The golden goal is a sports rule used in association football, Australian rules football, bandy, field hockey, ice hockey, lacrosse, and rugby league to decide the winner of a match (typically a knock-out match) in which scores are equal at the ...
in
extra time Overtime (OT) or extra time (ET) is an additional period of play to bring a game to a decision and avoid declaring the match a tie or draw where the scores are the same. In some sports, this extra period is played only if the game is required t ...
for Portland in a memorable play-off victory against archival Seattle Sounders on 12 August. They went on to play Soccer Bowl '75 but lost 2–0 to the
Tampa Bay Rowdies The Tampa Bay Rowdies are an American professional soccer team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The club was founded in 2008 and first took the pitch in 2010. Since 2017, the Rowdies have been members of the USL Championship in the second tie ...
at Spartan Stadium. He had a trial with
Roy Sproson Roy Sproson (23 September 1930 – 24 January 1997) was an English footballer and football manager for Port Vale. A one-club man, he holds the all-time appearance record for Vale, making 837 starts (and 5 substitute appearances) for Val ...
's
Port Vale Port Vale Football Club are a professional football club based in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England, which compete in , the third tier of the English football league system. Vale are named after the valley of ports on the Trent and Mersey Canal ...
in September 1975 and started for a 2–1 Third Division defeat at Gillingham on 11 October 1975. He was let go in November that year without making another appearance in 1975–76. He briefly played for Boldmere St. Michael's in the
Midland Football Combination The Midland Football Combination was an English association football, football league covering parts of the West Midlands (region), West Midlands. It comprised five divisions, a Premier Division, Divisions One and Two and two Reserves Divisions. ...
, before returning to the Civic Stadium in
1976 Events January * January 2 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 18 – Full diplomatic ...
. He scored five goals in 24 games, becoming the club's top scorer. Betts was retained by new manager
Brian Tiler Brian Tiler (15 March 1943 – 30 June 1990) was an English footballer who played as a central defender. Career Tiler began his career at his home town club Rotherham United where he made his debut in 1962–63. He spent seven seasons at Mill ...
for the
1977 Events January * January 8 – 1977 Moscow bombings, Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (no ...
season, though scored just once in 24 games, in a disappointing campaign for the Timbers. Betts played for the
Minnesota Kicks The Minnesota Kicks was a professional soccer team that played at Metropolitan Stadium in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington, Minnesota, from 1976 to 1981. The team was a member of the now defunct North American Soccer League (1968–84), No ...
of the North American Soccer League in
1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...
, gaining one assist in his only appearance at the
Metropolitan Stadium Metropolitan Stadium (often referred to as "the Met", "Met Stadium", or now "the Old Met" to distinguish from the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, Metrodome) was an outdoor sports stadium in the West North Central states, north central United State ...
for
Roy McCrohan Roy McCrohan (22 September 1930 – 3 March 2015) was an English professional footballer who played as a wing half. Career Born in Reading, Berkshire, McCrohan spent the majority of his career with Norwich City before playing for Colchester Un ...
's side. The Kicks won the Central Division but were defeated by the
Tulsa Roughnecks Tulsa Roughnecks may refer to any of four distinct professional soccer teams: *Tulsa Roughnecks (1978–1984), the original top-flight team that played in the North American Soccer League from 1978 to 1984. *Tulsa Roughnecks (1993–2000), the team ...
in the play-offs. He then moved on to the
Buffalo Memorial Auditorium Buffalo Memorial Auditorium, colloquially known as The Aud, was a multipurpose indoor arena in downtown Buffalo, New York. Opened on October 14, 1940, it was home to the Canisius Golden Griffins men's basketball, Canisius Golden Griffins (Nationa ...
to play for the
Buffalo Stallions The Buffalo Stallions were a soccer team based out of Buffalo, New York, that played in the Major Indoor Soccer League from 1979 to 1984. Their home arena was Buffalo Memorial Auditorium. It was the last professional club for which the Portu ...
of the Major Indoor Soccer League. He scored four goals in 29 games in 1979–80, as the Stallions were beaten by the
Pittsburgh Spirit Pittsburgh Spirit was an indoor soccer team based in Pittsburgh and one of the original six teams that played in the Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL). The Spirit was founded in 1978, suspended operation for the 1980–81 season, then returned ...
in the first round of the play-offs. He scored seven goals in 32 appearances in 1980–81, as the Stallions again were beaten at the first stage of the play-offs, this time by the
St. Louis Steamers St. Louis Steamers has been the name of two different indoor soccer franchises based in St. Louis, Missouri: *St. Louis Steamers (1979–88); American soccer team which played in the first Major Indoor Soccer League *St. Louis Steamers (1998–2006 ...
. He scored two goals in nine games in 1981–82 as Buffalo again lost at the first stage of the play-offs, this time being beaten by the
New York Arrows The New York Arrows were an indoor soccer team that played in the original Major Indoor Soccer League (1978–1992), Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) from 1978 to 1984. They were the MISL's first dynasty, winning the first four championships. H ...
. He retired after undergoing knee surgery in 1982.


Post-retirement

After retiring, he settled in the
Portland Portland most commonly refers to: *Portland, Oregon, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon *Portland, Maine, the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine *Isle of Portland, a tied island in the English Channel Portland may also r ...
area and founded the West Villa Soccer Club. At the turn of the millennium, he worked as an independent sales rep, selling sports shoes.


Career statistics

Source:


Honours

Aston Villa *
FA Youth Cup The Football Association Youth Challenge Cup is an English football competition run by The Football Association for under-18 sides. Only those players between the age of 15 and 18 on 31 August of the current season are eligible to take part. It ...
: 1972 Portland Timbers *
North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League (NASL) was the top-level major professional soccer league in the United States and Canada that operated from 1968 to 1984. It is considered the first soccer league to be successful on a national scale in the ...
Western Conference:
1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 – Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...
*Soccer Bowl runner-up:
1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 – Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...
Minnesota Kicks *
North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League (NASL) was the top-level major professional soccer league in the United States and Canada that operated from 1968 to 1984. It is considered the first soccer league to be successful on a national scale in the ...
Central Division:
1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Betts, Tony 1953 births Living people Footballers from Derby English men's footballers England men's youth international footballers England men's amateur international footballers Men's association football forwards Aston Villa F.C. players Southport F.C. players English expatriate men's footballers English expatriate sportspeople in the United States Expatriate men's soccer players in the United States Portland Timbers (1975–1982) players Port Vale F.C. players Boldmere St. Michaels F.C. players Minnesota Kicks players Buffalo Stallions players North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players Major Indoor Soccer League (1978–1992) players English Football League players