Ted Hufton

"Ted Hufton, the goalkeeper, was another of my heroes, and he was always in the Press Room after a match at Upton Park, dispensing yarns and memories with the utmost amiability." - Ted Fenton, West Ham United Manager."

Arthur Edward Hufton (b. Southwell, Nottinghamshire, 25 November 1892, d. 2 February 1967), better known as Ted Hufton, was an England international goalkeeper who earned six caps for his country.

He began his playing career at Atlas and Norfolk Works in Sheffield, before becoming a Sheffield United player.

He transferred to West Ham United in 1915 for a £350 fee and went on to play for the club until 1932, becoming a Hammers legend. He made 456 appearances for West Ham, ranking him twelfth in the list of loyal servants to the club. 54 of those appearances were made during competitions held during the First World War, and he even had to play at right back for one of these games. He joined the Coldstream Guards during the war and was wounded in action.

He was part of the West Ham team that were elected to The Football League for the first time in 1919, and went on to win promotion to the First Division during the 1922-23 season. He also appeared in the famous White Horse Final, the first FA Cup final at the brand new Wembley Stadium.

He made his international debut against Belgium on 1 November 1923, the game finishing 2-2. In only his third game for his country, an England team that was packed with many big stars, including Dixie Dean, Roy Goodall and Joe Bradford was beaten at home 5-1 by Scotland. It is probable that this mauling affected his long term England career, even though at the time he was considered by many to be the best goalkeeper in the world. He earned his final cap as an England player on 15 May 1929 when England lost to Spain, who narrowly edged a 4-3 victory.

Ted Hufton finished his playing career with Watford.