Benny Yorston

Infobox Football biography
playername= Benny Yorston
fullname = Benjamin Collard Yorston
nickname =


dateofbirth = birth date|1905|10|14
cityofbirth = Nigg
countryofbirth = Scotland
dateofdeath = 1977
height = 5' 5" (1.65m)
position = Striker
youthyears =
youthclubs =
years = 1927
1927-1931
1932-1934
1934-1939
clubs = Montrose
Aberdeen
Sunderland
Middlesbrough
caps(goals) =
143 0 (101)
49 0 (25)
152 0 (54)
nationalyears = 1930
nationalteam = Scotland
nationalcaps(goals) = 1 0 (0)

Benjamin "Benny" Collard Yorston (14 October 1905-1977) was a Scottish professional footballer who played for Montrose, Aberdeen, Sunderland and Middlesbrough.

Born in Nigg, Kincardineshire, the diminutive (5ft 5in) forward played for Aberdeen juvenile sides Kittybrewster and Mugiemoss before joining Montrose in 1927.cite book | last = Lamming | first = Douglas | title = A Scottish Soccer Internationalists Who’s Who, 1872-1986 | format = Hardback | publisher = Hutton Press | year = 1987 | id = (ISBN 0-907033-47-4) ] He spent only 3 months with the "Gable Endies" before returning north to sign for Aberdeen F.C.. Yorston stayed with the "Dons" for five seasons and remains the club's record goal-scorer for a single season, having notched 38 goals in 1929-30. He won his only cap for Scotland against Ireland in 1931.

Yorston was one of five Aberdeen players dropped after a 1-1 draw with Kilmarnock later that year. At the time, the reasons were not clear, but the club's official history claims that several players had been involved in a betting scandal. No players were ever charged with any offence, but none of them ever played for Aberdeen again. [ cite book| first=Jack| last=Webster| title=The First 100 Years of The Dons: the official history of Aberdeen Football Club 1903 - 2003| publisher=Hodder and Stoughton| year=2003| id=ISBN 0 340 82344 5| page=128-131]

Yorston joined Sunderland for £2,000 in January 1932 then moved to their North-East rivals Middlesbrough for £1,250 in 1934. He stayed with Middlesbrough until the outbreak of World War II, during which he "guested" for Aldershot, Reading, West Ham United and Lincoln City. He retired before the cessation of global hostilities.

Yorston's nephew Harry was also a professional footballer who, like his uncle, played for Aberdeen and the Scottish national side.

References

External links

* [http://scottishleague.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=2904&sid=51a66e5d57702cccccaba4af6bafa0e5 Biographical details] at scottishleague.net