Higginbotham Harry Image 5 Luton Town 1922

Description

Ashfield, New South Wales, Australia born inside right Harry Higginbotham emigrated to Scotland with his family in 1900, initially living in the Edinburgh area before moving to Glasgow. He represented Scotland at junior international level while playing for Kilsyth Rangers, and played for Petershill in 1913. He had a spell on the books of Hibernian before playing for Third Lanark, from where he signed for St Mirren in August 1916.

During three years at Love Street he scored 8 goals in 56 appearances for The Buddies, but at the end of the First World War he moved south to join Second Division newcomers South Shields in July 1919, making his Football League debut in their inaugural League fixture at Fulham the following month. However he only made 7 appearances that season before joining Luton Town in July 1920.

At Luton he played with the likes of internationals Ernie Simms and Louis Bookman in a strong team, and he scored 30 goals, including all 3 goals in a 3-1 win over Queen’s Park Rangers in April 1922, in 88 appearances for The Hatters over his three seasons there before Second Division Clapton Orient signed him in February 1923. He struggled however, at Millfields Road, scoring only once in 19 matches before Second Division rivals Nelson signed him in February 1924.

After only 4 matches, he was released by Nelson at the end of the season following their relegation, and joined Reading in April 1924, where he scored 3 times in 25 appearances during The Royals’ 1924-25 campaign, before joining Southern League club Mid Rhondda United in 1925, and thereafter Pontypridd, in the summer of 1926, his final recorded club before his eventual retirement.

NB although published in 1924, this is taken from the photograph at Luton Town in 1922, see Image 2.