[Lord Snooty]

December 14:

On this date in 1935, Town played Sunderland at home in Division One. We were third in the table at the time, which is where we still were at the end of the season. Sunderland were up there as well and by the end of the season, they'd only gone and won it, finishing as champions a whole 8 points ahead of  Derby County.

So when they came to Leeds Road, there was a massive crowd of 30,690 in the ground, around about double the average attendance at the time. If any of them missed the kick off, they would've missed a little piece of history. For this be the game when our 23 year old right half and future England international Ken Willingham, scored after only ten seconds.

And 1-0 to Town was the final score. I remember going to a match with my dad when I was a kid, he was always getting us there late for the kick off and the same thing happened. It was against Carlisle in the 69/70 season and Steve Smith scored in the first minute and we missed it going in. Hearing the cheer from outside was quite annoying. Since going under my own steam, I've never missed a kick off and often get there an hour before, just to be sure.

Ken's ten second goal was unusual in that it was his only goal of the season and one of only five he scored in a fourteen year career at Leeds Road. He did score on his England debut though, which I mentioned the other day.

How does that goal rank in fastest goals? Well, looking at Wikipedia, he doesn't even register on their fastest goals chart. There are 61 goals registered on there quicker than ten seconds, but most of them are recorded from modern times when we have had replays and fancy timing mechanisms. When I was young, I remember that the quickest goal ever recorded was four seconds by Jim Fryatt of Bradford Park Avenue in 1964 against Tranmere.

However, Ken's goal is the quickest goal in Huddersfield Town history. And that's all that really matters.