Obituary: Former Halifax Town footballer Willie Carlin

Despite standing only 5ft 4in, Carlin was a tenacious inside-forward of zeal and craft, with a steely resolve that meant he was never afraid to go in where it hurts. How the fans loved him, and he remains in the eyes of many, the best player Town ever had.

Carlin came through the junior ranks at Liverpool, then managed by Phil Taylor, but despite making appearances for England at schoolboy and youth levels, he made only one senior outing with the Reds, a 1-1 draw at Stoke City on 17 October 1959.

Seeking first team football, he joined Third Division Halifax Town for £2,000 in August 1962 and came under the tutelage of coach Don McEvoy. He featured alongside the likes of Alex South, Barry Tait and Dennis Fidler, but despite appearing in 37 League matches in his first season, Carlin couldn’t halt the side’s slide into the Fourth Division.

He netted just two goals that term but in the Fourth Division he found things easier and finished 1963-64 as top scorer with 23 goals, proving something of a talisman as the Shaymen enjoyed a seven-match winning streak during a run of eleven unbeaten matches.

But frustrated at the lack of success, Carlin handed in a transfer request and having scored an impressive 34 goals from 107 appearances for the Shaymen, finally moved to Carlisle United in October 1964 where he pursued a career which would see him play in all four divisions.

Carlisle boss Ron Ashman paid a club record £10,000 for Carlin’s services, and the player became an instant hit, helping the club to the Third Division championship within his first year.

A broken leg early the following term hindered his and Carlisle’s progress, but he recovered to help the club consolidate in fourteenth place and the following term, the club astounded the sceptics by finishing third, just missing out on promotion to the top flight.

Carlin made 93 League appearances and scored 21 goals during his time at Brunton Park but wouldn’t be denied First Division football. Sheffield United manager signed him for £40,000 early into the 1967-68 campaign, though Carlin’s one season there ended in relegation.

But his talents had grabbed the attention of Derby County manager Brian Clough, who was about to shake up the Baseball Ground club.

Carlin joined the Rams for a fee of £63,000 in August 1968 and along with the legendary Dave Mackay, helped galvanise the club, as Clough steered Derby to the Second Division championship in 1968-69, with Carlin scoring a headed goal in victory at Millwall which clinched the title.

Carlin made 36 League appearances that term and scored eight goals, and the following season he played in all but two of Derby’s League matches as well as being a member of the Derby County side which clinched the first-ever Watney Cup, defeating Manchester United 4-1 in the final on 8 August 1970.

In total, Carlin made 89 League appearances for Derby and scored 14 goals but the arrival of a younger Archie Gemmill – Carlin was by then thirty – and a hip injury hastened his departure from the Baseball Ground and he switched to Frank O’Farrell’s Leicester City in October 1970.

There, he enjoyed more success, helping the Foxes to promotion to the top flight in his first season.

Carlin then dropped into the Third Division with Notts County, and though his new club just missed out on promotion in his first season, the following term he recovered from ankle ligament trouble to help steer County to promotion as runners-up to Bolton Wanderers.

Carlin lost his place in the County side during 1973-74, and was loaned out to Cardiff City before making the move permanent and inspiring the side’s pull away from the relegation zone.

Carlin retired at the end of that season and moved to Majorca, where he ran a bar and restaurant at Cala Bona for a time, before returning to England. He retired to Derby, the place he called home and was a regular attender at Derby County’s home matches.