Introduction
Graham Charles Paddon (24 August 1950 – 19 November 2007) was an English footballer who played as a midfielder for Coventry City, Millwall, Norwich City and West Ham United.
Playing career
Paddon was born in Manchester where he studied at Chorlton Grammar School before beginning his career with Coventry City where he made five League appearances for scoring one goal, before signing for Norwich City in October 1969 for £25,000. He played with the promotion winning team of 1972, and the team that reached the 1973 League Cup Final.
After 290 League appearances and 25 goals for the Canaries, Paddon joined West Ham United for £170,000 in 1973 in a deal which saw Ted MacDougall move the other way. He made 150 League and cup appearances and scored 20 goals in his three years at West Ham, featuring in the 1975 FA Cup Final and the 1976 European Cup Winners' Cup Final.
Paddon rejoined Norwich for £110,000 in November 1976, and later played in the United States with the Tampa Bay Rowdies. He even scored a goal against Norwich in an indoor friendly between the two sides on May 3, 1978 in St. Petersburg, Florida. On his return to England, he had a spell at Millwall where he made five League appearances and scored one goal. He finished his career in Hong Kong with Eastern AA.
Coaching career
In August 1985, Paddon joined the coaching staff at Portsmouth, working under Alan Ball. He moved to Stoke City to become Ball's assistant in October 1989. After Ball had been sacked in February 1991 Paddon was given the role as Caretaker manager up until the end of the 1990–91 season. Stoke finished in 14th place in the Third Division which was unfortunately for Paddon Stoke's worst ever league finish. He returned to Portsmouth to work as Jim Smith's number two in the spring of 1991. In March 1995, the pair were sacked and Paddon later worked as a scout for Derby County, again under Jim Smith.
Paddon died at his home in Norfolk on 19 November 2007.
Career statistics
As a player
- Sourced from Graham Paddon profile at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
| Club | Season | League | FA Cup | League Cup | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Coventry City | 1968–69 | First Division | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 1969–70 | First Division | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | |
| Total | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | ||
| Norwich City | 1969–70 | Second Division | 30 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 31 | 2 |
| 1970–71 | Second Division | 40 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 45 | 1 | |
| 1971–72 | Second Division | 40 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 46 | 10 | |
| 1972–73 | First Division | 38 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 5 | 6 | 0 | 54 | 12 | |
| 1973–74 | First Division | 14 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 22 | 3 | |
| Total | 162 | 19 | 7 | 0 | 18 | 7 | 11 | 2 | 198 | 28 | ||
| West Ham United | 1973–74 | First Division | 24 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 4 |
| 1974–75 | First Division | 40 | 4 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 54 | 4 | |
| 1975–76 | First Division | 39 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 12 | 2 | 57 | 5 | |
| 1976–77 | First Division | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 2 | |
| Total | 115 | 11 | 11 | 0 | 11 | 2 | 15 | 2 | 152 | 15 | ||
| Norwich City | 1976–77 | First Division | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 1977–78 | First Division | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 0 | |
| 1978–79 | First Division | 17 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 1 | |
| 1979–80 | First Division | 40 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 49 | 5 | |
| 1980–81 | First Division | 42 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 48 | 3 | |
| 1981–82 | Second Division | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 11 | 0 | |
| Total | 128 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 10 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 146 | 9 | ||
| Tampa Bay Rowdies (loan) | 1978 | NASL | 25 | 5 | – | – | – | 25 | 5 | |||
| Millwall (loan) | 1981–82 | Third Division | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 |
| Career Total | 440 | 43 | 23 | 1 | 39 | 11 | 29 | 4 | 531 | 59 | ||
As a manager
| Team | From | To | Record | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | D | L | Win % | |||
| Stoke City | 24 February 1991 | 18 June 1991 | 18 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 33.33 |
Honours
- Football League Second Division champions: 1971–72
- Football League Cup runner-up: 1973
- FA Cup winner: 1975
- FA Charity Shield runner-up: 1975
- UEFA Cup Winners' Cup runner-up: 1976