Leeds United striker, England forward, and the coolest finisher of Revie's revered side
FootballAllan Clarke was nicknamed Sniffer for a reason. Inside the penalty area he had the instincts of a predator and the composure of a man counting change. If Leeds United's great Revie era had a finisher-in-chief, it was Clarke.
He won 19 caps for England and scored 10 international goals, but it was at Elland Road that his legend was built. Signed by Don Revie in 1969 for a then British record fee, Clarke rewarded the club with the 1972 FA Cup final winner against Arsenal, a diving header that stands as one of the iconic Wembley goals of its decade. He was a First Division champion in 1974, a key figure in two European finals, and a scorer on his England debut at the 1970 World Cup in Mexico.
After his playing career he managed Barnsley, Leeds themselves, and several other clubs, with the expected bumps of a post-playing life in the dugout. But the image the supporters kept was of the lean number eight peeling off the shoulder of defenders and making it look simple.
Today Clarke is a revered figure in Leeds history, one of the last living links to the side that came to define English club football in the early 1970s. On the speaking circuit he is quietly authoritative, full of stories about Revie, Bremner, Giles and the fearsome dressing room they all shared.
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