| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ronald Staniforth | ||
| Date of birth | (1924-04-13)13 April 1924 | ||
| Place of birth | Manchester, England | ||
| Date of death | 5 October 1988(1988-10-05) (aged 64) | ||
| Place of death | Barrow in Furness, England | ||
| Position | Defender | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1946–1952 | Stockport County | 223 | (1) |
| 1952–1955 | Huddersfield Town | 110 | (0) |
| 1955–1959 | Sheffield Wednesday | 102 | (2) |
| 1959–1961 | Barrow | 38 | (0) |
| Total | 473 | (3) | |
| International career | |||
| 1954 | England | 8 | (0) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 1959–1964 | Barrow | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Ronald Staniforth (13 April 1924 – 5 October 1988) was an Englishfootballer, described as a tall, cultured full-back. His attacking excursions down the right wing sometimes caused concern to his team's supporters but probably more to his opponents.
After service in theRoyal Navy duringWorld War II he became a milkman and played in local league football, signing professional forStockport County at the relatively late age of 22. When the Stockport managerAndy Beattie moved toHuddersfield Town in the 1952 close season, Staniforth followed. Huddersfield had just been relegated. Staniforth, together with all the remainder of the defence, played in every game in the following season in which Huddersfield finished in second place and so were promoted back to the First Division.
In their first season back, Huddersfield maintained their momentum and were challenging for the championship. This led to Staniforth playing three times for England 'B' and then gaining eightEngland caps, all in 1954, including three in the final stages of theWorld Cup. He was also in the England side which notoriously lost7–1 toHungary although this did not lead to his losing his place.
In 1955 Huddersfield were becoming concerned about the ageing profile of their team and Staniforth was dropped after being given the run-around byBobby Mitchell in a quarter-final of the F.A. Cup. In July 1955 he moved toSheffield Wednesday, along withRoy Shiner, in an exchange deal which broughtTony Conwell andJackie Marriott to Huddersfield (they were respectively eight and four years younger).
At the age of 31, however, Staniforth's career was far from over. It must have seemed like déjà vu. Like his arrival at Huddersfield, Wednesday had just been relegated from the First Division and were promoted in his first season. Also he teamed up again with former Huddersfield defenderDon McEvoy. He went on to make 102 appearances for Wednesday over four seasons, during which they were promoted twice and relegated once.
In October 1959 he moved toBarrow as player-manager, later to be joined by McEvoy as a player. He retired from playing after 38 games and resigned as manager in 1964. Later he had two spells on the coaching staff at Hillsborough.
He died in Barrow on 5 October 1988, aged 64.
