| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Thomas Stephen Caton[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1962-10-06)6 October 1962[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Kirkby, England | ||
| Date of death | 30 April 1993(1993-04-30) (aged 30)[1] | ||
| Place of death | Bampton,[1] Oxfordshire, England | ||
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)[2] | ||
| Position | Central defender | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1978–1979 | Manchester City | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1979–1983 | Manchester City | 165 | (8) |
| 1983–1987 | Arsenal | 81 | (2) |
| 1987–1988 | Oxford United | 53 | (3) |
| 1988–1991 | Charlton Athletic | 57 | (5) |
| Total | 356 | (18) | |
| International career | |||
| 1977–1978 | England Schoolboys | 10 | (0) |
| 1979–1980 | England Youth | 4 | (0) |
| 1981–1984 | England U21 | 14 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Thomas Stephen Caton (6 October 1962 – 30 April 1993) was an Englishfootballer who played as acentre half forManchester City,Arsenal,Oxford United andCharlton Athletic. Caton captained both Manchester City and Oxford United and was named as City'sPlayer of the Year in 1982.
He made 14 appearances for theEngland under-21 team.[3]
Born inKirkby,Lancashire, Caton was acentre half who played for and captainedEngland schoolboys before signing forManchester City as an apprentice in 1978. He was a member of the City team that reached and lost in the1979[4] and1980 FA Youth Cup finals.[5] Caton made his senior debut for City on 18 August 1979 aged 16, and soon became a regular in the City side, playing in the1981 FA Cup Final againstTottenham Hotspur when still only 18 years old. WhenTommy Hutchison put City in the lead it looked as though Caton was on his way to collect a winner's medal, but Tottenham levelled as a result of Hutchison's own goal, a replay was forced and City lost it 3–2.[4]
He reached 100First Division games on 6 March 1982; at the age of 19 years and 5 months he was the youngest player inFootball League history to achieve this feat. He was also named City's Player of the Year for 1981–82. Caton scored eight goals during his spell atMaine Road, the first one coming in a 1–1 draw atNottingham Forest on 13 March 1982, and he scored twice againstArsenal on 4 December 1982.[4] He scored his last goal for City in a 3–1 win againstShrewsbury Town atGay Meadow on 5 November 1983.[citation needed]
A season after he came close to collecting an FA Cup winner's medal, Caton was looking like a good bet for aFootball League First Division title winner's medal as City went top of the league just after Christmas in 1981, but a dismal second half of the season meant they finished mid table and were left without even aUEFA Cup place. The lacklustre form continued into the1982–83 season, at the end of which City were beaten 1–0 at home on the final day of the season byLuton Town, meaning that City were relegated and Luton stayed up. Caton was unwilling to remain at City now they were a Second Division club, and handed in a transfer request, but began the1983–84 season still playing for the Citizens and he remained there until December 1983 when he made the move to Arsenal for £500,000.[4][6]
Caton made his Arsenal debut againstWest Bromwich Albion on 4 December. However, after playing as a first team regular under the management ofDon Howe in his first two years at Arsenal asDavid O'Leary's partner, he lost his place to teenagersMartin Keown andTony Adams during the1985–86 season, at the end of which Howe was replaced byGeorge Graham. By February 1987, Caton had scored three goals in 95 appearances for Arsenal, but had not played first-team football in almost a year.[6][7]
In February 1987, Caton was sold toOxford United for £160,000. He was named club captain soon after his arrival and helped them avoid relegation from the First Division during his opening months at theManor Ground.[6] He also missed out on a chance of silverware when Oxford were knocked out in the semifinals of the1987–88 League Cup.[8]
He remained at Oxford until 18 November 1988, when he was sold toCharlton Athletic for £100,000[6] in order to play in the First Division again. Caton stayed with Charlton after their relegation in 1990, but was injured the following January and never played first team football again.[citation needed] He finally announced his retirement in March 1993 having failed to make a full recovery. He had played 57 league games for Charlton, scoring five goals.[4]
Caton was born inKirkby,Lancashire.[6] He was married to Gill, and had three children.[9] His sonAndy also played League football.[10] At the age of 30, a month after he announced his retirement, Caton suddenly died of aheart attack at home inOxfordshire.[9]
Manchester City
England Under-21