Burnley's displays in the Second Division last season were a revelation. The club, with a squad full of young players, played some of their best football ever. One player who stood out amongst manager Jimmy Adamson's exciting side in 1972-73 was left-back Keith Newton. At 32 years of age, he's the 'old man' of the Turf Moor team. Does the veteran tag bother him at all?

"Veteran - me? You must be joking. Mind you, I think a lot of people get the impression I'd drifted into the backwaters of soccer when Everton gave me a free transfer over a year ago and I ended up joining Burnley. But my move was like a breath of fresh air. I was no longer regarded as a member of the first-team squad at Goodison Park so the time had come for me to break away. And when Burnley stepped in for my signature I saw it as a great chance to add a bit of my experience to a mainly young side."

Experience was probably the key factor missing in a team made up mostly of fresh-faced youngsters who would run forever but often didn't know exactly when to slow things down. Yes, Keith Newton has been around alright. Before his days at everton he was with Blackburn Rovers where he signed professional forms in October 1960. He started out as a wing-half but was eventually converted to a full-back, and later developed into one of England's finest defenders.

So it was no surprise when Sir Alf Ramsey drafted Newton into the England squad, and in February 1966 classy Newton won his first full cap for the men in white - the match being at Wembley against West Germany. Twenty-six more caps followed before the swashbuckling Newton was dropped from the England set-up following their ill-fated 1970 World Cup campaign in Mexico. Keith, incidentally, played in three of England's four matches and emerged as one of Ramsey's few successes in that competition.

Keith Newton challenges Johann Cruyff as the Charlton brothers look on; Wembley, June 1970

By then Newton had changed clubs, having signed for mighty Everton in December 1969 for �80,000, after making over 300 first-team appearances for Blackburn Rovers. Did Burnley's commanding full-back miss the atmosphere of a big-time club like Everton?

"Yes and no," replied Keith. "I miss all the big gates I used to play in front of at Goodison Park, but what people still don't seem to realise is the population of Burnley and the surrounding districts is small compared with a place like Liverpool. But I'll tell you this. Our fans are a grand bunch and the facilities at Turf Moor are a lot better than people would imagine."

One other fact that was obvious to our reporter is that Keith is enjoying himself these days, perhaps more than he's ever done. "Yes, I revel in playing for Burnley," enthused Keith. "It's a club that's going places - and I only hope that I'll still be around to help them!"

Reproduced by Jez Wilson, August 1998

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