RIP

Sad to see little mention of his passing.

Took this from Mike Amos' blog:

"It was neither a very good school magazine nor a very good idea, but it extended forever my football allegiance. Back in 1964 I’d written to players at each of the North-East “big three” seeking a piece on a professional’s life for the Bishop Auckland Grammar School mag.

Not a word came in reply.

Then I wrote to Kenny Simpkins, c/o Hartlepool United, and three days later had a smashing piece for a pretty indifferent magazine. To a lifelong affiliation to Shildon and Arsenal, always in that order, was at once added a support for the Pools that has never wavered.

Still I look out for them, still anxiously await their result, still – most of the time – worry.

Ken – who died on Wednesday – had been signed from Wrexham in March 1964 by Pools manager anf fellow Wrexham lad Alvin Williams, topped 15 stones on arrival and, like Topsy, grew and grew.

“I was never fat, I just had big legs for my age” he liked to observe.

Pools paid him £24 a week plus £1 a man bonus for every thousand on the gate above 10,000. His seasonal bonus amounted to £2.

By the time that Brian Clough famously became Pools manager, Ken had topped 16 stones. Cloughy decided on drastic action, what might these days be supposed fat shaming. “He’s tubby, unmarried, stays in digs and lives like a rake” he told the Hartlepool Mail – and Ken, pictured above, was quite fond of a pint.

His favourite haunts were the Blacksmiths Arms and the Stranton, both conveniently close to the Victoria Ground and closer yet to Cameron’s Brewery. “If I catch you in there any more I’m going to kill you” said Clough, pretty unequivocally.

He didn’t. Ken and friends changed pubs.

That he was a very good goalkeeper was reflected in 134 first team appearances – five of which were at centre forward, including the winning goal against Port Vale on November 18 1967. He also got his weight down to 14 stones, an accomplishment of which he was justly proud.”Clough was a hard bloke, a very hard bloke to work for” he said. “He said some pretty tough things but you never talked back.”

After Pools he signed for Boston in the Northern Premier League, again moving between numbers one and nine, hitting a hat-trick in 15 minutes against Goole.

He married a Hartlepool girl, remained happily on the Headland but for several years, plagued by arthritis, had lived in a care home at Blackhall. A lovely man, he was 79.

*We’d last met in April 2004, couple of pints in front of a roaring fire at the Harbour of refuge, near his home. He’d missed one home match in four years.

Pools were in the third tier play-off semi-finals, seeking second-tier football for the first time. Ken, who possibly should have known better, was optimistic. “The people who say it’s impossible haven’t seen us recently” he said.

“It’s a sign of how much things have changed that people were disappointed when we didn’t win the league title last season. In my day we got a civic reception for finishing 23rd.”

Though still welcomed in the hillsides, he’d become an unashamed Poolie. “I’d support Wales at everything, even tiddleywinks, unless Wrexham were playing Hartlepool” he said. “I’m a real Hartlepool supporter now.”

They might just have been the third team, but that made two of us."


Ken got some stick off Cloughie in his various books and got many mentions in 'Alchemy' by Christopher Hull: he was a true Poolie, in every sense.

RIP

RIP Ken.

Thanks for posting - always good to read a bit of Mike Amos.

Great post. RIP Ken.

I'm sat here on my sofa typing this and remembering Ken and his lovely wife sat on the very same sofa when they visited us some years back. There is a lot of dust about and I have some of it in my eyes.
Lovely people and very friendly.
Ken was a real character and I often think of him when our goalies get criticised for not coming for the ball. He used to come out whilst scattering everyone in his path, even his own players.
We send our deepest sympathies to Ken's family.
Rest in Peace My Friend.

Met Ken once, a real down to earth man. R.I.P. Ken

Thanks for the write up BHLB.

Class act Ken,
Can remember him flying around the box, If you got in his way then god help yer.
Could certainly move for a big(ish) lad.

RIP Ken, Fondly remembered.

R.I.P. Ken

I remember him playing when i was a kid.
Did he have a Wales under 23 cap or similar? I recall someone say that but cant be certain.
RIP Ken.

Yes he did.
He actually started out as a youngster as a centre forward. Goalie got injured and he went in goal and they kept him there, so it was no surprise that he made a decent job of it when asked to by Pools to return to the attack. Him and his mate Peter Thompson ( a real centre forward) both went to Boston United. Ken used to always mention that he got paid a pound a week more at Boston!!!.
Ken was the sort of guy who you would always want on your side.

Tennyson wrote a poem about crossing the bar which refers to ‘crossing the sandbar of life’ and used by sailors to say someone had passed on….In Ken’s case he may have crossed the crossbar of life, fitting for a goal keeper.
Deepest respects to a true character.
Sleep tight.

Thanks was it U23 or U21?

was one of our best for sure.

RIP Ken. Preferred Les Green myself but you did the business. Ken Simpkins the flying bin man of Hartlepool. Great memories of that era.

The flying bin man was Leo Harden.

Sorry for the late answer.........was u23.

Thanks do countries still have U23?

Sad news. I was at the Port Vale game in 1967 when he scored his one goal for Pools.

And nothing from Pools about his passing.

The problem is there is no one at the club who knew Kenny but that is no excuse. Chandy obviously refuses to acknowledge the fact that this forum is littered with people who make these ex players known when they pass away.
I've forgotten more about Pools than Chandy will ever know.

Chandy is a waste of space.

Chandy posted a picture of himself on Twitter yesterday wearing a black and white scarf outside of Wembley.

Self centered, Prick.

The questions he puts to managers are child like, I thought a one point DC was going to deck him (many moons ago)

What a shame he didn't.

Club ignored Ernie Phythian a few years ago in the same way.

As shallow as a car park puddle.

Surely someone must have pointed this out as he was on of the better known characters in the clubs history…… It’s down to lack of knowledge or was it pointed out and not acted upon? …..if that’s someone’s job, they ain’t doing it.

The Media and Communications Managers job, do we still have one ?

The current 'regime' (like others) appear to have no respect for the club's history.

The likes of Ken Simpkins was a legend. How many players have seen duty as goalkeepers and centre forwards? How many players have arrived in the town, taken serious crap off managers, and still stayed in the town at the end of their career?

And it is not just Ken - the passing of another one of my heroes, Billy Ayre, was also pretty much ignored by the then owners. And let's not forget the Neale Cooper stand - oops, the Durham Trumpton Airport stand - soon to be the Red Fez stand.......

'They' treat our past in the same way as they do our loyal support - with utter disdain.

And Chandy is an embarrassment - remember his tweets at Wimbledon - a child with a keyboard.

Bring back Simmo!

Have you been behind the Mill House stand?

I had a boating holiday on it recently…..the legendary Mill House Broads

They made the scenes of the Cruel Sea there.

Kenny was a nice bloke who was very well liked but to call him a legend is going a bit overboard. He was a very average goalkeeper who let’s face it is only remembered for the fact he had a few games at centre forward. Just shows how hard up we were when you play a goalkeeper at centre forward.
Whilst the club did not put it on the O.S it’s probably because no one at the club had ever heard of him however they did announce it before the Walsall game.

You can be a legend without being a top player, he was a character, yet some players of less than legendary ability achieved legendary status for just being themselves and trying.
I don’t think a topic like this is the place to start denigrating his contribution to the club.
Tactless and unwarranted.