Payton, Andy

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Fullname: Andrew Paul Payton
aka: Andy Payton, Andrew Payton
Born: 23 Oct 1967
Birthplace: Padiham (Burnley), England
Signed: 14 Aug 1992
Left: 25 Nov 1993
Position: Striker
Debut: Celtic 2-0 Dundee Utd, League, 15 Aug 1992
Internationals: none

Biog

“I will always be able to say I played for Celtic, finished top scorer and made a bit of an impact.” Andy Payton (2013)

Striker Andy Payton came to Celtic from Middlesbrough in a swap deal in August 1992 which saw Irish international full back Chris Morris head to Ayresome Park. He was brought to Celtic on the same day as two other signings, Stuart Slater and Rudi Vata, and hailed by then manager as to be the solutions to the then Celtic side. Nothing of the sort was to unfold.

The ex-Hull forward had endured a miserable time on Teesside due to injury and the signing of the stocky frontman did little to inspire a Celtic support that had become increasingly concerned at the gulf between the Bhoys and big spending champions Rangers. He’d done well previously with Hull and the move to Middlesborough was not working out, so Celtic was an easy escape route for him.

It took Andy Payton a little while to settle in Glasgow but after the return of Frank McAvennie to Parkhead, the Burnley-born forward began to find his stride and even scored in a 2-1 victory over Rangers at Celtic Park in March 1993, a good headed goal from a corner.

This was all during the days of the Celtic Takeover (‘Sack The Board’), and in truth Andy Payton was a bit of a cut-price hope to score the goals. The club was in a dire situation, and Andy Payton had high demands placed on him which were never going to be met. He simply wasn’t a top level striker but he never claimed to be one.

Across the city, Rangers had Ally McCoist and others hitting the target regularly, Andy Payton couldn’t really match them. Nevertheless, he still had a very fair scoring record and acquitted himself very well. Too often on the bench instead of on the park, he still fought hard when he came on.

After a poor start to the next campaign, Celtic manager Liam Brady was gone and replaced by Lou Macari, and Andy Payton was never given a real chance to build on the goals of his debut season He was transferred to Barnsley in November 1993, but this was also strongly due to Andy Payton himself wanting to move back south. It was publicly known that his wife had not settled in Glasgow and he had missed a game through going AWOL down south for family reasons on one occasion.

That deal to Barnsley was a straight swap with Andy Payton’s place in the Celtic squad taken by the older, slower and altogether inferior Wayne Biggins (a really poor deal by Lou Macari). It was another shambles at Celtic, and marked Lou Macari’s card down. Some supporters still cringe when this transfer is brought up. Some would consider it as the worst transfer swap move Celtic has ever done. Andy Payton kind of summed up the incredulity of the transfer himself quite well:

“He brought Wayne Biggins up in a swap deal for me which was beyond belief as he didn’t even score a goal for the reserves. I´m not singling out the player, I´m just looking at the comparison in the two records, and it´s frightening really.”

Andy Payton netted a more than respectable 20 goals in 46 appearances in what was a poor Celtic side, and while it was clear he lacked the finer qualities of many past Celtic strikers the support still appreciated Andy Payton’s robust efforts for the cause in what was a torrid time for the club.

Post-Celtic

After Celtic, he played for Barnsley, Huddersfield, Burnley and (on-loan) Blackpool, and where ever he went he scored goals. Apparently he was dubbed the ‘Padiham Predator’.

After football, he got himself into run-ins with police in some incidents concerning drugs & drink, with the details best left for other forums. He then moved into management with non-league clubs, but with little success.

[…]

Playing Career

Honours with Celtic

none

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Where are they now? Andy Payton

CelticFc.net
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By: Mark Henderson on 24 Jun, 2013 09:51
You had only been with Middlesbrough for a short period. Did the move to Celtic come as somewhat a surprise?
I knew Celtic had tried to buy me from Hull City before I went to Middlesbrough. Liam Brady had actually come down to a couple of games and I was flying for Hull City at the time, scoring loads of goals for fun. But Middlesbrough came in for me and then we got promoted into the Premier League the season I was there. The following summer I heard of Celtic´s interest and when I came up for talks and saw the ground I couldn’t wait to sign.

Did you realise the scale and size of the club before you signed?
I didn´t to be fair. I had never been to Celtic´s ground or anything. But to begin it was just the fact Liam Brady wanted to sign me. He is still a legend today but when you looked at his playing career in Italy etc, if someone of that calibre wants to sign you, it´s overwhelming really.

So when did it sink in you were at a huge club with huge expectations?
Straight away. The team was full of internationalists but they were all great lads and made me feel really welcome. I had played in the Championship in England for Hull and Middlesbrough, and while I had scored a lot of goals, a lot of these guys were all international players but there were no cliques or anything. They were just a great set of guys and they really made me feel welcome, and I was fortunate enough to score in my second game. We beat Dundee 1-0 in the cup at home and that got me off to a flier.

Do you remember making your debut against Dundee United, the day after you had signed?
I do. We won 2-0 and Gerry Creaney got two. We played well and deserved to win. Gerry was flying at the time and was probably the best young striker in Scotland. He was only about 20, and I was only about 23 or 24 myself. I think Charlie Nicholas was on the bench as well, so to keep someone like him out the side was amazing really. It was a good start, with the size of the crowd and everything.

Eventually you began to find the net on a regular basis as that season progressed. When did you feel you had settled in and hit top form?
I remember we beat Hibs 2-0 at home and then beat Hearts 1-0 and I scored in both of them. I think I scored about five in a few games or something and went on a decent scoring run, and we were doing okay. But, although we beat Rangers that season, you look back and they had a really good side then with the likes of McCoist, Hateley, Mikhailichenko and Trevor Steven.

And you did score the winner in a Glasgow derby which must have been a memorable moment for you?
John Collins scored first and I scored the second one. It was the first time we had beaten them under Liam Brady at Celtic Park. To score the winner in a Glasgow derby is a dream come true for any Celtic player, especially against a Rangers team of that calibre. But we had a good side as well. John Collins was superb and up there at the time. There was also Charlie Nicholas, while Frank McAvennie was doing well at the time and Paul McStay was brilliant. There were some really good players. One of the things that stuck in my mind was how fit the players were. If I got into the park at 9am, the lads would already be in the gym working out, doing sit-ups and runs and everything. So it changed my mentality a little bit. I could see why these players were actually internationalists.

Was Paul McStay the best player you played alongside in that Celtic team?
He was definitely up there along with John Collins. Charlie was still a great player, but Paul McStay and John Collins were great players and down-to-earth guys as well. I felt they really helped me. It was an honour to play in a team with those two.

You partnered several strikers at Celtic including Frank McAvennie, Charlie Nicholas and Gerry Creaney, but who did you enjoy playing alongside?
Gerry or Frank really, because I liked to play off someone. Just being picked in the side was brilliant, though. Once I found my feet, I got confidence and felt I had earned the right to be in the team. I finished the top scorer in the season I was there, so I can´t really complain.

Does that feat give you a lot of satisfaction, particularly as you were only with Celtic one full season?
Definitely. I think I played 36 times for the club and scored 20 goals. It´s probably one of those quiz questions: who was top scorer for Celtic in 1992/93? And when people hear the answer is Andy Payton, they might think, ´who?!´ Down in England, I won Golden Boots at Championship level and was top scorer at every club I played for. Throughout my career, I went to score 230 goals. I hope the Celtic fans remember me because I loved playing for the club and my goalscoring record was less than one in two.

Was it a source of frustration for you that you were here at a time when there was so much turmoil off the pitch?
I would never have left the club but Liam Brady got sacked. I had scored five goals in I think two sub appearances at the start of the next season but then Lou Macari came in and he just didn’t fancy me. He more or less said straight away that we will let you go if you want which I was amazed at. At that time in your career you want to play first-team football and I was being told that I wasn’t going to be in someone´s plans. He brought Wayne Biggins up in a swap deal for me which was beyond belief as he didn’t even score a goal for the reserves. I´m not singling out the player, I´m just looking at the comparison in the two records, and it´s frightening really. I went down to Barnsley and scored 50 goals in two seasons, so I carried on scoring. I really do believe if Liam Brady had still been there I could have cemented myself at Celtic. Anything could have happened then. At that age, I certainly think I should have been included in an England B squad or something but I don’t think they gave the respect to the Scottish league at that time. People don´t realise that when you are playing in front of 60,000 people, it´s not just the day of the game, it´s also the pressure that builds up to the game. You have to be able to handle the pressure. Some players couldn’t do that. Stuart Slater signed on the same day as me and he was a great lad but he couldn’t handle the pressure. It affected him big-style.

You would have known him from English football so were you surprised he never settled at Celtic?
You just don´t know if people can handle the crowd. It´s not just on a Saturday afternoon – it´s the whole build-up. You have the press up there and you are under more scrutiny. Stuart was a good lad but was quiet and it just didn’t work out for him. He did great at West Ham but couldn’t handle the pressure. He went a long time without scoring a goal. But it was fantastic club, the fans were absolutely magnificent and the memories of it for me are just superb. I´m proud to say that I played for Celtic.

So do you look back on your time at Celtic with a lot of pride?
Absolutely. I´m from Burnley, I finished my career at Burnley Football Club. I scored nearly 100 goals for the club. I also won the Golden Boot, we got promotion and I got the Player of the Year twice. But Celtic were a really massive club. The only regret I have is the fact I never got the opportunity to stay there longer and see how far I could have gone. I always scored goals at Championship level, and I would class the Scottish Premier League as a higher level because of the pressure and I scored goals there as well. There were some great characters up there and I was made to feel unbelievably welcome and the fans were magnificent. I have some great memories and I feel really proud to say I played for Celtic. It was a great honour – it´s just a fantastic club.

What happened after you exited Paradise in 1993?
I was at Barnsley for two seasons and then Huddersfield, who had just went up to the Championship, bought me when my contract was up. I had one season there and got 20 goals and then Burnley came in for me. I played about 130 games there and scored 81 goals and then my career came to an end when I reached 37.

You became a hero at Burnley which was your local team. That must have been special?
It was my hometown club and Burnley had actually released me when I was 16 so it was great to come back. I had already been back at Turf Moor with Barnsley and I scored in a 1-0 win. I didn’t celebrate and the fans remembered that. Some players go a bit over the top but I just walked back, and made it clear to everyone that because I had lived in the town I wasn’t going to celebrate. I am the only player in the history of Burnley to have won the Golden Boot and that was the season we got promotion and I also got the player of the year. That was in 2000 and that was a fantastic season. So I fulfilled all my ambitions at Burnley. If someone had said you would sign for Burnley, get Player of the Year, win the Golden Boot and get promotion all in the one season, then I wouldn’t have believed them. It was fantastic. I had a great career. I have some wonderful memories and played with some great players.

After hanging up your boots, did you stay in the game in some capacity?
Not straight away. When a lot of players stop playing, it´s really difficult as when you have done something every day for 20 years and it suddenly just stops, it´s hard work –you will have read the stories about people and one thing or another. It took me a couple of years to get used to the fact I wasn’t playing anymore. You are training every day for 20-odd years and then when it dries up and stops it´s really hard. But once I had got over that, there was only thing I know and that is football and sticking the ball into the back of the net, so that´s what I teach kids in Burnley. I coach from six-year-olds to teenagers. And it´s amazing how a lot of clubs don´t do a lot of work in sticking the ball in the back of the net. I used to practice like mad. When you are having a bit of lean spell in front of goal, you don’t suddenly wake up and score again, you have to practice. Darts and snooker players, all they do is practice. I also manage a team called Colne in the North West Counties Premier Division. I´m on the ladder now and hopefully I would like to get into a professional club at some point, and I think there´s every chance it could happen in a couple of years. I´m enjoying life at the moment – I´m enjoying football and passing on my experience to others.

You also brought out a book last year about your career, did you enjoy writing that?
A friend of mind just suggested it actually. It´s called ´Living the Dream´ and the majority of it was on my time at Burnley. It went down well and it´s done really well locally and most people who have bought the book have enjoyed it. Instead of just giving scores and match reports, it tells the ins and outs, what training was like etc. Things didn’t always go smoothly in your career and you didn’t get on with everybody – some players you did and some you didn’t. I just tried to tell how it was really.

Although you haven’t been back up to Celtic Park for a game, do you still keep an eye on the team´s progress?
I obviously still look out for Celtic´s results. The players have changed so much since 1993. It´s amazing really. Someone sent me down a DVD and they only had six goals on it as there wasn’t footage of the others. It wasn’t a million years ago, 1993. It´s amazing how time flies and how quickly your career goes by. I had a long career but it seems to have gone in a blink of an eye. But when I have time to sit back and look over my career, I will always be able to say I played for Celtic, finished top scorer and made a bit of an impact.