Tony Kay

Anthony Herbert Kay (born 13 May 1937) is an English former footballer who became notorious after being banned from the professional game for life following the British betting scandal of 1964.

Kay played for Sheffield Wednesday before becoming Britain's most expensive footballer when he was transferred to Everton for £60,000 in 1962. Kay was capped once for England, scoring against Switzerland in an 8–1 victory in 1963.

Playing career Kay was born in Sheffield. A left-sided wing-half, he started his career with hometown club Sheffield Wednesday. He transferred to Everton in December 1962, signed by his former manager Harry Catterick, and soon became the team captain. Everton were a work in progress under the ownership of the Littlewoods owner Sir John Moores and had earned the tag "The Mersey Millionaires". Kay was an important part of Catterick's evolving Everton side and the following May they were crowned league champions for the first time since the 1938–39 season. He also played in the 1963 FA Charity Shield, which Everton won.

Conviction for fraud In 1964, the Sunday People newspaper broke the story that Kay, along with fellow Sheffield Wednesday players David Layne and Peter Swan, through the instigation of former Everton player Jimmy Gauld, had bet on their side to lose a match in December 1962 against Ipswich Town. The three were convicted of conspiracy to defraud, Kay on the basis of a taped conversation, one of the first times such evidence was admitted in an English court.

Upon retirement, Kay returned to the North West to settle back on Merseyside in 1999. A few months before the 40th anniversary, since his transfer from Sheffield Wednesday in 1962, Tony Kay was once again present on the pitch at Goodison Park among a group of 100 Everton Legends, as the club celebrated a record 100 seasons of top flight football at the start of the 2002–03 campaign. He received a standing ovation from the crowd.