The
Len Shackleton Story: Clown Prince of Soccer? by Colin Malam (2004)
LEN SHACKLETON never won a thing in his 17-year career - not a League Championship medal, not an FA Cup medal, not even a medal for topping the old Second Division.
Not only that, but 'Shack' collected only five England caps. His legion of admirers regard that as an insult to the outstanding ability of this unusual footballer, but many will have to take their word for it because little or no film exists of the great man in action.
Yet, half a century after he stopped playing, Shackleton remains a legend, particularly in Bradford, Newcastle and Sunderland where fans preserve precious memories of his magical ball control and outrageous showmanship. They insist he would have been a sensation in today's game. But would he? That is one of the questions Colin Malam attempts to answer in this biography. Was the Clown Prince more Prince than Clown?