Rodney Green, footballer

It was while playing for Halifax in 1962 that he was spotted by the manager of third division Bradford Park Avenue. He went on to play for both of the city’s league clubs and in his second full season at Bradford City became its top scorer, with 29 league goals and two League Cup goals including two hat-tricks.

He had trained originally as a teacher, after leaving Rastrick Grammar, but spent just a few months in his first post at Guiseley before being signed by Bradford. He went on to play for Gillingham, Grimsby, Charlton, Luton Town and Watford, before moving to South Africa in 1970.

He returned to Halifax six years later, becoming an antiques dealer and opening a shop on North Bridge. He later founded a furniture importing company in Elland.

A larger than life character, he never lost his passion for football and, as manager of Stump Cross in 1980, won the Halifax and District FA Challenge Cup at the Shay.

A dyed-in-the-wool Yorkshireman, he spent his later years building up a small collection of classic vehicles, including a vintage tractor, which, when he found himself snowed in one Boxing Day, he drove through a deserted Halifax town centre to get to the pub for a seasonal pint.

He is survived by his four sons, his daughter and step-daughter, his eight grand-children and great-grandson.