Peter Swan, a Sheffield Wednesday legend marred by scandal, dies aged 84

Peter Swan, the Sheffield Wednesday legend whose career was marred by one of English football's biggest scandals, has died aged 84.
LEGEND: Peter Swan made over 300 Sheffield Wednesday appearancesLEGEND: Peter Swan made over 300 Sheffield Wednesday appearances
LEGEND: Peter Swan made over 300 Sheffield Wednesday appearances

The defender from Wakefield earned notoriety as part of a 1960s betting scandal which saw him jailed for four months, but he was also an outstanding wing-half who overcame a double leg fracture and his incarceration to play more than 300 times for the Owls and 19 times for England.

He made his international debut against Yugoslavia in May 1960 and was part of England's 1962 World Cup. Had a newspaper not uncovered how he, Tony Kay and David Layne bet on the Owls to lose to Ipswich Town that December, he might well have been part of the 1966 World Cup-winning squad.

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That saw his career put on hold for eight years but it could have ended earlier thanks to a coach crash in his sixth season at Hillsborough. He joined as an amateur in May 1952, when he worked part-time at Armthopre Colliery, but with his 18th birthday approaching he quickly earned a professional contract.

He made his debut against Barnsley in 1955 and soon established himself as a first choice, forming a formidable defensive partnership with Kay and Tom McAnearney.

In his early days he did national service at Catterick.

The Owls were runners-up to double winners Tottenham Hotspur in 1961 and his star was on the rise.

Tonsillitis before the tournament and dysentery when he went to Chile stopped him taking part in the 1962 World Cup but far worse was to come.

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When The People revealed the bets placed on Wednesday's 2-0 defeat at Portman Road, Swan received a lifetime ban from the game in April 1964 and a prison sentence in Lincoln.

He worked as a care salesman and a publican in Sheffield and Chesterfield until his suspension was lifted in 1972.

Owls manager Derek Dooley took him back on a 12-month contract and he made 15 appearances plus two as a substitute but when another was offered he had fallen out of favour and rejected it to sign for Bury instead.

He scored on his Shakers debut despite never having found the net for Wednesday, and retired in 1974 aged 37.

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Management stints at Matlock Town (twice), Worksop Town and Buxton followed before returning to the pub trade

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