Burly and commanding old-fashioned centre-forward who was never
afraid to mix it with the opposition. Linked up well with Joe Jordan
and scored quite a few goals for Leeds before moving out to Canada to
play for Vancouver Whitecaps. He returned to England for the massive
fee of £400,000 to play - or rather not play - for Arsenal,
leaving after 3 months and no games. He returned to Vancouver for a
year via Shamrock Rovers before coming back to England for short
spells with Boro, Peterborough and Wolves. After leaving Wolves he
played a bit of non-league football in the north-east and had a spell
in management with the giants of Northallerton Town.
Maggie Bennett nee Ferguson nick name GUS says: "went to school
with him".
Dave Hogg says: I saw Ray play for the Whitecaps. He scored some
fantastic goals with his head. He was right up there with the best of
them in the air.
David Wharfe says: As a Burnley fan, I saw Ray at the Turf.He never
quite realised his potential - weight problems and a quick temper did
not help. Once saw him score a great goal for the Clarets v Liverpool
- typical of the player - second favourite for a Leighton James cross
- he climbed all over Larry Lloyd and buried it past Clemence. That
was in 1974- and we were top of the league. Memories!!!
Dave Almond says: An aggressively courageous forward,who was once
sensationally sacked(by Peterboro)seemingly for showing just too much
eagerness! A spell with Wolves in 1986 was followed with an FA CUP
appearance for Guisboro v Bury.Ray was sent off,in what i believe to
be his last game. Never has there been a player to replace Ray.Many
will copy,but none will ever duplicate!
Carl Drewery says: Sacked by Peterborough for being sent off just
once too often.Five times in a a season.
Glen Hankin says: Ray always did have a bit of a nasty temper when
he was out on the pitch, but a decent bloke off it (he's my uncle).
Ray is now working for Newcastle United as "Football in the Community
Officer" working with kids. It suits him, as he often spat the dummy
out, usually in the direction of the ref.
Stuart says: New Years Day 1980, Derby at home, stood in the kop
frozen solid. Only the two areas weren't white and the ball was
orange. Poor game, the only real interest was how high in the air
Powell could kick Terry Connor - until Ray came off the bench and
launched Powell to the biggest cheer of the afternoon - bigger than
the one for Gonzo's free kick that won the match 1-0 for us. I was a
teenager then and Ray Hankin has always and will always be my
favourite Leeds player.
Footy says: I remember Ray when he played for the Vancouver
Whitecaps and I must echoe the fact that Ray was deadly in the air and
luckly have some of his magic on video. Cheer Ray !
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