This season Prostate Cancer UK is the official charity of The
Football League. To celebrate, we've asked bloggers from each of
the 72 clubs to count down their top five strikers to have worn the
No9 shirt, in recognition of the fact that prostate cancer
affects one in nine men.
Bearded wonder: Derek Hales was known to the fans as 'Killer'. Photo courtesy of Action Images
Here blogger Peter Finch, from charltonlive.co.uk,
selects Charlton's five best No9s… and one to forget!
5. Darren Bent (2005-07)
Signed from Ipswich, Darren became hugely popular at the Valley. A
natural goalscorer who more often than not played alone in a 5-4-1
formation, in 79 games for Charlton he scored 35 goals, 13 of those
being in an injury-hit season which saw the club relegated after
seven seasons of Premier League football. Shamefully overlooked by
various England managers, Bent is still immensely popular at
Charlton.
4. Johnny Summers (1956-61)
A fearsome and lethal striker who signed from Millwall, Summers'
record of 104 goals from 171 games is up there with the best in
terms of goals-to-game ratios, but it is for the December 1957 game
against Huddersfield that he is best known. Charlton, with only 10
men, trailed 5-1 at half-time, but in an incredible half hour
Summers struck a further four times and set up another two as
Charlton launched the comeback of all comebacks to win 7-6.
3. Clive Mendonca (1997-2002)
While not a leading goalscorer in the all-time list, without a
doubt he played a significant role in Charlton's recent history;
his hat-trick against Sunderland in the 1998 play-off final
demonstrated his predatory instincts and helped our promotion to
the Premier League. A natural goalscorer who was more than
happy to receive the ball with his back to the goal then turn and
fire the ball home, he had a great first touch and is known to the
fans as Super Clive Mendonca. His record is 40 goals in 84
games.
2. Stuart Leary (1950-62)
A staggering 403 league games yielded 153 league goals for the
popular South African, making him the all-time record goalscorer
for the club. He was also a county cricketer for Kent, immensely
popular in his time at Charlton, and sadly left when he could not
agree a new contract with the club in 1962.
1. Derek Hales (1973-76 & 1978-85)
Known to the fans as Killer, Hales was signed from Luton Town for
£4,000, and his 168 goals in 368 appearances does not even begin to
tell the Hales story. Menacing looking with his beard, Killer was a
supreme predator in the box, he terrorised defences in both his
spells and is still a popular visitor to the Valley.
And the worst…
Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink (2006-07)
Signed from Middlesbrough, his arrival created a wave of
excitement. But he turned up for a pre-season friendly clearly
carrying a few pounds too many and despite being a free transfer,
on a value-for-money basis was probably one of the worst signings
ever. Frequently looking like he couldn't be bothered, he managed a
pathetic two league goals in 25 games.
Follow Peter on Twitter at @CharltonLive