In a 124-year history, Sutton United have enjoyed a decorated journey through the lower echelons of the English football pyramid with one of the club’s most remarkable seasons coming immediately after the end of World War II.
Not only did the 1945/46 campaign witness the Us do a domestic double by adding the Surrey Senior Cup to their Athenian League title but the club also reached the FA Cup First Round for the first time.
These achievements could not have been possible without forward Charlie Vaughan, whose goal scoring prowess would engrave his name into folklore by scoring a club record 68 goals across all competitions.
Not only did Vaughan score the only goal in the cup final against Woking to clinch what has proved to be Sutton’s first of 15 Surrey Senior Cup successes but also, during the Athenian League campaign, notched up 43 goals in just 24 matches.
Meanwhile the player added a further 13 FA Cup goals to his collection as the side saw off the likes of Wimbledon and Gillingham before eventually being knocked out by Walthamstow Avenue.
Life-long Sutton United fan John Lowe was lucky enough to witness Vaughan’s record-breaking exploits which also featured an 11-game goalscoring streak which included nine hat-tricks.
Now 90-years-old, John went on to know Vaughan off the field as well as on it and recalls the player’s match-winning Surrey Senior Cup moment vividly.
Speaking exclusively to London Football Scene, John said: “The match was played at Kingstonians’ old ground, there was a mixture of Sutton and Woking supporters behind that goal as we (the fans) weren’t so aggressive back then.
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“I cannot recall which foot but he smashed it in. It was a glorious strike and I remember the ball hitting the net and coming at me as I was right behind the goal.”
As a person, John describes Vaughan as a modest, self-effacing man who first quietly walked into Gander Green Lane in the summer of 1942 as a 21-year-old playing for nearby engineering team Phillips.
Asking for a trial, and despite games and competitions still being rare and sporadic due to the war effort, Sutton obliged and quickly gained a glimpse of the talent at their disposal.
In October 1943, Vaughan netted eight goals in a friendly against the Welsh Guards – a feat that has only been bettered by Micky Joyce, who netted nine against Leatherhead in 1982.
A player who mostly played just ahead of his attacking partner, Vaughan finished his first full season with 60 goals (33 of those coming from 15 league games) and a total of seven hat-tricks which helped him cement a place in the South Eastern Combination League XI.
“He (Vaughan) wasn’t of particular height but he was so fast for his age,” added John.
“A lightning centre-forward at that level as well as a prolific goal scorer, Charlie (Vaughan) would score a goal and shake hands with his partner before continuing the game.”
After the double season success, the following 1946/47 campaign would prove to be Vaughan’s last, but not before helping Sutton reach the FA Cup First Round again (scoring seven times) and becoming the club’s first player to represent England when he earned an amateur international cap.
Having already previously earned a handful of outings with Charlton Athletic reserves, Vaughan eventually signed a professional contract with the Addicks in January 1947, where his 91 goals across seven seasons saw him become their record First Division scorer – a feat that remains untouched to this day.
Vaughan subsequently moved to Portsmouth for £10,000 during the 1953/54 season before later moving to Bexleyheath & Welling (later merging into Bexley United).
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Following retirement, Vaughan took charge of Bexley during the 1960s with his last known footballing role at Millwall, where he was the club’s chief-scout for the 1969/70 campaign.
Sadly passing away in March 1989 at the age of 67, his record of 248 goals in 147 competitive games for Sutton has only ever been beaten by Paul McKinnon (279).
A player who has been inducted into both Sutton and Charlton’s ‘Hall of Fame’ and described by historians as possessing venomous shot, great heading ability, smart movement and clever turn of pace, the English game may never witness a more humble yet clinical footballer as Charlie Vaughan again.
Photo of Charlie Vaughan during Charlton Athletic’s 1949 tour of Turkey (fourth from left, front row) provided with thanks to Charlton Athletic Museum.