Baven Penton
Harry Baven Penton (1890–1967) was an English professional footballer who played as a centre-forward for Southampton and Boscombe prior to the First World War.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Harry Baven Penton | ||
| Date of birth | 1890 | ||
| Place of birth | Boscombe, Bournemouth, England | ||
| Date of death | 1967 (aged 76–77) | ||
| Place of death | Droxford, Hampshire | ||
| Position(s) | Centre forward | ||
| Youth career | |||
| – | Pokesdown | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| Boscombe | |||
| 1911–1912 | Southampton | 13 | (3) |
| 1912 | Boscombe | ||
| 1912–1913 | Southampton | 1 | (0) |
| 1913–1914 | Boscombe | ||
| 1914–1928 | Eastleigh Athletic | ||
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only | |||
Playing career
Penton was born in Boscombe, Bournemouth in early 1890 and was a prolific marksman in his minor league days, scoring 60 in one season with Pokesdown and 26 in another for Boscombe.[1] His form attracted him to Southern League Southampton who were suffering from a lack of a suitable centre-forward, as the regular choice, Percy Prince was injured and replacement Sid Kimpton was not scoring regularly.
Penton moved across the New Forest in February 1911 and made his debut for Southampton at Crystal Palace on 25 February 1911, scoring in his home debut at The Dell in his next match (against Brentford). He retained his place until the end of the season, although he failed to live up to expectations with only three goals from twelve appearances. For the following season, the "Saints" signed Henry Hamilton and Penton only made one appearance, playing at inside-right in place of Archie Small on 16 September.[2]
He returned to Boscombe in January 1912 for a fee of £10 and became their first ever professional player on a wage of 30 shillings (£1.50) per week. In September 1912 he returned to The Dell but made only one further appearance.
He once again returned across the New Forest to Boscombe, but in 1914 he joined Eastleigh Athletic where he remained until 1928, now playing as goalkeeper rather than centre-forward.