Ray Hankin

Hankin was born in Wallsend,{{Hugman|8195|accessdate=3 January 2018}} Northumberland, where he played football for Wallsend Boys Club.

Hankin began his club career in 1970 as an apprentice with Burnley.{{cite web |url=http://wallsendboysclub.org.uk/history/ray-hankin/ |title=Ray Hankin |publisher=Wallsend Boys Club |access-date=3 January 2018}} He turned professional in February 1973, and made his Football League debut on 24 April 1973, at the age of 17 years and 2 months, as an 83rd-minute substitute in a 3–0 win at home to Luton Town that left Burnley needing one point from the final match of the season to win the Second Division title.{{cite web |url=http://www.sporting-heroes.net/football/burnley-fc/ray-hankin-9867/1972-73-1976-77_a15075/ |title=Ray Hankin Burnley FC |website=Sporting Heroes |access-date=3 January 2018}}
{{cite web |url=http://www.clarets-mad.co.uk/feat/ed94/one_point_needed_for_title_and_a_new_stand_on_the_way_793096/index.shtml |title=One point needed for title and a new stand on the way |first=Tony |last=Scholes |website=Clarets Mad |date=24 April 2013 |access-date=3 January 2018}}
{{cite web |url=http://www.theleaguepaper.com/features/4516/where-are-they-now-burnley-division-two-champions-197273/ |title=Where are they now? Burnley's 1972–73 Division Two Champions |first=Neil |last=Fissler |newspaper=The Football League Paper |date=17 March 2016 |access-date=3 January 2018}} Hankin was selected in England's squad for the 1973 European Under-18 Championship in Italy in June. He scored the only goal of the semifinal against Italy,{{cite news |title=England in final |newspaper=The Times |location=London |agency=Reuter |date=8 June 1973 |page=13 |quote=England will meet East Germany in the final of the UEFA youth tournament on Sunday. Tonight England beat Italy 1–0 with a goal by Hankin, and East Germany beat Bulgaria 1–0.}} and started in the final, in which England beat East Germany 3–2 after extra time to win the tournament.{{cite web |url=https://www.rsssf.org/tablese/ec-u18-73.html |title=UEFA Youth Tournament Under 18, 1973 |first1=Antony |last1=Jordan |first2=Erik |last2=Garin |date=1 February 2004 |website=RSSSF |access-date=3 January 2018}}

He made his First Division debut on 5 September 1973 away to Tottenham Hotspur, standing in for Paul Fletcher.{{citation needed|date=January 2018}} He forced a brilliant save from Pat Jennings before, with 13 minutes left and Tottenham 2–1 ahead, being fouled for a disputed penalty from which Burnley equalised, and four minutes later his team scored a winner.{{cite news |title=Tottenham fail to dampen new spirit of adventure |newspaper=The Times |location=London |date=6 September 1973 |page=10}} In the reverse fixture a week later, he set up a goal for Geoff Nulty and "caused [Tottenham] considerable trouble particularly in the air" in a match that finished 2–2.{{cite news |title=Tottenham earn their point the hard way |first=Gerry |last=Harrison |newspaper=The Times |location=London |date=12 September 1973 |page=10}} After Frank Casper was injured during that match,{{cite web |url=http://www.clarets-mad.co.uk/feat/ed35/frank_caspernbsp_343012/index.shtml |title=Frank Casper |first=Tony |last=Scholes |website=Clarets Mad |date=21 June 2011 |access-date=3 January 2018}} Hankin played regularly. He scored his first goal on his third appearance, with a glancing header to secure a draw at home to Derby County on 15 September,{{cite news |title=Burnley come through test of durability |first=Tom |last=Gorman |newspaper=The Times |location=London |date=17 September 1973 |page=9}} and finished the season with 8 goals from 34 league appearances.

In the 1974–75 season, Hankin missed only five matches in the First Division, and scored 14 goals. A match against Leeds United in September 1974 was particularly eventful. With the scores tied, Hankin was fouled while jumping to head a crossed ball and Leighton James converted the resulting penalty for what proved to be the winning goal. Hankin himself did not see out the win. He and Leeds defender Gordon McQueen had both already been booked when Hankin took hold of his opponent's shirt "like a page boy clutching a bride's train"; McQueen turned round and hit him,{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/50194263/hankin-mcqueen-incident/ |title=Leeds unable to manage |first=Peter |last=Corrigan |newspaper=The Observer |location=London |date=15 September 1974 |page=20}} and both were sent off.{{cite news |url=http://www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/sport/football/burnley_fc/news/8721282.Leighton_James__Leeds_United_rivalry_makes_it_huge_for_Burnley/ |title=Leighton James: Leeds United rivalry makes it huge for Burnley |first=Chris |last=Flanagan |newspaper=Lancashire Telegraph |date=6 December 2010 |access-date=3 January 2018}} Hankin's football was not restricted to his club. In October, while still only 18, he was included in the England under-23 squad for a European Championship qualifier against Czechoslovakia. England won 3–0, and Hankin made his debut as a substitute.{{cite web |url=https://www.rsssf.org/tablese/eng-u23-intres-det.html |title=England – U-23 International Results– Details |first=Barrie |last=Courtney |date=27 March 2004 |website=RSSSF |access-date=3 January 2018}} He made two more appearances for the under-23s that season, both in friendlies. He was also a member of Don Revie's All Stars XI that played a charity match against a West Midlands XI managed by Joe Mercer in aid of those affected by the Birmingham pub bombings.{{cite web |url=http://www.wolvesheroes.com/2017/06/09/a-united-front/ |title=A United Front: football's big effort to repair shattered morale |website=WolvesHeroes.com |date=9 June 2017 |access-date=3 January 2018}}
{{cite news |title=Revie is pleased with young stars |first=Alan |last=Williams |newspaper=Daily Express |location=London |date=10 December 1974 |page=18}}

Third in the table in January 1975,{{cite news |title=Not title form, Burnley |first=Brian |last=Crowther |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=20 January 1975 |page=18}} Burnley finished the season in mid-table, and despite Hankin's 13 goals, were relegated back to the Second Division in at the end of the 1975–76 campaign.{{cite web |url=http://fchd.info/BURNLEY.HTM |title=Burnley |website=Football Club History Database |publisher=Richard Rundle |access-date=3 January 2018}} Hankin began the new season still at the club, but was available for transfer. In September 1976, the injury-hit West Ham United agreed a fee of £200,000 for the player; he turned them down, because he and his wife would be uncomfortable in London.{{cite news |title=Hankin for West Ham |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=9 September 1976 |page=16 |quote=West Ham United, suffering from a loss of power in attack because of a particularly severe crop of injuries, yesterday agreed to pay Burnley £200,000 for Ray Hankin, a burly but mobile forward whose presence should create more scoring opportunities for, among others, the wispy Alan Taylor.}}
{{cite news |title=Leeds take no action against McNiven |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=14 September 1976 |page=18 |quote=Hankin ... feels that neither he nor his wife would be able to settle in London.}} A move to Leeds United{{snd}}1973–74 Football League champions and 1975 European Cup Finalists{{snd}}was agreed, but the medical revealed knee problems that required further investigation and possible surgery.{{cite news |title=Test of concentration before European games |first=Paul |last=Fitzpatrick |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=26 September 1976 |page=16}} Amid reported interest from Middlesbrough,{{cite news |title=£190,000 Hankin |newspaper=Daily Express |location=London |date=28 September 1976 |page=15}} Leeds were convinced that the injury "would have no long-term complications",{{cite news |title=Revie wins a free Saturday |first=Richard |last=Yallop |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=28 September 1976 |page=18}} and the move went ahead, for a fee of £172,000.{{cite news |url=https://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/sport/football/leeds-united/leeds-united-my-whites-playing-days-ray-hankin-interview-1-4212356 |title=Leeds United: My Whites playing days – Ray Hankin interview |first=Leon |last=Wobschall |newspaper=Yorkshire Evening Post |date=5 February 2012 |access-date=3 January 2018}}

The injury delayed Hankin's debut for Leeds until 6 November, when he started in a 2–0 win over Everton at Goodison Park.{{cite web |url=http://www.sporting-heroes.net/football/leeds-united-fc/ray-hankin-9867/league-appearances_a15076/ |title=Ray Hankin Leeds United FC |website=Sporting Heroes |access-date=3 January 2018}} He made three more appearances without scoring (plus a fourth, against Bristol City at Ashton Gate, in a match abandoned because of fog{{cite news |title=When seeing is believing |first=Alan |last=Lyons |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=6 December 1976 |page=16}}) before his knee problems returned.{{cite news |title=Rioch moves to Everton |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=9 December 1976 |page=22}} Towards the end of the season he underwent surgery, and regained fitness in time to join in pre-season training.{{cite news |title=Jack Charlton's dream |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=20 July 1977 |page=10}} He scored five goals in his first five matches, and two weeks later, against Manchester United, produced "a display of aerial ability throughout that must put him along the game's great headers of a ball".{{cite news |title=Morons can play spot the idiot |first=Paul |last=Wilcox |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=26 September 1977 |page=22 |quote=Currie at least also paved the way for the equaliser shortly afterwards by Hankin, who gave a display of aerial ability throughout that must put him along the game's great headers of a ball. He hit the crossbar twice and Stepney saved his most specacular effort—a downward bullet from Jordan's astute nod back, So while his goal was deserved, it seemed incongruous that it should come from a fierce shot.}} The Guardian{{'s}} reporter still had concerns that he and Joe Jordan needed to establish as close a relationship as existed between Mick Jones and Allan Clarke in Leeds' title-winning days.{{cite news |title=Leeds on right road |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=12 September 1977 |page=16}} Hankin himself relished playing alongside Jordan, but lost him to Manchester United halfway through the season; before Jordan's departure, Hankin had 14 league goals, but produced only 6 in the remainder of the campaign. The total of 20 still made him Leeds' top scorer by some distance.{{cite web |url=https://www.leedsunited.com/news/team-news/17500/ray-hankin |title=Ray Hankin |publisher=Leeds United F.C. |date=3 December 2003 |access-date=29 December 2017}} Hankin was selected for the England under-21 squad for the 1978 European Championship quarter-final second leg match against Italy in April, but had to withdraw through injury.{{cite news |title=Cropley's new blow |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=1 April 1978 |page=27}}

Playing alongside new signing John Hawley, Hankin contributed 9 goals from 30 league appearances in 1978–79 to help Leeds finish fifth and qualify for the UEFA Cup.{{cite news |url=https://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk/sport/football/leeds-united/leeds-united-my-whites-memory-match-john-hawley-interview-1-4450027 |title=Leeds United: My Whites memory match – John Hawley interview |first=Leon |last=Wobschall |newspaper=Yorkshire Evening Post |date=15 April 2012 |access-date=5 January 2018}} In March 1979, he was suspended for two weeks by manager Jimmy Adamson for an unspecified breach of club discipline;{{cite news |title=Hankin banned for two weeks |newspaper=Daily Express |location=London |date=6 March 1979 |page=39}} Hankin said later that it was for missing treatment to an injury.{{cite news |title=How Hankin sets out to be Frank |first=Harry |last=Miller |newspaper=Daily Mirror |location=London |date=27 November 1981 |page=31}} Early in the new season, Hawley was sold and Hankin submitted a transfer request, which was turned down by Leeds' board: Adamson said he was too valuable a player to lose.{{cite news |title=Daley dealings |first=John |last=Roberts |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=21 August 1979 |page=24}} In hopes of a move abroad, Hankin declared himself an admirer of "Continental methods and their style" before submitting a second request in October{{cite news |title=Hankin aims for Europe |newspaper=Daily Express |location=London |date=1 October 1979 |page=30}}{{snd}}also rejected{{cite news |title=Double happy returns for Arsenal |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=2 October 1979 |page=24}}{{snd}}before being made available for transfer some six weeks later.{{cite news |title=Exit Woodcock to Cologne |first=Patrick |last=Barclay |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=17 November 1979 |page=24}} His form had dipped, and by March 1980, when he finally left the club, he had scored only three league goals and one in the UEFA Cup.

There were offers from First Division clubs for Hankin's services,{{cite news |title=A Ray of light! |first=Steve |last=Curry |newspaper=Daily Express |location=London |date=17 November 1979 |page=48 |quote=Ray Hankin, transfer-listed by Leeds yesterday, is the likely answer to Ipswich's goal-scoring problems. Manager Bobby Robson confirmed before leaing for today's match at Derby that he is likely to move for the striker over the weekend.}}
{{cite news |title=Brighton chase Austrian star |first=Ray |last=Bradley |newspaper=Sunday Express |location=London |date=9 December 1979 |page=31}} but he signed for North American Soccer League (NASL) club Vancouver Whitecaps{{snd}}the reigning Soccer Bowl champions{{snd}}for a fee of £300,000.{{cite news |title=Hankin goes |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=11 March 1980 |page=22}} The team was managed by Tony Waiters, who had been in charge of the England youths at the 1973 European Championships,{{cite book |title=FIFA World Cup{{snd}}Mexico '86 Official Report |chapter=The 24 Teams{{snd}}An Analysis: Canada |chapter-url=http://resources.fifa.com/mm/document/afdeveloping/technicaldevp/50/09/03/fwc_mexico_1986_en_part3_280.pdf |publisher=Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) |date=1986 |page=126}} and Hankin's Leeds teammate David Harvey had joined a few days earlier. Hankin registered 8 goals and an assist from 24 matches in his first season, but the club itself was unsettled. The second season, with Waiters gone and another ex-Leeds man, Johnny Giles, in charge, things were different. Although the Irish Times thought some members of the team that played pre-season friendlies in Ireland, Hankin included, needed to "shed a bit of weight before the real competitive season gets under way",{{cite news |title=O'Doherty gives UCD a late equaliser |first=Derek |last=Jones |newspaper=Irish Times |date=6 March 1981 |page=4}} the Whitecaps won their division, but failed in the playoffs. According to Hankin, whose personal return rose to 12 goals and 8 assists from 22 matches, "we were the best team in the NASL, but we blew it."{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KZ3jqwaT5mwC&pg=PT195 |title=Playing for Uncle Sam: The Brits' Story of the North American Soccer League |first=David |last=Tossell |publisher=Mainstream |location=Edinburgh |date=2003 |isbn=1-84018-748-4}}

In November 1981, First Division club Arsenal, who were struggling to score goals after the departure of Frank Stapleton, expressed an interest in signing Hankin. There was some argument about the fee{{snd}}variously reported as £300,000 or £400,000{{snd}}and the deal included an agreement for him to return to Vanvouver if he did not impress. Reunited with Leeds striker partner John Hawley, Hankin played twice for the first team, both times as a substitute in the League Cup against Liverpool, but no permanent move ensued. He attributed that to the economic problems then current in English football.{{cite web |url=http://www.thearsenalhistory.com/?p=7661 |title=The Arsenal legend who only played 110 minutes |first=Andy |last=Kelly |website=The Arsenal History |date=27 December 2013 |access-date=9 January 2018}}
{{cite news |title=Soccer—one of the last of the big spenders |first=Peter |last=Byrne |newspaper=Irish Times |date=23 February 1982 |page=10 |quote=After weeks of agonizing, however, Arsenal baulked at the asking price of £400,000 and the Englishman, the property of the Canadian club, Vancouver Whitecaps, went on loan to Shamrock Rovers. 'In a sense, the recession in football and my arrival in Ireland are not unconnected, ... Had the money been freely available in England, I would probably have ended up at Arsenal.}} Before returning to Canada for one last season with the Whitecaps, Hankin made a few appearances for Shamrock Rovers under Johnny Giles, who combined coaching the Whitecaps with managing the League of Ireland club. He scored the only goal of the match at Sligo Rovers on his debut, as well as missing from six yards "when it looked so much easier to score."{{cite news |title=Shamrock Rovers are clear favourites now |first=Peter |last=Byrne |newspaper=Irish Times |date=25 January 1982 |page=4}}
{{cite news |title=Giles parts company with Rovers |first=Peter |last=Byrne |newspaper=Irish Times |date=4 February 1983 |page=3 |quote=Giles, who is resuming his appointment with Vancouver Whitecaps in March, has found it increasingly difficult to serve two clubs whose seasons now seriously overlap.}}

After the 1982 NASL season finished, Hankin returned to England to sign for Middlesbrough, bottom of the Second Division, on a two-year deal for a fee of £85,000.{{cite news |title=Crowd woe for Wales |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=24 September 1982 |page=24}}
{{cite web |url=https://www.11v11.com/teams/middlesbrough/tab/leagueTables/24-september-1982/ |title=League Division Two table after close of play on 24 September 1982 |website=11v11.com |publisher=AFS Enterprises |access-date=15 January 2018}} He made his debut on 28 September against Grimsby Town: he and teammate Mick Kennedy were sent off as Middlesbrough lost 4–1.{{cite news |title=Night fever for football |newspaper=Daily Express |location=London |date=29 September 1982 |page=36}} That was Bobby Murdoch's last match as Boro manager; in successor Malcolm Allison's first match in charge, a League Cup tie against Burnley, Hankin scored his first goal for the club.{{cite web |url=https://www.mfc.co.uk/news/cups-of-claret |title=Cups of claret |publisher=Middlesbrough F.C. |date=8 January 2016 |access-date=15 January 2018}} He was a regular in the side despite a lack of goals, but fell out of favour towards the end of the season and made his final appearance as a substitute against Leicester City on 5 April 1983. He received a two-match ban for reaching 41 disciplinary points,{{cite news |title=Soccer in brief |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=19 April 1983 |page=26}} and was transfer-listed at the end of the season.{{cite news |title=Leeds lose Hart |newspaper=The Times |location=London |date=18 May 1983 |page=24}} He had scored just once in 21 league matches.

Hankin moved on to Fourth Division club Peterborough United for a "small fee" in early September.{{cite news |title=Sports in Brief |newspaper=The Times |location=London |date=9 September 1983 |page=18}} He scored twice on his debut, and continued to score at a rate of one every four matches, but his disciplinary problems increased. He was sent off four times during the 1983–84 season,{{cite news |url=https://www.peterboroughtoday.co.uk/sport/football/posh/hankin-is-still-the-king-of-the-posh-bad-boys-1-5811604 |title=Hankin is still the king of the Posh bad boys |first=Alan |last=Swann |newspaper=Peterborough Telegraph |date=16 January 2014 |access-date=3 January 2018}} and was warned by the club on several occasions as to his future conduct.{{cite news |title=Ray sacked after fifth sending off |first=David |last=Moore |newspaper=Daily Mirror |location=London |date=5 March 1985 |page=26}}
{{cite news |title=Hankin contract terminated |newspaper=The Times |location=London |date=5 March 1985 |page=28 |quote=Peterborough United have cancelled the contract of their forward, Ray Hankin, who was sent off for the fifth time in one and a half seasons with the club, against Port Vale on Saturday. Their manager, John Wile, said that Hankin would leave because of "persistent misconduct on the field, despite previous verbal and written warnings".}} Injury meant Hankin missed the first half of the 1984–85 season, but when, eight matches into his return to the team, he was sent off for a fifth time, the club cancelled his contract with immediate effect. Hankin himself said he was targeted by opponents because of his reputation.

Within days, he signed for Second Division club Wolverhampton Wanderers{{snd}}manager Tommy Docherty told him it was his last chance in football{{cite news |title=I quit over thugs |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=9 March 1985 |page=15}}{{snd}}but in the eleven matches he played for them was unable to make enough difference to prevent their relegation. When he returned for the new season overweight, Wolves cancelled his contract.{{cite news |title=Hankin contract is cancelled |newspaper=The Times |location=London |date=3 August 1985 |page=30 |quote=Wolverhampton Wanderers have cancelled the contract of Ray Hankin less than five months after he joined them. The forward had almost 18 months to run on his agreement after being signed on a free transfer from Peterborough United in March. He struggled with his form and fitness in the 11 games he played last season, and when he returned for pre-season training still carrying excess weight, the club decided to give him a free transfer. The caretaker manager, Sammy Chapman, said: 'It is a great pity because he has a lot of talent which is being allowed to go to waste.'}}

Hankin moved into non-league football, signing for Northern League club Whitby Town in October 1985.{{citation needed|date=January 2018}} Under the management of former Leeds and Whitecaps teammate David Harvey, he scored 9 goals from 32 appearances in his first season, and "helped to bring the best out of players around him, whilst still knocking goals home himself."{{cite web |url=http://whitbytownhistory.blogspot.co.uk/2012/10/co-written-between-lensmeister-and-paul.html |title=The Blues and Whites – Whitby and Leeds Connection |first1=Neil |last1=Thaler |first2=Paul |last2=Connolly |website=Whitby Town FC History |date=30 October 2012 |access-date=3 January 2018}}{{cite news |title=Grass-roots Gray |first=Paul |last=Newman |newspaper=The Times |location=London |date=12 November 1985 |page=33}} He scored the goal that took Whitby into the second round proper of the 1985–86 FA Cup,{{cite news |title=Wolves to the slaughter as lambs make a Cup killing: FA Cup round up |first=Sean|last=Piper |newspaper=The Observer |location=London |date=17 November 1985 |page=56}} and the following season helped the club reach the first round.{{cite web |url=http://whitbytownhistory.blogspot.co.uk/2011/09/fa-cup-first-round-appearances.html |title=F.A. Cup: The First Round appearances |first=Neil |last=Thaler |website=Whitby Town FC History |date=3 September 2011 |access-date=3 January 2018}}

He moved on to another Northern League club, Newcastle Blue Star, and then a third, Guisborough Town, for whom he scored 26 goals from 82 appearances.{{cite news |url=http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A330063895/GPS?u=wikipedia&sid=GPS&xid=2a63b06e |title=Glory days at Wembley |newspaper=Evening Gazette |location=Middlesbrough |date=17 May 2013 |page=11 |via=Infotrac Newsstand |url-access=subscription }} While captaining Guisborough in the first round of the 1988–89 FA Cup against Football League club Bury in a match switched to Middlesbrough's Ayresome Park ground, Hankin was involved in a bizarre incident. The referee instructed the captains to wear armbands, but Guisborough did not have such a thing in their kit. According to the club's secretary, there was no such requirement under FA Cup rules. After Hankin used and then discarded a wristband because it was too tight, the referee booked him for not wearing his armband, and then sent him off for using "foul and abusive language" when he argued.{{cite news |title=Guisborough up in arms |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=21 November 1988 |page=16}} The matter was raised in Parliament by the local MP, Richard Holt, who took advantage of parliamentary privilege to assert that the team were "cheated by a biased referee" who should have been "hounded out of the ground."{{cite news |url=http://www.durhamadvertiser.co.uk/sport/9237997.Recalling_the_time_Hankin_caused_a_stir_in_Parliament/ |title=Recalling the time Hankin caused a stir in Parliament |first=Mike |last=Amos |newspaper=Durham Advertiser |date=7 September 2011 |access-date=9 January 2018}}

Hankin took over as manager of Northallerton Town in March 1989. He led them to promotion from the Northern League Second Division in 1989–90 and a mid-table finish the following season before resigning at the end of that campaign.{{cite book |url=https://issuu.com/northallertontownfc/docs/north_shields_eprogramme |title=Official match-day programme |chapter=History of Northallerton Town |editor-first=Ricky |editor-last=Butler |publisher=Northallerton Town FC |date=2 February 2013 |page=35}} He was credited by the club's then chairman with "introduc[ing] professional attitudes" on which his successor could build.{{cite news |title=Target Telford |first=Rupert |last=Metcalf |newspaper=The Independent |location=London |date=31 January 1992 |page=29}} He then joined Darlington as youth-team coach under the management of his former Leeds teammate Frank Gray,{{cite web |url=http://darlingtonfootballclub.co.uk/remember-when-ray-hankin/ |title=Remember When? Ray Hankin |first=Ray |last=Simpson |publisher=Darlington F.C. |date=27 August 2015 |access-date=29 December 2017}} and spent the last few weeks of the 1991–92 season as caretaker manager after Gray was sacked,{{cite news |title=Gray near switch to Tottenham |first=Louise |last=Taylor |newspaper=The Times |location=London |date=25 February 1992 |page=26 |quote=Frank Gray, the manager of Darlington the third division's bottom club was also dismissed yesterday, along with Tony McAndrew, his assistant. Ray Hankin was appointed caretaker manager until the end of the season.}} but was unable to prevent their relegation to the Fourth Division.{{cite news |title=Hall buy-out reduces Newcastle board to three |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=20 May 1992 |page=16 |quote=Billy McEwan, the former Sheffield United and Rotherham manager, is taking over at Darlington from the caretaker-manager Ray Hankin.}} It emerged later that "reckless contracts" meant that not only Gray and Hankin but three other managers were on the financially struggling club's payroll long after their departures.{{cite news |title=Feethams five savour long-term benefits |first=Russell |last=Kempson |newspaper=The Times |location=London |date=16 November 1996 |page=52 |quote=Bernard Lowery, the Darlington chairman, presented the club's annual report for the year ending June 30. It revealed that Frank Gray, Ray Hankin, Billy McEwan, Alan Murray and Eddie Kyle – all past managers at Feethams – had still been paid long after they had left the North East club. 'Reckless contracts brought us to our knees," Lowery said. "At one stage, when we had all these managers being paid simultaneously, only a substantial injection of capital kept us afloat.'}}

Hankin worked in Newcastle United's Football in the Community scheme for several years, latterly as director, until he was made redundant in 2008. He took the club to an industrial tribunal, alleging unfair dismissal, but reached a settlement just before the hearing.{{cite news |url=http://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/nufc-coach-hankins-dismissal-case-1478838 |title=NUFC coach Hankin's dismissal case settled |newspaper=Evening Chronicle |location=Newcastle |date=17 December 2008 |access-date=29 December 2017}} He then left the game, and went on to work with adults with special needs.

Hankin's playing career was marred by his disciplinary record, with a significant number of red cards awarded.

{{notelist}}

England youth

• European Under-18 Championship: 1973

Burnley

• Texaco Cup runner-up: 1974{{cite web |url=http://toon1892.com/detail_match.php?id=150 |title=Match report: 24/04/1974 v Burnley |website=Toon1892 |publisher=Kenneth H. Scott |access-date=10 January 2018}}

Vancouver Whitecaps

• NASL Northwest Division: 1981{{cite web |url=http://homepages.sover.net/~spectrum/year/1981.html |title=The Year in American Soccer – 1981 |first=David |last=Litterer |others=Supplemental materials by Steve Holroyd|website=The American Soccer History Archives |date=6 June 2004 |access-date=3 January 2018}}

{{reflist}}

{{Darlington F.C. managers}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hankin, Ray}}

Category:1956 births

Category:Living people

Category:Footballers from Wallsend

Category:English men's footballers

Category:England men's youth international footballers

Category:England men's under-23 international footballers

Category:Men's association football forwards

Category:Wallsend Boys Club players

Category:Burnley F.C. players

Category:Leeds United F.C. players

Category:Vancouver Whitecaps (1974–1984) players

Category:Arsenal F.C. players

Category:Shamrock Rovers F.C. players

Category:Middlesbrough F.C. players

Category:Peterborough United F.C. players

Category:Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. players

Category:Whitby Town F.C. players

Category:Newcastle Blue Star F.C. players

Category:Guisborough Town F.C. players

Category:English Football League players

Category:North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players

Category:League of Ireland players

Category:Northern Football League players

Category:English football managers

Category:Northallerton Town F.C. managers

Category:Darlington F.C. managers

Category:Newcastle United F.C. non-playing staff

Category:English expatriate men's footballers

Category:English expatriate sportspeople in Canada

Category:English expatriate sportspeople in Ireland

Category:Expatriate men's soccer players in Canada

Category:Expatriate men's association footballers in the Republic of Ireland