Full name Joseph William Arnison Role Footballer Name Billy Arnison | Playing position Date of death 1996 (aged 71–72) Position Forward | |
Date of birth (1924-06-27)27 June 1924 Place of birth Johannesburg, South Africa Place of death Johannesburg, South Africa Died 1996, Johannesburg, South Africa | ||
Joseph William "Billy" Arnison (27 June 1924 – 1996) was a South African professional footballer, best known as a player for Scottish club Rangers and English club Luton Town.
Playing career
Arnison was signed by Glasgow club Rangers for the first post-war season, 1946–47. He scored four goals in ten games for Rangers, an impressive return, but the next season saw him isolated at Ibrox. 1948 saw him move south, when English Second Division side Luton Town offered Rangers £8,000 for his services. Arnison soon became a crowd favourite at Kenilworth Road, scoring a hat-trick in his fourth game as Luton beat Cardiff City 3–0. He finished the season as top scorer, even though he missed a large part of the season with an injury to his right knee.
After three major operations, Arnison retired from the professional game at 27 and returned to South Africa, where he became a physiotherapist.