Morecambe FC treble-winning boss dies

Ken Waterhouse managed the Shrimps to win three trophies in one season and was also himself a skilled league footballer.

Ken will be best remembered for leading Morecambe to the league, Combination Cup and Lancashire Senior Cup during that 1968 treble season, becoming the only non-league team to win the senior trophy after a 2-1 victory over Burnley.

He managed the Shrimps in two spells (1965-69 and 1970-72) taking over as player-manager in 1965.

Ken was born in 1930 in Ormskirk.

A half-back/inside forward, he started with Southport Trinity and began the 1948-49 season with Burscough, then in the Liverpool Combination.

On December 14th 1948 signed for Preston, not making his league debut until the 1953-54 season. His games were limited to 20 (1 cup) appearances scoring five goals.

His highlights included a hat trick against Charlton Athletic and scoring against a Manchester United side that contained seven of the victims of the Munich air disaster of 1958.

In his final season at Deepdale he helped the club to a second placed finish in the old First Division.

In 1958 he moved to Rotherham United and appeared in the very first League Cup final versus Aston Villa in 1961.

After spells with Bristol City and Darlington he was appointed player/manager of Morecambe.

Ken became one of the Shrimps’ great managers as the late 1960s were boom times at the club. 1965-66 was spent re-organising the team, and then in 1966-67 Morecambe won the Combination and the Combination Cup.

A broken leg in October 1967 finished Ken’s playing career but his team retained the Combination title and Combination Cup, adding the Lancashire Senior Cup in 1967-68.

The Northern Premier League was formed in 1968-69 and Morecambe finished third, winning the Lancashire Junior Cup.

Ken then became reserve team coach with Blackburn Rovers in July 1969 but returned as Shrimps manager fromk 1970 to 1972 before retiring from football.

He died in the Royal Lancaster Infirmary on April 4.