King played for the
Royal Air Force during
World War II. During the war, he narrowly escaped death when he was aboard a ship that was sunk by a
U-boat. He signed with
Newcastle United in 1945, despite interest from
Burnley. He played two
Second Division games in
1946–47, before injury restricted his progress. He swapped
St James' Park for
Boothferry Park when he
transferred to
Hull City. He spent
1947–48 and
1948–49 with
Hull City, featuring in three
Third Division North games for
Raich Carter's "Tigers". He joined
Port Vale for a four-figure fee in April 1949. He scored twice on his debut, a 3–1 win over
Torquay United at the
Old Recreation Ground on 23 April. He led the club to the first round of the
FA Cup in
1956–57, at which point they lost out to
Torquay United. After retiring, he became a
chiropodist. ==Career statistics==