[2] Cox took his first steps in senior football with Spurs' nursery club, the Kent-based Northfleet United, in 1936,[3][4] before turning professional with Tottenham in August 1938.
[1] A tricky and talented winger who usually played on the right, he made his first-team debut in a Second Division match against Swansea Town in November 1938, scoring Spurs' goal in a 1–1 draw.
[9][11][12] However, the 1952 final was not to be a repeat of two years earlier; against Newcastle United, an injury-ravaged Arsenal side played most of the match with ten men after Walley Barnes was stretchered off, and lost 1–0.
[13] Despite his cup exploits, Cox was never an ever-present in the Arsenal side; he first faced competition from Ian McPherson for the right-wing spot, and then from the talented youngster Arthur Milton.
[9][10] After only appearing in nine matches in the 1952–53 season, in which Arsenal won the First Division title,[10] he sought pastures new and was transferred to West Bromwich Albion as player-coach.
Bournemouth fared reasonably steadily in the league, and pulled off a giant-killing feat in beating Wolverhampton Wanderers and Spurs in the 1956–57 FA Cup to reach the sixth round, in which they lost to Manchester United.
[16] Cox's Gillingham team became renowned for their defensive discipline and unadventurous style, and the following season, 1963–64, they finished top and won promotion to the Third Division.