He had a short spell with Buxton, but returned to Molyneaux before joining Newton Heath in February 1896 as a replacement for William Douglas, who had transferred to Derby County.

After just over 50 league appearances for Blackburn, Whittaker rejoined Grimsby Town – newly promoted to the First Division – in December 1901.

[1] After two years with Brentford,[2] he moved back to Reading for a season, before returning to the Football League again in 1907 with Second Division side Clapton Orient.

In July 1912, Whittaker was appointed as the first manager of Swansea Town and spent two years with the newly elected Southern League Second Division club in a player-manager capacity.

[1] After leaving Swansea, he took over as player-manager at nearby Llanelly, but his time there was cut short by the outbreak of the First World War.