Clayton was born at Newcastle upon Tyne in January 1873. He was educated at Harrow School, before attending University College, Oxford. While studying at Oxford, Clayton made his debut in first-class cricket for Oxford University against Somerset at Oxford in 1893. He played first-class cricket for Oxford University until 1896, making six appearances, in addition to playing one first-class match for the Gentlemen of England against Oxford University in 1895. He scored 151 runs in six matches for the university, with a high score of 66. With his right-arm medium pace bowling, he took 7 wickets with best figures of 3 for 144. He also played rackets for Oxford, playing alongside Harry Foster in 1895 when the pair defeated Cambridge. He did not succeed in getting a blue while at Oxford.
