Category: Football

By Elliott West

“A sportsman that we lost too soon, but his memory will never be forgotten”. 

Alessio Brancaccio

Introduction

War is a terrible concept. An act that some say is a necessary evil to quash a tyrant or regime into submission. Yet the consequences of these actions are devastating, killing and maiming untold numbers of innocent victims who just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Israel’s mission to rid the world of Hamas has according to reports killed in the region of 40,000 Palestinian civilians and one of these victims whom many of you probably have never heard of is the Palestinian football player Mohammed Barakat. Someone died at his Khan Younis family home in a Gaza airstrike on 11 March 2024 and was killed by a bomb during the holy month of Ramadan.

A Gifted Individual 

Mohammed Barakat was no ordinary man. Nicknamed ‘The Lion’, this 39-year-old was blessed with a natural talent for playing football to a jaw-dropping standard. Yet those who rule this world have chosen to let his name be forgotten in the dust of pugnacious debris. So for this piece, I want to celebrate his life and show how much he contributed to football and the sadly ignored brilliance that he enriched Palestinian sport with. Barakat had all the qualities needed to make it big in the world of football. He had already played for a number of clubs in Gaza, Jordan and Saudi Arabia. He would go on to become a professional footballer in 2015, playing for Shabab Khan Younis where he became the first player in Gaza to score 100 goals with a single team.

https://youtu.be/dr__J_Phzno?si=O7LxYxxX9gJZyWWX

This young man was impressive. At the AFC Challenge Cup, part of the Palestinian team, he helped carve out a 1-0 victory against Bangladesh and this was followed by a 9-0 win against Northern Marina Islands two days later in the same tournament. His last march was in a friendly against Qatar where they lost 2-0 on 17 April 2013. Yet if you Google this football player, the search stretches to less than a page with a few articles on his death and a much-repeated video that he recorded shortly before his death. giving a stoic and brave speech with what he knew could get his last words to the echo of falling bombs in the background. Tragically his fate was sealed and his life was extinguished in an instant. A kind soul who was much loved by his family and friends but was denied the fullness of life.

By Elliott West

“I went to a football match 35 years ago today. I came home and 97 didn’t. Never forgotten. Always in my thoughts”.

Simon Rimmer

Introduction

It’s 35 years since one of the worst football tragedies occurred on UK soil. The Hillsborough disaster is etched on every Liverpool fans’ memories and a tragedy caused by negligence and panic by those in charge. An avoidable situation that led to the death of 97 loyal fans on 15 April 1989 at a semi-final FA Cup match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest. The command given by police match commander David Duckenfield to open exit gate C at Leppings Lane to ease overcrowding signalled a recipe for disaster with a mass influx of fans entering the pens. 2,000 fans streamed in, in a five minute period. A crush ensued and despite the match being suspended at 1506, resulted in 97 deaths and 766 injuries.

The Cover Up

Those who lost their loved ones in this horrific incident have never received full justice. The families live in limbo on a day to day basis, knowing full well that the establishment who let this happen will never be held to account and punished for their actions. The Thatcher government of the time and the South Yorkshire Police knew exactly what happened but they chose to bury it in the mists of time. Choosing instead to use a trumped up blame game of hooliganism and drunkenness by Liverpool fans as the cause. A vile campaign that led to The Sun Newspaper printing a despicable story that the fans had urinated on the dead and robbed from them.

What should have been a joyous family day out on a sunny day with two club sides vying for a final place at Wembley Stadium ended with not only tragedy but a unification of grief and a burning desire for justice. A match that had only begun at 1459. At the time, there was a barbaric policy to cage fans into cramped stands, standing in confined spaces behind oppressive fences and only a limited amount of exits. It was only a matter of time before something would go wrong especially if the safety plan wasn’t followed precisely. The Hillsborough disaster is an example of what happens when panic sets in and spirals out of control. No one should have died and there shouldn’t have been a single injury. The fact that 41 of the 96 could have survived is heartbreaking. Yet you just have to look at the pictures and grainy CCTV footage from the day to see how badly wrong it went.

The Hillsborough pitch became a makeshift triage area with players and fans scrambling to save the victims. It took far too long for the emergency services to reach the scene with the first ambulance not reaching pitch-side until 1516 and so primitive first aid was administered. With fans literally hanging from the stands to try and escape, they were pulled up by arms in the upper stand. Injured fans and those with fatal injuries, trampled on in the chaos were helpless. There were not enough stretchers and fans had to rip off the advertising boards to create makeshift stretchers. The kiss of life was given to many to no avail and the gymnasium became a makeshift morgue. As the sun went down, their belongings were scooped up in clear bin bags and all that remained was the scarves, flags and rosettes strewn around the stands.

Justice 

This disaster has left a horrific stain on football. The Liverpool fans blamed for a pitch invasion. Despite previous tragedies at Ibrox, Estadio Nacional and Heysel, lessons clearly were not learned. You only have to look at Grenfell to see how things still go badly wrong. False police statements and continuous governments have prevented justice being achieved. It is appalling that it wasn’t until 2009 when Andy Burnham, the then Culture Secretary was heckled at Anfield that the wheels of motion were nodded through by an acknowledged “ok” by the now Manchester mayor. A second Hillsborough enquiry ensued after the first in 1989. It took until 2012 to publish a report. A new inquest in 2012 and concluded in 2016, found after 267 days of evidence resulted in David Duckenfield being found not guilty of gross negligence manslaughter at Preston Crown Court in 2019. The fight for justice continues.

By Elliott West

“It’s some sort of a fight, but I’m not sitting in a corner crying. I live the life as I lived before, almost. And it’s okay. I’m still on my feet.”

Sven Goran Eriksson 

Introduction

Life is a precious commodity and when it draws to a close, reflection sets in. You are on this earth for a purpose, lighting up those around you with your brilliance but when your maker calls, you must oblige. The news that the former England manager Sven Göran Eriksson has terminal pancreatic cancer with a prognosis of a year to live is devastating for players and fans alike but it is important to take the positivity out of negativity. Few people have had the opportunity to be gifted the opportunities that Sven has received in life. A former right-back who went on to manage clubs like Benfica, Roma, Sampdoria, Lazio Manchester City and Leicester City. He would also manage England, Mexico, Ivory Coast and the Philippines at an international level.

A Sprinkle of Brilliance 

“I was looked upon as a distinctly average defender, but someone who rarely made mistakes”.

Sven Goran Eriksson 

This softly-spoken and unassuming man came from Swedish working-class roots. Born in Sunne, Sweden in 1948 and raised in Torsby, his father Sven was a bus conductor and his mother Ulla worked in a textile factory. Nicknamed Svennis due to his younger brother Lars-Eriks not being able to pronounce his name, Eriksson went on to study economics and became a physical education teacher in Örebro. An avid lover of the beautiful game, Sven would make his debut for Torsby IF at the age of 16, going on to play for SK Sifhälla and then KB Karlskoga.

Influenced highly by Karlskoga’s player-manager, Tord Grip who favoured the English styles of play of Bob Houghton and Roy Hodgson, Eriksson had a shortlived playing career, retiring at the age of 27 in 1975. Giving up his dream of playing professional football must have been a blow but a necessity. A move to shower his talent elsewhere in the game at a managerial level.

Managerial Career

Sven would begin his manager role in football in 1977, taking up the position at Degerfors IF. A role that would last until 1978. His achievement was that he helped promote the club to Swedish Football Division 2. A lover of the 4–4–2 formation, Eriksson would go on to manage IFK Göteborg in 1979, Benfica in 1989, Roma in 1984 and again in 1989, Fiorentina in 1987, Sampdoria in 1992, Lazio in 1996 until 2001. What would come next would be the opportunity of a lifetime but one that didn’t play out how the Swede would have hoped it would go.

Accepting the Call

Taking over from Kevin Keegan who had famously resigned in the old Wembley toilets after a World Cup qualifier defeat to Germany, Eriksson was dubbed as a modern European manager. Yet his managerial style was cemented in the football coaching manual of the 1960s, written by Allen Wade, the FA’s technical director. Fans would say his 4-4-2 approach was a mistake, predictable and unbalanced with his team overrun in the midfield. An England manager who liked to use all his top players at once. Gerrard and Lampard taking it in turns to assume the holding role and was starstruck by David Beckham, playing him even if he was only half-fit. It didn’t work against the top International sides.

Yet others would say his defensive tactic was brilliant and was much better than the shambolic Kevin Keegan. Only a fluky goal versus Brazil and two penalty shootouts against Portugal stopped England from progressing to the semi-finals. Yet he lacked the technical literacy to bring offensive fluidity. England lacked cohesion in the midfield and an England manager brave enough to sort out the midfield. A manager who had a tough call to sort out the players of the generation who prioritised club over country. A foreign manager who struggled to overturn the country’s mindset. A team that would score 9/10 for their club but only 5/10 for their country.

The ice-cold Swede in the dugout tried but failed to lead the Golden Generation to success. They lost two World Cups and one European Championship. They did thrash Germany 5-1 in 2001 with Michael Owen scoring a hat-trick. An England career that lasted 67 matches with 40 wins, 17 draws, and 10 losses with a winning percentage of 59.7%. Not a great record but certainly better than some of his predecessors.

Scandal

“I thought I was prepared for England but I was not prepared for things outside football, my private life”.

Sven Goran Eriksson 

The England brand and the FA had to deal with Sven’s skeletons in his closet. Going out with the beautiful Nancy Dell’Olio at the time, the press revealed his affair with Ulrika Jonsson. A woman whom he had met when Nancy was in the bathroom. An affair that damaged him and his girlfriend. This was especially because Nancy got into her head that nothing had happened between the two. This 19-year-gap affair. Ulrika was known for dating footballers. She had already had a stormy relationship with Stan Collymore and she first met Sven in 2002. The pair started as friends but they began to regularly for dinner. The news broke in the now-defunct News of the World newspaper and Ulrika subsequently admitted the affair. It was brief but she read the riot act and demanded that Eriksson leave Nancy. The couple survived the storm despite the revelation that Sven also had an affair with FA secretary Faria Alam. The couple eventually split in 2007.

A Liverpool Dream

“Absolutely beautiful.”

Sven Goran Eriksson 

Sven has always had a dream to manage Liverpool football club. It was a dream that would take a terminal cancer diagnosis to achieve. However at the age of 76 and still in good spirits, the dream came true. Walking onto the Anfield pitch, he was met with a wave of applause to lead the Liverpool Legends into a 4-2 win against Ajax Legends. Flanked by some of the true legends of Liverpool in the dugout, Ian Rush, John Barnes and John Aldridge, this was a management team that had only one thing on their minds, winning. A team that included Steven Gerrard. A win that Eriksson that Sven summed up eloquently. “It’s a good finish, to finish with Liverpool, it can’t be much better than that.”

By Elliott West

“I wouldn’t say I was the best manager in the business. But I was in the top one”.

Brian Clough

Introduction

Brian Clough was probably the best manager England never had. Someone who shot from the hip, was self-opinioned, waspish and pulled an iron punch. His nasal furore was legendary on and off the pitch, stubborn yet brilliant. Brian’s theory on football management was it was his way or the highway. He could be difficult and explosive but what he didn’t know about the beautiful game was not worth knowing. A man who had cut his teeth on the football pitch as a player, a prolific striker who played for Middlesbrough and Sunderland and scored 267 goals between the two clubs and won two England caps against Wales and Sweden in 1959.

The Football Giant

Without Peter Taylor, Brian Clough would probably not have become the force that he was. A mentor who saw Clough’s potential voiced his virtues and promoted his career. The reserve goalkeeper who turned Brian from a third-choice centre-forward fresh out of the RAF became the talk of the town in his debut match for Middlesbrough against Barnsley in 1955. A playing career that came to a bitter end on Boxing Day 1962 whilst playing for Sunderland, a club that he had only signed up for a year earlier. Yet Taylor was the crucial piece in the puzzle who helped Brian make the leap of faith from player to football manager. A player career that ended when Clough collided with Bury’s goalkeeper and tore a cruciate ligament beyond repair.

The Iron Manager

The path to success is never easy and Brian had to learn the hard way. A short-lived position as a youth coach would lead to being sacked. A dismissal that Clough didn’t and caused him to hit the bottle heavily and a period of desperation. Yet in 1965, he was offered a managerial position at nearby Hartlepool and Peter Taylor left his job as Burton Albion manager to join him. What followed was inspiring, turning a club on the skids, in the second division and on the verge of extinction into a thriving prospect. The pair breathed life into the club and prevented it from becoming a football dodo. They were brilliant at reading the transfer market and bought players such as Roy McFarland and Archie Gemmill, future stars of the game for a low fee, transforming Derby County as well. Actions that caused the club to be promoted to the second division. Under their reign, they won the championship in 1972 and the semi-finals of the European Cup in 1973. Yet cracks would start to form when Taylor found out that Clough had been given a £5,000 salary increase without him knowing. A decision that caused a lifelong rift between the two. The duo also came under fire from the chairman, Sam Longson which would lead to the pair resigning. Despite protests from the local community, the pair never returned to the club.

Clough then moved to the Third-Division club Brighton and Hove Albion. A move that he probably wished in hindsight that he hadn’t made. He adopted an almost dictatorial stance, trying to turn limited players into superstars. A bullying tactic that backfired on him and he would only manage the club for eight months. What followed would go down in football history as a disastrous car crash. Brian had always wanted to manage Leeds United and when the opportunity arose in the summer of 1974, Clough jumped at the opportunity.

The Fatal Error

Clough time at Leeds would haunt him for the rest of his life. A surprise appointment that raised eyebrows, especially as Brian had been highly critical of Don Revie and the players before the move, branding them as cheats. His 44 days at the club would be acrimonious and the players would never sing from the same hymn sheet under him. Don Revie had left the club with a clean sheet, having won the League Cup in 1968 and the FA Cup in 1972. The club was also challenging for the First Division title before accepting the England manager job in 1974. Brian splashed the cash and alienated the players. Moves that came with disastrous results, winning just one of the eight matches and losing three of them. After a 1-1 draw with Huddersfield, the players met in the dressing room and held a vote of no-confidence to force Brian out of the club. The board followed suit and sacked him after just 44 days in charge. One of the shortest tenures in the history of football. Clough left the club a demoralised man and became the arch-enemy of Don Revie.

The Forest 

Despite this pain and anguish, Clough managed to pick himself up, dust himself off and start again. In January 1975, Brian was offered the managerial job at Nottingham Forest, the great rival to Derby. He was joined by Taylor in 1976 after he resigned from Brighton. This was a seismic moment and one when the club sprung into action. In 1977 the club was promoted to the top flight and the following season won the league title. The first time they had won it in the club’s history. Clough became only one of four managers to have won the English league with two clubs. Forest would go on to win two consecutive European Cups in 1979 and 1980 and two League Cups in 1978 and 1979. Taylor retired in 1982 but Brian would carry on with further victories after his departure. His further decade in charge would lead to his winning two more League Cups in 1989 and 1990 and reaching the FA Cup final in 1991. His reign ended in 1993 when Nottingham Forest was relegated from the Premier League which led to Clough retiring.

Brian’s Legacy

Brian Clough died from stomach cancer on 20 September 2004 in Derby City Hospital at the age of 69. A footballing icon who had an acid tongue and who was not prepared to deviate from his unique football blueprint. He was a brilliant manager and will be remembered for this time rather than his playing career. A manager who was just like a clockwork toy, wind him up and he could talk for England. A fantastic orator who knew the game inside out and didn’t care how many enemies he made. Unphased, powerful and a football giant. His statue looms over Middlesborough and he had tram No. 215 on the Nottingham tram system named after him. A man who was played brilliantly by Michael Sheen in the 2009 film The Damned United, telling the story of his time at Leeds United. A true grit northerner who will go down in history as, like Marmite, you either love him or hate him. Nevertheless an arrogant genius.

By Elliott West

“Bobby Moore — he defended like a lord. Let me tell you about this man. When I played, I would face up to a defender, I would beat him with my eyes, send him the wrong way; I would look one way and then go the other. Defenders would just kick me in frustration. They would foul me because they couldn’t stop me, or because I would confuse them with my movement. I would move my eyes, my legs or my body, but not always the ball. They would follow my move, but not Bobby, not ever. He would watch the ball, he would ignore my eyes and my movement and then when he was ready and his balance was right, he would take the ball, always hard, always fair. He was a gentleman and an incredible footballer”.

Pelé

Introduction

If you had to pick one football player in the history of the game that defined football, it would have to be Bobby Moore. Like a stick of seaside rock, he had the word football running through him, it was in his blood and DNA and what Bobby didn’t know about football was not worth knowing. Rarely do you find someone with such gravitas, bad-mouthed by somebody but Moore was the exception. If praise was a tank of petrol, it would quickly be depleted on the superlatives bestowed on this true genius. A centre-back who foxed his opponents with a myriad of twists and turns that resulted in the ball hitting the back of the net as eloquently as a knife gliding through butter. A man who didn’t have an ounce of malice in him, unphased to tackle and map out his path to goal with devastating results. Sleek, calculated and football poetry in motion. A symphony of moves and shots that took your breath away and was compulsive to watch.

Genius Personified

Bobby Moore just wanted to play football. It was a game he fell in love with from the age of seven. A Barking-born lion who would roar, lifting the World Cup in 1966 at Wembley and the Jules Rimet trophy. Who can forget that tackle on Jaizinho from the 1970 World Cup? Pure magic that took the wind out of the sails of Brazil. An England captain who set the benchmark for brilliance for this International side who were feared, famed and loved by the nation. Football that had to be accompanied with a Three Lions shirt, a pint of ice-cold beer and the Kinks’ single ‘Sunny Afternoon’ playing in the background. He played 108 times for his country and was never a substitute in an international career that lasted 11 years and 178 days. He was captain for 90 of his appearances.

Bobby was a player whom West Ham welcomed in their arms. An East End bubble that never seemed to burst. His soul is entwined in the very turf of the pitch, wearing the red and blue shirt with pride, making 646 league and cup appearances for the Hammers, scoring 27 goals from 1958-1974, helping them win the FA Cup in 1963 and the UEFA Cup Winner’s Cup in 1964. A player who was eternally missed when he signed to Fulham in 1974. A playing career that continued with far-flung spells at San Antonio Thunder, Seattle Saunders, Herning Fremad and Carolina Lightnin’ before he retired from the game in 1978.

Leaving the Pitch

It is safe to say that Bobby Moore didn’t take well to hanging up his football shirt. Rather than England or West Ham come knocking at his door offering a managerial position, the communication lines were silent. It was a difficult period of his life for this very private man. A time that took him to the very precipice of despair. A man who was robbed of a knighthood but who just carried on the best way he could. Moore was endorsed by Elton John as the next manager for Watford in 1977 but denied the role when the job was given to Graham Taylor. He would go on to have managerial stints at Oxford City, Eastern AA and Southend United but nothing fulfils that desire to run a prolific team. Sadly we never got the opportunity to see how good Moore would have been as a manager but I would bet my bottom dollar that he would have been a cracker.

Even a football commentator, Bobby never lost that flair he was filled with. Sitting in a stand or studio equipped with headphones and a microphone, Moore was the epitome of fashion, suited and booted with a knowledge of football that would trounce any roadmap. He did it till he couldn’t. This was the man who could cut up cars on a motorway but still get motorists winding down their windows to cheer him, someone who would stop his car to give you a lift, pause a fight in a World Cup scuffle and the one person a weeping Paul Gascoigne would turn to for solace when England exited the World Cup in 1990. A man approached his ex-wife Tina on a commuter train and stayed with her till her stop and serenaded his wife Stephanie with a song on holiday.

The Last Days

Bobby Moore had already beaten testicular cancer in 1964 but faced his biggest battle when he was diagnosed with bowel and liver cancer. It was a disease that as an outsider you wouldn’t have thought he had. He got on with it and lived every day as if it was his last. His love for his children and Stephanie was so touching. Bobby was selfless and even in his hour of need, was driven to raise awareness for cancer and help others in the same situation. Hospital visits were of course emotional but Moore tried to fill them with laughter as well, praised by his consultant on how he managed the situation. Moore planned out his last days, going back to the Royal Garden Hotel in London where the 1966 England squad had celebrated their victory with a lunch with a friend. In the end, the doctors wanted to take him to a hospice but his son persuaded them to let him spend the time left at home. He died peacefully in his Putney home with his family around him in 1993 in 1993, aged only 51.

A brilliant football player, a devoted husband and father, who had so much to offer but ultimately left this world far too early. A man whose memory lingers in his statue outside Wembley Stadium and the very passion of England, West Ham and Fulham fans. His memory lives on in the brilliant cancer charity The Bobby Moore Fund a restricted fund of Cancer Research UK to raise money for pioneering bowel cancer research. A charity set up by his wife Stephanie in 1993.

By Elliott West

“When Kenny shines, the whole team is illuminated”.

Bob Paisley

Introduction

Sir Kenny Dalglish is widely regarded as the greatest player that the Liverpool football club has ever produced, scoring 172 goals and having 167 assists during a career that spanned 515 games. A gifted forward who contributed to Liverpool winning 16 trophies as a player and 7 more pieces of silverware during his two spells as a manager. A player in the glory days of Liverpool when they were an invincible force under Bob Paisley in the late 1970s with teammates such as Ray Clemence, Emelyn Hughes and Tommy Smith to the flair of the 1980s team that included John Aldridge, Alan Hansen, Bruce Grobbelaar, Graham Souness and Ian Rush. This Glaswegian was pure dynamite on the pitch and was every penny of his £440,000 transfer fee from Celtic in 1977. A player who also made 102 appearances for Scotland in 1971 and 1986, scoring 30 goals and the most capped with Dennis Law.

Now 72, Kenny is an honorary member of the Liverpool executive and continues to work tirelessly for numerous charities but has lived through the highs of Liverpool’s pomp to the lows of that fateful day of Hillsborough in April 1989. A disaster that would claim the lives of 97 victims. A man who became the voice for a grieving city and has worked continuously since to keep the fight for justice going. A horrific incident that left him suffering from acute post-traumatic stress to the point that he felt like he was going mad and caused him to retire 22 months later, his self-confidence and decision-making temporarily shredded. 

The Player

Kenny Dalglish was described as being “unplayable” as a footballer, a great who shares the heroic plinth with George Best, Sir Bobby Charlton, Bobby Moore and John Charles. His speed of thought and intuition astonished those who played alongside him. That second that Ian Rush knew Kenny was on the ball, he was off, and the pass always seemed to follow. He could find the pass even when he didn’t see Rush from 40 yards back. A ball that is etched in the minds of the Liverpool team in 1982 when they played Watford and won 3-1.

There were the goals, of course. The winner at Stamford Bridge in 1986 which pipped Everton and West Ham to the title. The dinked finish against Club Bruges in the European Cup final at Wembley, eight years earlier. He was operating on a higher cognitive level than anyone else. A time when many a football pitch was a quagmire of mud or littered with a blanket of snow. Rain or shine, he was there, adorned by the numerous advertising boards that fenced the pitch, promoting products such as Dulux paint, Gordon’s Gin and Woolworth.

The Manager

Kenny’s reign as Liverpool manager is second only to Bob Paisley. A reign that is resplendent and often breathtaking. The reigns in the aftermath of the Heysel tragedy in 1985 where 39 people died in the Juventus-Liverpool final. An age where fans were penned into the stands by high fences and chicken wire. A fight between the two opposing fans led to a stampede to escape where the victims were crushed to death. Dalglish stripped out the backroom staff, bringing in people like Steve Heighway and Phil Thompson and signing players such as Peter Beardsley from Newcastle John Barnes from Watford and Ray Houghton from Oxford United. Graeme Souness said his friend had an ingredient for success, he scared people with a growl and even just a look. A strong character who could command respect as a man. He was no soft touch, as his former teammates would discover. Dalglish however, had a poor relationship with the press, was often rude and did not play the media game. The result was that journalists became more critical and less likely to give him the benefit of the doubt before putting the boot in.

Ironically, Dalglish would later be called upon by the media to offer his views on the club, and appear on TV as a match summariser. To his eternal credit, he tries to see things from the perspective of the manager and refuses to land the low blows so common from a number of other ex-players. Kenny liked to be flexible with his line-ups and didn’t go for wholesale changes like other clubs. He also refrained from naming his team until shortly before kick-off. A method of management that the players weren’t always happy with. A style that caused a lot more intensity in training. He was a percentage-winner manager and had an eye for signing good players but lost Ian Rush to Juventus in 1987 for £3.2 million. A manager coped well with scrutiny until the bitter end. An end that left him with painful headaches and a rash that covered his body and spread onto his face. A teetotaler, he even turned to drinking, drinking wine to reduce his irritability at home. This culminated in his resignation from Liverpool in 1991. After a sacking from Newcastle United in 1998 and an interim position at Celtic in 2000, he briefly returned to the club between 2011-12 with limited success.

Hillsborough

The horrors of Hillsborough still linger in Liverpool with a poignant reminder to every Liverpool fan. A shockwave that has left the families of the dead with a hollow outcome, one where true justice is clearly missing. Kenny was there and witnessed this harrowing incident where numerous safety measures were missed and a cover-up ensued. Six days after this tragedy, Dalglish returned to the ground. A mix of floral tributes and two oranges left behind the barriers. A moment that made him weep and brought back flashbacks of that terrible day. An event caused shortly before kick-off, in an attempt to ease overcrowding outside the entrance turnstiles, the police match commander, David Duckenfield, ordered exit gate C to be opened, leading to an influx of supporters entering the pens. This resulted in overcrowding of those pens and the crush.

Afterthoughts

Kenny Dalglish is a true football legend. A brilliant player and manager, he has Liverpool running through his veins and is an honorary member of the city. A man who has true X Factor and a genius as a player and manager. His recent lifetime achievement award at the BBC Sports Personality of the Year shows how much he is revered in football amongst his players and fans. Someone who like Alex Ferguson will never let go of a sport they both adore.

By Elliott West

“If you can’t stand the heat in the dressing room, get out of the kitchen”.

Terry Venables

Introduction

The world of football has lost one of its greats. One of the best and most charismatic England managers and one that can rated up there with Sir Alf Ramsey, Bobby Robson and Gareth Southgate. Terry Venables was a class act and as a player at Chelsea and manager at Crystal Palace, Queen’s Park Rangers, Barcelona, Tottenham, the Australian team, Middlesbrough and Leeds, there was nothing but genuine love and admiration for this highly gifted individual. A man who played and worked hard, open-minded and forward-thinking. Someone who had the gift to spot talent a mile away but always made his players feel special, creating a team bond that was like a family connection. As a new or experienced player, he made you feel that anything was possible and that you could walk on water.

The Lad from Dagenham

Terrence Fredrick Venables was born in 1943 in Dagenham, Essex. His father Fred was a Navy petty officer from Barking and his mother Myrtle was from Clydach Vale in Wales. When Terry was 13, his family moved to Romford to run a pub and during that time, the young Venables was sent to live with his grandparents Ossie and Millie who encouraged his love of football. This is the story of a lad who came good. A young lad with bags of natural talent and someone who was quickly spotted for his football potential. A player who represented his county and went on to earn caps for England Schoolboys and quickly attracted the attention of Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur, West Ham United and Manchester United football clubs.

In 1958 at the age of 15, Terry left school and signed for Chelsea as an apprentice. He would later join the club as a player and the club offered his father a job as a scout as a result. However, he delayed turning professional for a while as he wanted to see if he could get into the Great Britain team for the 1960 Summer Olympics. A dream that didn’t come to fruition and he turned professional afterwards. Terry went on to help win the FA Youth Cup for Chelsea, beating Preston North End in 1960 and Everton in 1961. Making his first appearance for Chelsea as a senior in 1960, a match they lost to West Ham 4-2, he was billed as the new Duncan Edwards.

Under a new manager, Tommy Docherty, Chelsea had mixed fortunes. A man whom Terry described as having a difficult relationship and someone who was tactically limited but was someone who was highly influential on Venable’s career nonetheless. The club was relegated to the second division under his watch at the end of the 1961-62 season but they regained their place in the first division the next season and finished in second place. Terry helped them lift the League Cup and they reached the semi-final of the FA Cup in 1964-65. A club where Venables was between 1960-1966, making 202 appearances and scoring 26 goals.

Terry would go on to play for Tottenham (1966-69), for a £80,000 signing fee, Queens Park Rangers (1969-1974), Crystal Palace (1974-75) and two appearances for St Patrick’s Athletic on loan in 1976. Terry helped win Tottenham the FA Cup in 1967, beating his old club, Chelsea 2-1 in the final and promotion to QPR in the 1972-73 season. Terry also made appearances for England in 1964. He retired as a player after the 1974-5 season with Crystal Palace due to arthritis.

Managerial Career 

Terry came to the England manager job with a wealth of experience in 1994. He had already won the Second Division championship with Crystal Palace in 1979, reached the 1982 FA Cup final and reached the Second Division with Queens Park Rangers in 1983, won La Liga in 1985 and reached the 1986 European Cup Final with Barcelona and guided Tottenham Hotspur to victory in the 1991 FA Cup Final. So the England job was just up his street. So when it came to Euro 96 with England as the host country, what better way to prove your worth? England put on a barnstorming performance in Group A, reaching the semi-finals after drawing with Switzerland 1-1, Scotland 2-0 Netherlands 4-1. and beat Spain on penalties, 4-2. They drew Germany in the semi-finals and drew 1-1 but lost on penalties. It is still described as one of England’s best performances as Terry used a 3-5-2 formation for the matches against Scotland and Germany.

The Man Himself 

Terry Venables just looked like that salt-of-the-earth type of guy you would have loved to have a pint down the pub with and one you have wanted on your pub quiz team for his extensive knowledge of football. A man who in his past, ran tailors with George Graham and Ron ‘Chopper’ Harris, ran a hotel with his wife in Spain and co-wrote five novels including four on the detective Hazell with Gordon Williams under the pseudonym of P.B Yuill. ITV went on to make a series about Hazell. He was also a very good singer. A brilliant football pundit in his later years, Terry left a big hole in British football, passing away after a long illness, at age 80. A diamond geezer with an infectious smile.

By Elliott West

“Bobby Charlton is more than one of the very greatest players, he is the spirit of football.”

Introduction

Picture this, a country filled with aspiration, Harold Wilson won a second general election with an increased 97-seat majority in March 1966 and in July of the same year, millions of people in the UK crowded around their black-and-white television sets to discover the fate of Alf Ramsey’s led England football team in the final of the World Cup against West Germany at Wembley Stadium. This dream team would go on to produce a seismic shockwave with a 4-2 victory. The first and still the only time that England has won this prized trophy since its formation in 1872. Although the squad did reach the quarter-final stage of the 1970 World Cup in Mexico West Germany got their revenge with a 3-2 win in extra time after England had led 2-0.

The First Gentleman of Football 

One of this prolific 1966 England World Cup squad, was the superior talent that was born to play football, Bobby Charlton. This rare genius from Ashington could make a football play his tune, scoring 249 goals at Manchester United alone between 1956 and 1973. If anyone personified the beautiful game, it was him and he ranks up there with some true gods of the game, including Bobby Moore, George Best, Maradona, Pelé and Messi. This somewhat shy and reserved man saved his art for a football pitch, one of the 21 survivors of the fateful 1957 Munich disaster of February 1958 that killed 23 of his Manchester United teammates, Bobby came from football stock with three of his maternal uncles leading lights in the game. These were Jack Milburn, George Milburn, Jim Milburn and Stan Milburn and his mother’s cousin was Jackie Milburn. His brother Jack Charlton would also follow Bobby on this glittering path after being a miner and an application to the police. A path that was encouraged by his grandfather Tanner and his mother Cissie.

The Man Himself

Bobby Charlton is a national treasure. He came from an era of football that is sadly missed. An era where your football club was your extended family. You played for the love of the game and not the money involved. Charlton transcended an evolution of the sport from the leather football, football scarves and rattles of the 1950s to the rough and tumble of Brian Moore’s The Big Match of the 1970s. A programme that was laden with long hair, sideburns, mud, snow and advertising boards of the era. You may have thought that Bobby would have given up on life after his horrific experience of the Munich plane crash but like any great, he used it to his advantage, a catalyst that would burn bright and produce some of the most exceptional play that you would pay your last pound to watch.

Charlton was cut from a football cloth that no longer exists. Excel on the pitch and then go back to the most important thing in life, being a husband and father, making the family your number one importance. Bobby shunned the glitz and glamour of being a football player, the champagne fountains and late nights in nightclubs that George Best, soaked up and whose partying lifestyle eventually up with him. That’s not to say that Munich didn’t leave an emotional scar because it did. He became reserved and quite shy. Yet he still had an aura about him that people would instantly gravitate to and want a conversation with. An ordinary man who was extraordinary and embodied the spirit of the game.

Bobby was an explosive footballer who lit up the pitch when he played. A player who was full to the brim with dynamism, precision, grace and power. He made football look easy and glided across the pitch like a knife across the butter. His pinpoint accuracy at goal was amazing to watch. He kicked the ball from halfway across the pitch and shot past the keeper at a speed that would have given Concorde a run for its money in its day. Each goal execution was followed by a colleague’s handshake. Far removed from the euphoria players display today. He reserved the gymnastic for the big occasions like Wembley. A player who was thrust uncomfortably into the public realm but who played football how it was meant to be played.

Working Class Blood

Bobby Charlton was extremely proud of his background and it could easily be taken from a Dickensian novel. A green landscape smattered with coal dust. Charlton’s uncle Buck was a well-known poacher and his father, Robert who Bobby was named after, was a miner who had a nickname of ‘Boxer’ due to being a local bare-knuckle boxer. Another uncle called Tommy bought Bobby his first pair of football boots – Playflair Pigskins. They all lived in cramped miners’s terrace houses. So tight for space, the Charlton family kept pigs and grew vegetables at the local allotment. When a pig was killed for meat, it was like a second Christmas with plenty of celebration. A harsh life was relieved by searching for sea coal on the beach, fishing and bus trips to Newcastle and Sunderland to watch football.

The Knock on the Door 

Word spread that Bobby Charlton was a rare talent and it wasn’t long before geography deemed that he should join Newcastle but Charlton had already set his sights on Manchester United., batting off Don Revie’s offer of a place at Manchester City. Bobby was determined to play at Old Trafford and through Matt Busby, Bobby joined the youth squad. This 16-year-old was ticked pink, playing football with a group of friends and he was part of a youth team that didn’t lose a cup for five years. In 1956, several months before his nineteenth birthday, Charlton was given a senior debut and in the first half of his first appearance, he scored twice. A great start to his career but he was quickly brought down to earth in February 1958 when the tragedy of the Munich. A crash occurred on the return trip from playing Red Star in Belgrade. They drew the match and went through and the plane back refuelled in Yugoslavia. A crash that this 20-year-old forever and was described in his later autobiography.

First I had to go back to Munich. Without doing that, I couldn’t begin to define my life… sometimes I feel it quite lightly, a mere brushstroke across an otherwise happy mood. Sometimes it engulfs me with terrible regret and sadness — and guilt that I walked away and found so much.”

Bobby Charlton

The trauma of this event didn’t manifest until much later and Charlton played a match three weeks later. However, this crash changed Bobby, he shunned happiness and thought it was somehow wrong. The novelist Gordon Burn described Bobby’s face as possessing “the under-colour of worry’. He couldn’t celebrate a victory and remained reserved despite being called up to play for England ten weeks after the crash.

The Dream Team

Matt Busby crafted a Manchester United squad that was second to none. Bringing in players like George Best, and Dennis Law. They saw Busby as a father figure and called him ‘the Old Man’ and it was a team that ruled the 1960s, producing a string of trophies in league and European levels. So influential was Matt Busby that when he died in 1994, Bobby left a fitting tribute for his mentor and former manager.

“He was Manchester United and, I will always like to think, so am I.”

Bobby Charlton

So close were his ties to Manchester that Charlton met and married his wife Norma Ballin in 1961 as a result.  A lady whom he had met at a Manchester ice rink in 1959.A player who would eventually relax and show his sense of humour. An infectious laughter that led to him being dubbed ‘’the dressing room jester’. A career at a club that lasted until 1973 when he played his last match against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. Bobby would go to play at Preston North End, Waterford, Newcastle KB United, Perth Azzurri and Blacktown City. He would also later manage Preston North End and Wigan Athletic in 1983.

The Rift

Bobby and Jack were joined at the hip playing for England but it would be in 1996 that a feud broke out between the brothers over Jack accusing Bobby of not their mother, Cissie before she died. An explanation is given by Bobby that his wife Norma fell out with his mother. It would last for several years until the two were reunited at a Sports Personality award ceremony. Jack broke the ice and gave his brother, a man whom he had lived in his shadow for so many years, a fitting tribute which brought tears to Bobby’s eyes.

Dementia

Life can be so cruel and it is so sad that both Bobby and Jack both died from the same brain disease that slowly takes away your everyday thinking and confines you to an odd memory of the past. Both brothers decided to stay at home. Jack, however, was filmed in one last BBC documentary before he died in 2020. It showed a more vulnerable Jack who could still go to watch football and fish but didn’t know the answer to so many questions when he was asked. He could recognise himself on television but was vague with brain fog of where and when it was.

The Legacy

Bobby Charlton is a name that is often mentioned in a sentence about football and anyone who got to see him play is blessed. This dominant football force for so many years, helped raise the World Cup for England in 1966, a year that is still the benchmark for any football player who has played the game since. A football icon who reluctantly embraced his talent on and off the pitch. A humble man who had the word football running through his body like a stick of northern rock. A player whose mould was broken and few have emulated.

By Elliott West

“It is now the right time to move on and give Sky Sports viewers a break from my relentless rants, bad gags and over-the-top celebrations of Hartlepool United goals. It’s been a lot of fun – for me at least!”

Jeff Stelling

Introduction

The world of football has lost its prodigal son, a man whose association with Sky Sports lasted a staggering 30 years. The man in question, drum roll, please! is of course the only and only Jeff Stelling. The 68-year-old who has worked at Sky since 1992 and been the face of Soccer Saturday for 25 years is considered to be a national treasure, a household name who would be a prized member of any pub quiz for his encyclopaedic knowledge of football has left the building but promised not to retire quite yet. The Sky studios will be a quieter place now that this Hartlepool hero has vacated his chair and the shouts, cheers and countless jokes will be missed by many a football fan. Such was the outpouring of praise when he did his last Soccer Saturday that even the lifelong Watford supporter, Elton John felt the need to call him before his departure to sing his praises. An exit where friends, colleagues past and present, raised the roof for this stellar Stelling. Yet true to form, Jeff believes that there is “still a bit of life in the old boy yet!”. As his good friend Chris Kamara would say “I don’t know what is happening Jeff”.

Hartlepool’s Own

Jeff Stelling began life in 1955 to a humble background, raised in a council house in Hartlepool and someone who went on to attend West Hartlepool Grammar School. A Pisces who quickly would be recognised for his articulation and sponge-like qualities for soaking up facts and figures. After leaving school, he decided to take the journalistic path of life and joined the Hartlepool Mail where he worked for four years. Going to report for his beloved football team, Hartlepool FC in the 1970s for Radio Tees, he would go on to work for LBC Radio Sports Watch and BBC Radio 2’s Sports Watch where he covered the Los Angeles and Seoul Olympic games.

Jeff later worked as a sports newsreader for TV-am, Channel 4, Eurosport and BSB before moving to Sky in 1992 where he worked on a range of sports including horse racing, greyhound racing, snooker and darts. Since 1994, Jeff has become the face of Sky Sports’ flagship show Soccer Saturday, a magical mix of analysis, opinions and light-hearted conversation with a plethora of top football pundits who know the beautiful game inside out. So good are Stelling’s presentation skills that the Guardian newspaper praised him for “exceptional professionalism and élan”.

Letters and Numbers 

Jeff Stelling was reportedly approached to become the presenter of Countdown after the passing is its iconic presenter Richard Whitley but he turned down the job with the role going to Des Lynam instead. However, when the telephone rang again in 2009 after the departure of Des O’Connor, Jeff couldn’t resist and went on to host the flagship Channel 4 show for three years until 2011. A perfect accompaniment to the instantly recognisable theme tune composed by Alan Hawkshaw and a show based on the French original, Des Chiffres et des Lettres devised by Armand Janmot and Marcel Stellman. Stelling would leave the game show in 2011 to concentrate on football commitments including his new Champions League role. He was replaced by Nick Hewer who had just stepped down from the BBC’s Apprentice programme.

Afterthoughts

Jeff Stelling was a firm favourite of Saturday afternoons for thirty years and could be compared to those cosy pair of slippers you put on after a hard day at work. For football fans, Jeff lit up that frenzied couple of hours on a Saturday when football scores come thick and fast and a time when teams can be jubilant in glory or lick their wounds in defeat. Sterling is one of the most knowledgeable men on the subject of football and never hides his emotions especially when Hartlepool FC sink the ball in the back of the net. Someone who has entertained us with his wit and humour for decades but always remains diligent with an eye that has a laser light for detail. A footballing icon who I am sure will return to our screens or radio waves soon in a new role.