Sporting hero and Legend 1
‘When you get a minute from all the TV you have to watch (family joke) I have the perfect task for you. Go to my website on the sporting heroes’ page http://www.unique-bodyweight-exercises.com/sporting-heroes.html and I want you to write about a sporting hero who has inspired you and say why. It can be anyone from George Best when you were a kid to whomever. Talk about how they have inspired you for the Amazon run if you want. I am just starting a blog about sporting heroes and thought you would be the perfect choice to start it of when you have time’.
Those were the words emailed to me by my brother. I considered the obvious Manchester United players, the genius of Best and Cantona, the 'Steady Eddie' Charlton and of course my favourite United player of all time Ryan Giggs, but I diversified into other sports and thought of the obvious Bruce Lee, Muhammad Ali, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Franco Colombo, The Barbarians twins, Frank Zane and Daley Thompson oh I am showing my age!!! but having read his AB book and the story of the Japanese monks I went deeper into what is a true legend and hero and went back into the archives of my memory and came up with someone who to me ‘sums up’ that to me and I am sure once he is revealed you will agree however as he had planted the seed of Manchester United I could not get one guy out of my mind.
Probably the biggest, unsung hero in United's great history - and he would, without doubt in my opinion, be classed as a 'hard man.' He made 679 appearances in the red shirt over a period of 19 years but his career took in eras of both a glorious and tragic part of United's history.
He was also working down the pit as a miner at the time that he signed for United and did so for four years afterwards, even after he had won a place in the first team. I remember when I first read this I just could not imagine it and this was 20 years ago, never mind these days working down the pit and playing for Manchester United!!! His debut game in the first team came at the age of 20 years and 11 months, at Anfield against Liverpool, wearing the number two shirt, on the 13th December 1952, in a 2-0 victory. The player concerned is of course, Bill Foulkes.
Unfashionable, unassuming, never the player to really catch the eye, but he was certainly effective. Initially as a right full back, and then as a centre half. Foulkes was a fitness fanatic, and it says a great deal about his physical dedication in that he was able to stay part time for four years, only training at United on a Tuesday and Thursday throughout the early part of his career.
I remember many years ago reading on how he used to get the bus to the ground with the fans, no fancy Porsche and Ferrari cars in those days, imagine Rooney a couple of years ago still working down the pit because it paid better than going full time playing for Manchester United.
Matt Busby had been badgering him to turn full time professional from the day he got into the first team. But Foulkes was married, earned more from working down a coal mine than he did from football, and was more secure in financial terms than most full time players. However, he was still ambitious as far as his football was concerned, but there was another reason holding him back from signing on as a full time pro - a thing called National Service! As a miner, he was in a category that fell under the term of 'protected trade' and as such, he was ineligible for the mandatory two years of military service. However, his call up for the full England team in October 1954 was the spur that he needed to take the plunge into the full time professional ranks, and in January of 1955 he pleased his manager by signing a full time professional contract.
He played in the last game of the 1954/55 season, and then sure enough, his 'call up' papers dropped through the letterbox of his home in early May of 1955. Foulkes was conscripted into the Royal Army Service Corps, and was initially stationed down in Aldershot. Busby talked to Foulkes before he left to start his army service. He made a statement that would leave most people with lockjaw had it been heard today! Busby told Foulkes that as he was stationed so far away, if he wanted to keep his place in the first team, he would have to make his own arrangements for getting to the games - the Club could not help him! He promised Foulkes that if he arrived at the various grounds in good time, he would play!
He was virtually ever present in United's team from the start of the 1955/56 season until just after the turn of the year when against Preston North End United were beaten3-1. Bill had a torrid time that day against Tom Finney - but how many full backs didn't during that era? Busby decided to leave Foulkes out for the next game in favour of young Ian Greaves, and he was never to regain his place again during that season. This was the breakthrough season for the young 'Babes' and they finished as League Champions by a the massive distance of 11 points in front of their rivals, with a young team of which the average age was just 22 years! Foulkes had played more than the requisite number of first team games to qualify for a winner’s medal that season no team had ever won the Championship before with such a young average age, seems Alan Hanson famous quote was previously proven wrong by a United team.
During the 1957/58 season, the day that he had been looking forward to, arrived - 'demob day!' He could now go home to his wife, and also concentrate fully on his Manchester United career.
Foulkes was playing well, but little was he to know that his life was about to change forever. We all know the happenings of February 6th 1958, and we know the part that Bill Foulkes had to play in that tragic event. That United were able to put a team out just thirteen days later in an F.A. Cup tie, was little short of a miracle. When you consider what happened, even more of a miracle was the fact that both Bill Foulkes, and Harry Gregg, were able to play in that F.A. Cup tie. They had lost seven of their closest friends (and were to lose one more just 30 hours after that tie took place) and several more were still lying injured. No trauma counselling back in those days for them. Jimmy Murphy made Foulkes Club Captain, and given the circumstances, that was a tremendous burden and responsibility for him to have to carry, given the state the club found itself in. The first team was all of a sudden a mixture of reserve team and youth team players, plus two buys, Ernie Taylor and Stan Crowther. As well as playing his own game, Foulkes had to lead from the front and help carry a lot of players who were not only scarred by the tragedy, but also before their time as far as playing in the first team was concerned. Somehow, that team fought their way to the F.A. Cup Final, eventually losing to Bolton Wanderers at Wembley. They also performed heroically in the European Cup semi-final against A.C. Milan, winning 2-1 at Old Trafford. The team had to make the long overland journey to Milan by rail, and this was no preparation for the second leg. Tired, the team lost 4-0.
Foulkes' character, like that of the other survivors, changed after the tragedy. He also, became very introverted, moody, and was difficult to get inside of and kept his distance. The younger players christened him 'popular Bill' or 'PB' for short. It was a reference to his moodiness. As Club Captain, he had carried that enormous responsibility on his shoulders. The pressures on Foulkes were obviously at some time or another going to eventually tell, and so it was that his form became a little erratic.
In the middle of the1960/61 season Busby made centre half Foulkes' permanent position. For the next 8 years, Foulkes was virtually an ever present in the Manchester United team. He shared in the glory of the F.A. Cup win against Leicester City in 1963, he won another two First Divison Championship medals in 1965 and 1967, and of course he was in the team that triumphed against Benfica in the European Cup Final at Wembley in May of 1968. I suppose that it was also such a fitting script, that Foulkes should score the goal against Real Madrid in the Bernabeau that took United to that European Final. He was by this time, almost 38 years of age.
Without doubt Bill Foulkes had played his part in the Club's history. No player plays 679 games for Manchester United, and for a manager like Sir Matt Busby, without being more than a half decent player. Foulkes was as tough as granite and in my opinion was as hard as anybody that has ever played the game. Nobody took any kind of liberties with him. Even in training he neither gave, nor asked any quarter. As a full back, he played against some of the greatest wingers in the game; as a centre half, he also mixed it with the toughest and the best of centre forwards of his era, and in both cases, the number of times that he came off second best could be counted on one hand. He was almost never out of the team through injury, and there was a solid consistency in his play. He was a rock at the heart of the United defence. He was the minder for ball playing colleagues who were of a more delicate disposition than he was. Foulkes was very destructive in the tackle, and relentless in pursuit of the man he had been assigned to mark. In his 'minder's' role in Madrid in April 1957 when the great Alfredo Di Stefano had kicked young Eddie Colman to the ground in his frustration of being man marked so effectively. It was both a cruel, cowardly act, and one that should have brought the great man an early bath. Foulkes was on Di Stefano in an instant grabbing him by the front of the shirt. The great Alfredo paled visibly, and uttered the words; 'oikay Foulksay - no more!' as he feared for his own wellbeing! On another occasion, in a league game at Preston's Deepdale, Tommy Docherty cynically kick him, off the ball. He'd picked the wrong guy to be cynical with - Foulkes was on him like lightning and picked him up with one hand, and hurled him into the Deepdale mud like a rag doll! Unpretentious, unassuming, solid, dependable, consistent, that was Bill Foulkes. Never one to court the limelight, nor to be in the news for the wrong reasons.
Age finally did catch up with him just a year after that wonderful European Cup win. At the start of the '69/'70 season, after just three games, and a heavy home defeat against Southampton by 4-1. Ron Davies the big Welsh centre-forward scored all four goals that day, and it was to prove to be Bill Foulkes' last game for Manchester United. It was sad that he had to end his playing career on that low note but the march of time was there for all to see.
In my opinion Bill Foulkes was a tremendous servant of Manchester United both as a player, and a man, and he never ever let them down. He had the mental toughness to overcome adversity, tragedy, and the physical toughness to survive in what was back then, a very, very, tough era. I find it so hard to comprehend that not only did he not earn a fortune for his services to football and Manchester United, but he worked as a miner for 4 of those years, did 2 years National service away from his wife and children but used his spare time and favours to play for the club, not only overcame the terrible tragedy that we the fans call simply ‘Munich’ but captained the club at such a terrible time so quickly after the event leading by example (how I wish modern day players with all the luxuries heaped upon them could act so impressively and so to me although not my favourite Manchester United player he is a true legend and sporting hero.
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