England v United States (1950)
Encyclopedia
On 29 June 1950, at the 1950 FIFA World Cup
in Brazil
, the United States
defeated England
1–0 in a group match. This unexpected result has led to the match being described as the "Miracle on Grass", in reference to the 1980 Miracle on Ice
, in which the US ice hockey team beat the Soviet Union. The match was played in Belo Horizonte
at Estádio Independência
. The game and the U.S. team were profiled by author Geoffrey Douglas in his book The Game of Their Lives, which was made into a film of the same name (later renamed as The Miracle Match).
and 1948 Summer Olympics
) by the combined score of 45–2, including losses to Italy (7–1), Norway (11–0) and Northern Ireland (5–0). The odds were 3–1 the English would win the Cup, and 500–1 for the U.S.
England had Stanley Matthews
available, who was widely considered one of the best players in the world at the time, but he had not played with the English team in the three international matches prior to the World Cup (in fact, he had joined the team late, having been touring Canada
as part of another group of English internationals). As such, the selection committee (consisting entirely of Arthur Drewry
, then president of the English/Wales Football League
and later the president of FIFA), opted to stay with the team that had just defeated Chile
. As there were no substitutes allowed in those days, Matthews watched the game with the other reserves.
The American team consisted of semi-professional players, most of whom had other jobs to support their families. Walter Bahr
was a high school teacher, Frank Borghi
drove a hearse
for his uncle's funeral parlor, and others worked as mail carriers or dishwashers. The team had also been hastily assembled, and had only been able to train together once, and that was the day before they left for Brazil, which happened to be against the touring English team featuring Matthews. Three players—Joe Maca, Ed McIlvenny
, and Joe Gaetjens
—were added to the roster just prior to that game. "We have no chance," recently-appointed coach Bill Jeffrey
told the press.
England and the U.S. were in Group 2 of the first round robin, along with Spain
and Chile.
, who let off a shot that was barely pushed aside by U.S. goalkeeper Frank Borghi. By the twelfth minute, England had six clear shots on goal but could not convert, with two shots hitting the post, one just going over the top, and another brilliantly saved by Borghi.
The U.S. struggled to move to the offense, and finally managed a shot on goal in the twenty-fifth minute, which was blocked by English goalkeeper Bert Williams
. The English counterattacked with three successive clear shots at the goal in minutes 30, 31, and 32, but failed to score. Mortensen twice went over the crossbar, and Tom Finney
's header to the top corner was tipped away by Borghi.
In the thirty-seventh minute, Bahr took a long shot from twenty-five yards out, but as Williams moved to his right to intercept, Gaetjens dived headlong and grazed the ball enough to put it to the left of the English goalkeeper, whose momentum prevented him from changing direction, and into the back of the net. The crowd exploded as the U.S. improbably led 1–0. As the half drew to a close, Finney had a chance to tie the score, but the whistle blew before he could shoot.
but Mortensen's shot was well saved by Borghi. But England began threatening again, and it was fifteen minutes before the Americans were able to get another shot. With eight minutes left, Charlie Colombo
brought down Mortensen with an illegal tackle at the edge of the penalty area. England pleaded for a penalty kick
, but the referee ruled it was outside the box. On the resulting free kick, Jimmy Mullen headed the ball for what he thought was a goal, failing to notice that Borghi had tipped it away at the last second, denying the English the chance to tie the game.
England had no more chances on goal and the game ended in victory for the U.S. team.
According to the official history of the English Football Association, American newspapermen reported that England scored two legitimate goals—shots that clearly passed beyond the goal line—but were not given as goals.
The U.S. lost their next match 5–2, versus Chile, ending their 1950 World Cup run with a First Round record of 1–0–2. They would not qualify for the World Cup again until 1990
.
Spain advanced from Group 2 of the First Round, finishing last in next/Final Round. Uruguay
won the 1950 World Cup.
John Souza
, the U.S. inside right forward, was selected to the World Cup All-Star team by the Brazil
ian sports newspaper Mundo Esportivo, and remained the only American player selected to a World Cup All-Star team until Claudio Reyna
in 2002.
There was only one American journalist even at the World Cup: Dent McSkimming
of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch
, who could not get the newspaper to pay for the trip, and had taken time off work to cover the event. His report of the match was the only one to appear in any major American newspaper.
In England
, newspapers at the time were generally small, and only had a single page devoted to sports. Because the English cricket team
happened to suffer their first-ever defeat
to the West Indies
the very same day, that was the major story in most publications. However, in publications that did report the World Cup match, so unexpected was the result that it was presumed that the 1–0 scoreline was a typing error and so it was reported that England had won on a scoreline of 10–0 or 10–1.
Afterwards, a number of books and newspapers in England suggested that the U.S. team had arrived "through Ellis Island
", meaning that the team was made up of imported players, but eight of the starting eleven were American-born. The other three, Gaetjens, McIlvenny, and Maca, were not U.S. citizens but had declared their intentions to gain citizenship
and according to the rules of the United States Soccer Football Association
at the time were allowed to play. The U.S. was cleared of any wrongdoing by FIFA
in a hearing on 2 December 1950.
England's blue kit, which had made its debut in this match, was never worn again. Walter Bahr erroneously notes that England has never had a blue kit since then, but a blue away kit was worn again in 1959 during a 1–4 loss to Peru
.
The United States and England did not play another World Cup match against each other until the 2010 FIFA World Cup
, which ended in a 1–1 draw.
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ENGLAND:
|
GK
Bert Williams
DF
Alf Ramsey
DF
John Aston
DF
Billy Wright (c)
MF
Laurie Hughes
MF
Jimmy Dickinson
FW
Wilf Mannion
FW
Tom Finney
FW
Jimmy Mullen
FW
Stan Mortensen
FW
Roy Bentley
Manager:
Walter Winterbottom
1950 FIFA World Cup
The 1950 FIFA World Cup, held in Brazil from 24 June to 16 July, was the fourth FIFA World Cup. It was the first World Cup since 1938, the planned 1942 and 1946 competitions having been canceled owing to World War II...
in Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, the United States
United States men's national soccer team
The United States men's national soccer team represents the United States in international association football competitions. It is controlled by the United States Soccer Federation and competes in CONCACAF...
defeated England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
1–0 in a group match. This unexpected result has led to the match being described as the "Miracle on Grass", in reference to the 1980 Miracle on Ice
Miracle on Ice
The "Miracle on Ice" is the name in American popular culture for a medal-round men's ice hockey game during the 1980 Winter Olympics at Lake Placid, New York, on Friday, February 22...
, in which the US ice hockey team beat the Soviet Union. The match was played in Belo Horizonte
Belo Horizonte
Belo Horizonte is the capital of and largest city in the state of Minas Gerais, located in the southeastern region of Brazil. It is the third largest metropolitan area in the country...
at Estádio Independência
Estádio Independência
The Estádio Raimundo Sampaio, usually known as Estádio Independência, is in the neighborhood of Horto in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil and was opened in 1950 for the FIFA World Cup held in Brazil that year. Initially with capacity for 30,000 people, currently has capacity for 25,000 people...
. The game and the U.S. team were profiled by author Geoffrey Douglas in his book The Game of Their Lives, which was made into a film of the same name (later renamed as The Miracle Match).
Background
At the time, the English considered themselves the "Kings of Football", with a post-war record of 23 wins, 4 losses, and 3 draws. They had beaten the Italians 4–0 and the Portuguese 10–0 in Lisbon two weeks before that. Conversely, the Americans had lost their last seven international matches (including the 1934 World Cup1934 FIFA World Cup
The 1934 FIFA World Cup was the second FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national association football teams. It took place in Italy from 27 May to 10 June 1934....
and 1948 Summer Olympics
1948 Summer Olympics
The 1948 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XIV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was held in London, England, United Kingdom. After a 12-year hiatus because of World War II, these were the first Summer Olympics since the 1936 Games in Berlin...
) by the combined score of 45–2, including losses to Italy (7–1), Norway (11–0) and Northern Ireland (5–0). The odds were 3–1 the English would win the Cup, and 500–1 for the U.S.
England had Stanley Matthews
Stanley Matthews
Sir Stanley Matthews, CBE was an English footballer. Often regarded as one of the greatest players of the English game, he is the only player to have been knighted while still playing, as well as being the first winner of both the European Footballer of the Year and the Football Writers'...
available, who was widely considered one of the best players in the world at the time, but he had not played with the English team in the three international matches prior to the World Cup (in fact, he had joined the team late, having been touring Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
as part of another group of English internationals). As such, the selection committee (consisting entirely of Arthur Drewry
Arthur Drewry
Arthur Drewry was the 5th President of FIFA, serving from 1955 to 1961. He was elected as President on June 7, 1955 at the FIFA Conference in Lisbon where he succeeded Rodolphe William Seeldrayers from Belgium who had only been President for 15 months following the death of Jules Rimet...
, then president of the English/Wales Football League
The Football League
The Football League, also known as the npower Football League for sponsorship reasons, is a league competition featuring professional association football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest such competition in world football...
and later the president of FIFA), opted to stay with the team that had just defeated Chile
Chile national football team
The Chilean national football team represents Chile in all major international football competitions. The team is controlled by the Federación de Fútbol de Chile which was established in 1895. They have appeared in eight World Cup tournaments and were hosts of the 1962 FIFA World Cup finishing in...
. As there were no substitutes allowed in those days, Matthews watched the game with the other reserves.
The American team consisted of semi-professional players, most of whom had other jobs to support their families. Walter Bahr
Walter Bahr
Walter Alfred Bahr is a retired American soccer player, considered one of the greatest ever in his country. He was the long-time captain of the U.S. national team and played in the 1950 FIFA World Cup when the U.S...
was a high school teacher, Frank Borghi
Frank Borghi
Frank Borghi is a former American soccer player who earned nine caps at goalkeeper for the United States national team and played in the U.S. team's 1-0 victory over the hugely favored English in the 1950 FIFA World Cup.-Athletic career:Borghi started his sports career as a professional baseball...
drove a hearse
Hearse
A hearse is a funerary vehicle used to carry a coffin from a church or funeral home to a cemetery. In the funeral trade, hearses are often called funeral coaches.-History:...
for his uncle's funeral parlor, and others worked as mail carriers or dishwashers. The team had also been hastily assembled, and had only been able to train together once, and that was the day before they left for Brazil, which happened to be against the touring English team featuring Matthews. Three players—Joe Maca, Ed McIlvenny
Ed McIlvenny
Edward John "Ed" McIlvenny , also known as Eddie McIlvenny, was a Scottish-American soccer player who most notably captained the United States national team in their 1–0 upset of England in the 1950 FIFA World Cup.He learned the game as a youth and was selected to Scottish...
, and Joe Gaetjens
Joe Gaetjens
Joseph Edouard Gaetjens was a Haitian soccer player who played for the United States national team in the 1950 FIFA World Cup, scoring the winning goal in the 1–0 upset of England.- Early life :...
—were added to the roster just prior to that game. "We have no chance," recently-appointed coach Bill Jeffrey
William Jeffrey (soccer)
William "Bill" Jeffrey was the head coach of the 1950 United States World Cup team that famously beat England 1-0 in one of the greatest upsets in the history of soccer. He was the coach of Penn State for 26 seasons, winning ten national college championships...
told the press.
England and the U.S. were in Group 2 of the first round robin, along with Spain
Spain national football team
The Spain national football team represents Spain in international association football and is controlled by the Royal Spanish Football Federation, the governing body for football in Spain. The current head coach is Vicente del Bosque...
and Chile.
First half
England won the toss and elected to kick off. Within ninety seconds, Stanley Mortensen sent a cross from the left wing to Roy BentleyRoy Bentley
Roy Thomas Frank Bentley is a retired English football player who played most notably for Chelsea and the England national side. He later became a manager...
, who let off a shot that was barely pushed aside by U.S. goalkeeper Frank Borghi. By the twelfth minute, England had six clear shots on goal but could not convert, with two shots hitting the post, one just going over the top, and another brilliantly saved by Borghi.
The U.S. struggled to move to the offense, and finally managed a shot on goal in the twenty-fifth minute, which was blocked by English goalkeeper Bert Williams
Bert Williams (footballer)
Bert Frederick Williams MBE is a former English international football goalkeeper. Nicknamed The Cat, he spent the majority of his playing career at Wolverhampton Wanderers where he won the League Championship and FA Cup....
. The English counterattacked with three successive clear shots at the goal in minutes 30, 31, and 32, but failed to score. Mortensen twice went over the crossbar, and Tom Finney
Tom Finney
Sir Thomas Finney, OBE is a former English footballer, famous for his loyalty to his league club, Preston North End, and for his performances in the English national side....
's header to the top corner was tipped away by Borghi.
In the thirty-seventh minute, Bahr took a long shot from twenty-five yards out, but as Williams moved to his right to intercept, Gaetjens dived headlong and grazed the ball enough to put it to the left of the English goalkeeper, whose momentum prevented him from changing direction, and into the back of the net. The crowd exploded as the U.S. improbably led 1–0. As the half drew to a close, Finney had a chance to tie the score, but the whistle blew before he could shoot.
Second half
With renewed confidence, the U.S. played tougher as the second half opened, creating another scoring opportunity in the 54th minute. In the 59th minute England was awarded a direct free kickDirect free kick
A direct free kick is a method of restarting play in a game of association football following a foul. Unlike an indirect free kick, a goal may be scored directly against the opposing side without the ball having first touched another player.-Award:...
but Mortensen's shot was well saved by Borghi. But England began threatening again, and it was fifteen minutes before the Americans were able to get another shot. With eight minutes left, Charlie Colombo
Charlie Colombo
Charles Martin Colombo was an American soccer player who earned 11 caps as center half for the United States men's national soccer team. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame.Born and raised in The Hill area of St. Louis, Missouri, Colombo played professionally for St...
brought down Mortensen with an illegal tackle at the edge of the penalty area. England pleaded for a penalty kick
Penalty kick
A penalty kick is a type of direct free kick in association football, taken from twelve yards out from goal and with only the goalkeeper of the defending team between the penalty taker and the goal.Penalty kicks are performed during normal play...
, but the referee ruled it was outside the box. On the resulting free kick, Jimmy Mullen headed the ball for what he thought was a goal, failing to notice that Borghi had tipped it away at the last second, denying the English the chance to tie the game.
England had no more chances on goal and the game ended in victory for the U.S. team.
According to the official history of the English Football Association, American newspapermen reported that England scored two legitimate goals—shots that clearly passed beyond the goal line—but were not given as goals.
Remaining matches
England lost their next match and failed to qualify for the Final Round, finishing the First Round with a record of 1–0–2.The U.S. lost their next match 5–2, versus Chile, ending their 1950 World Cup run with a First Round record of 1–0–2. They would not qualify for the World Cup again until 1990
1990 FIFA World Cup
The 1990 FIFA World Cup was the 14th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 8 June to 8 July 1990 in Italy, the second country to host the event twice. Teams representing 116 national football associations from all six populated...
.
Spain advanced from Group 2 of the First Round, finishing last in next/Final Round. Uruguay
Uruguay national football team
The Uruguayan national football team represents Uruguay in international association football and is controlled by the Uruguayan Football Association, the governing body for football in Uruguay. The current head coach is Óscar Tabárez...
won the 1950 World Cup.
John Souza
John Souza
John "Clarkie" Souza-Benavides is a former soccer player who earned 14 caps and scored 3 goals for the United States men's national soccer team, and played in the U.S. team's historic 1–0 victory over England in the 1950 FIFA World Cup...
, the U.S. inside right forward, was selected to the World Cup All-Star team by the Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
ian sports newspaper Mundo Esportivo, and remained the only American player selected to a World Cup All-Star team until Claudio Reyna
Claudio Reyna
Claudio Reyna is a retired American soccer player and the current USSF US Youth Soccer Technical Director. He was the captain of the United States national team before retiring from international football following the USA's exit from the 2006 FIFA World Cup. He is widely considered one of the...
in 2002.
Aftermath
Newspaper headlines in most World Cup nations trumpeted the shocking upset, except in the United States and England.There was only one American journalist even at the World Cup: Dent McSkimming
Dent McSkimming
Florence Dent Archibald McSkimming was an American sportswriter for several St. Louis newspapers. He was inducted into the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 1951....
of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
The St. Louis Post-Dispatch is the major city-wide newspaper in St. Louis, Missouri. Although written to serve Greater St. Louis, the Post-Dispatch is one of the largest newspapers in the Midwestern United States, and is available and read as far west as Kansas City, Missouri, as far south as...
, who could not get the newspaper to pay for the trip, and had taken time off work to cover the event. His report of the match was the only one to appear in any major American newspaper.
In England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, newspapers at the time were generally small, and only had a single page devoted to sports. Because the English cricket team
English cricket team
The England and Wales cricket team is a cricket team which represents England and Wales. Until 1992 it also represented Scotland. Since 1 January 1997 it has been governed by the England and Wales Cricket Board , having been previously governed by Marylebone Cricket Club from 1903 until the end...
happened to suffer their first-ever defeat
West Indian cricket team in England in 1950
The West Indies cricket team toured England in the 1950 season to play a four-match Test series against England.West Indies won the series 3-1 with no matches drawn.-Test series summary:* at Old Trafford – England won by 202 runs...
to the West Indies
West Indian cricket team
The West Indian cricket team, also known colloquially as the West Indies or the Windies, is a multi-national cricket team representing a sporting confederation of 15 mainly English-speaking Caribbean countries, British dependencies and non-British dependencies.From the mid 1970s to the early 1990s,...
the very same day, that was the major story in most publications. However, in publications that did report the World Cup match, so unexpected was the result that it was presumed that the 1–0 scoreline was a typing error and so it was reported that England had won on a scoreline of 10–0 or 10–1.
Afterwards, a number of books and newspapers in England suggested that the U.S. team had arrived "through Ellis Island
Ellis Island
Ellis Island in New York Harbor was the gateway for millions of immigrants to the United States. It was the nation's busiest immigrant inspection station from 1892 until 1954. The island was greatly expanded with landfill between 1892 and 1934. Before that, the much smaller original island was the...
", meaning that the team was made up of imported players, but eight of the starting eleven were American-born. The other three, Gaetjens, McIlvenny, and Maca, were not U.S. citizens but had declared their intentions to gain citizenship
Citizenship
Citizenship is the state of being a citizen of a particular social, political, national, or human resource community. Citizenship status, under social contract theory, carries with it both rights and responsibilities...
and according to the rules of the United States Soccer Football Association
United States Soccer Federation
The United States Soccer Federation is the official governing body of the sport of soccer in the United States. Its headquarters are located in Chicago, Illinois. It is a member of FIFA and is responsible for governing amateur and professional soccer, including the men's, women's, youth, futsal...
at the time were allowed to play. The U.S. was cleared of any wrongdoing by FIFA
FIFA
The Fédération Internationale de Football Association , commonly known by the acronym FIFA , is the international governing body of :association football, futsal and beach football. Its headquarters are located in Zurich, Switzerland, and its president is Sepp Blatter, who is in his fourth...
in a hearing on 2 December 1950.
England's blue kit, which had made its debut in this match, was never worn again. Walter Bahr erroneously notes that England has never had a blue kit since then, but a blue away kit was worn again in 1959 during a 1–4 loss to Peru
Peru national football team
The Peru national football team, known as 'el equipo inca', represents Peru in international football competition and is managed by the Peruvian Football Federation . The team competes against the other nine members of FIFA's CONMEBOL conference, which encompasses the countries of South America...
.
The United States and England did not play another World Cup match against each other until the 2010 FIFA World Cup
2010 FIFA World Cup
The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national association football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010...
, which ended in a 1–1 draw.
The match
| style="font-size: 90%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> |  UNITED STATES: |
||
| GK | Frank Borghi Frank Borghi Frank Borghi is a former American soccer player who earned nine caps at goalkeeper for the United States national team and played in the U.S. team's 1-0 victory over the hugely favored English in the 1950 FIFA World Cup.-Athletic career:Borghi started his sports career as a professional baseball... |
||
| DF | Harry Keough Harry Keough Harry Joseph Keough is a former American soccer defender who played on the United States national team in their 1–0 upset of England at the 1950 FIFA World Cup. He spent most of his club career in his native St. Louis, winning a national junior championship, two U.S. Open Cup and seven National... |
||
| DF | Joe Maca | ||
| MF | Walter Bahr Walter Bahr Walter Alfred Bahr is a retired American soccer player, considered one of the greatest ever in his country. He was the long-time captain of the U.S. national team and played in the 1950 FIFA World Cup when the U.S... |
||
| MF | Ed McIlvenny Ed McIlvenny Edward John "Ed" McIlvenny , also known as Eddie McIlvenny, was a Scottish-American soccer player who most notably captained the United States national team in their 1–0 upset of England in the 1950 FIFA World Cup.He learned the game as a youth and was selected to Scottish... (c) |
||
| MF | Charlie Colombo Charlie Colombo Charles Martin Colombo was an American soccer player who earned 11 caps as center half for the United States men's national soccer team. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame.Born and raised in The Hill area of St. Louis, Missouri, Colombo played professionally for St... |
||
| FW | Frank Wallace Frank Wallace (soccer) Frank Valicenti, aka Frank "Pee Wee" Wallace, was an American international soccer player who played as forward. He earned 7 caps and scored 3 goals for the United States men's national soccer team, and played in the U.S. team's historic 1–0 victory over England in the 1950 FIFA World Cup... |
||
| FW | Gino Pariani Gino Pariani Virginio “Gino” Peter Pariani was an American soccer striker. He earned 5 caps and scored 1 goal for the United States men's national soccer team, and played on the 1950 FIFA World Cup team, including the U.S. team's historic 1–0 victory over England. He was also a member of the U.S. Olympic... |
||
| FW | Joe Gaetjens Joe Gaetjens Joseph Edouard Gaetjens was a Haitian soccer player who played for the United States national team in the 1950 FIFA World Cup, scoring the winning goal in the 1–0 upset of England.- Early life :... |
||
| FW | John Souza John Souza John "Clarkie" Souza-Benavides is a former soccer player who earned 14 caps and scored 3 goals for the United States men's national soccer team, and played in the U.S. team's historic 1–0 victory over England in the 1950 FIFA World Cup... |
||
| FW | Ed Souza Ed Souza Edward Souza-Neto was an American soccer player who earned 6 caps and scored 1 goal for the United States men's national soccer team, and played in the U.S. team's historic 1–0 victory over England in the 1950 FIFA World Cup. Souza was also a member of the U.S... |
||
| Manager: | |||
 William JeffreyWilliam Jeffrey (soccer) William "Bill" Jeffrey was the head coach of the 1950 United States World Cup team that famously beat England 1-0 in one of the greatest upsets in the history of soccer. He was the coach of Penn State for 26 seasons, winning ten national college championships... |
|||
ENGLAND:
Bert Williams (footballer)
Bert Frederick Williams MBE is a former English international football goalkeeper. Nicknamed The Cat, he spent the majority of his playing career at Wolverhampton Wanderers where he won the League Championship and FA Cup....
Alf Ramsey
Sir Alfred Ernest "Alf" Ramsey was an English footballer and manager of the English national football team from 1963 to 1974. His greatest achievement was winning the 1966 World Cup with England on 30 July 1966...
Laurie Hughes
Lawrence Hughes was an England former international football player who played for Liverpool.-Life and playing career:...
Jimmy Dickinson
James William 'Jimmy' Dickinson was an English football player.Dickinson holds the record for number of league appearances for Portsmouth...
Wilf Mannion
Wilfred James Mannion was an English professional footballer who played as an inside forward, making over 350 senior appearances for Middlesbrough. He also played international football for England...
Tom Finney
Sir Thomas Finney, OBE is a former English footballer, famous for his loyalty to his league club, Preston North End, and for his performances in the English national side....
Stan Mortensen
Stanley Harding "Stan" Mortensen was an English professional footballer, most famous for his part in the 1953 FA Cup Final , in which he became the only player ever to score a hat-trick in a Wembley FA Cup Final...
Roy Bentley
Roy Thomas Frank Bentley is a retired English football player who played most notably for Chelsea and the England national side. He later became a manager...
Walter WinterbottomQuotations
- Wilf Mannion: "Bloody ridiculous. Can't we play them again tomorrow?"
- Harry Keough: "Boy, I feel sorry for these bastards. How are they ever going to live down the fact we beat them?"
- Harry Keough: "They developed the game. And us coming in and beating them had to be a blow to them."