STOKE-ON-TRENT (REUTERS) - Crowds of mourning fans joined luminaries of English football for a final farewell on Monday (March 4) to Gordon Banks, a steelworker's son who became one of the world's greatest goalkeepers and will be remembered for his miraculous save against Pele.
Teammates from England's 1966 World Cup win and members of former clubs Stoke and Leicester came to join a cortege from the Stoke stadium to the funeral for Banks, who died aged 81 last month.
"He was so humble, honest to God, he didn't really understand what he had achieved in life and why people made such a fuss of him," friend Terry Conroy, who starred with Banks and scored in Stoke's 1972 League Cup win, told Reuters.
Banks was best known for the stunning one-handed save from a Pele bullet header that bounced awkwardly in front of him during England's group-stage game against Brazil at the 1970 World Cup in Mexico.
"With the luck of the gods, the angle at which I'd managed to lift that ball was perfect, and it ballooned in the air and over the bar," the genial Banks said in one of the many recountings begged by fans and the media.
Footage shows Banks chuckling afterwards, as England's Bobby Moore jokingly chides him for not catching the ball.
His achievements went far further than stopping Pele.
Â
Â
Â
Banks won 73 international caps, played nearly 500 times for Leicester and Stoke and won two League Cups, before a car crash blinded him in one eye.
He remained in Stoke, a former mining and pottery city, where he would watch games, attend charity events and take a weekly walk round Trentham Gardens.
"He donated his tie to a charity event I was involved in and we raised £200 (S$358.44). Such a gentleman," reminisced Phillip Steele, 76, next to a statue of Banks at the hilltop stadium decked in flags, scarves and flowers.
Favourite saves
Some 2,000 fans were at the stadium to watch proceedings on a big screen. Others lined the route of the funeral procession, which was to stop outside the old Victoria Ground where Banks plied his trade before ending at Stoke Minster for a religious service.
Goalkeepers Jack Butland, Joe Hart and Kasper Schmeichel were to be pall-bearers. Fellow World Cup winners Bobby Charlton and Geoff Hurst were also expected.
In a largely working-class city obsessed with football, Banks was viewed as a reminder of simpler days before the Premier League's mega-millions.
Everyone had their favourite save.
"Mine was a penalty he stopped against Geoff Hurst at Stoke's 1972 League Cup semi-final at West Ham," Conroy said. "If he hadn't saved that, we wouldn't have been in the final and won our first trophy in more than 100 years."
Banks used to pick out a 1963 FA Cup semi-final when Leicester scored with their only shot on goal while he single-handedly thwarted chance after chance for Liverpool.
Born in the northern city of Sheffield, Banks worked as a coal packer and apprentice bricklayer as a teenager before an inauspicious start at Chesterfield's reserves: he let in 122 goals in the 1954-55 season. After military service, he got a first-team contract at Chesterfield - for £7 a week.
Anecdotes from Banks' life tell of a different era to that of today's cosseted players. Before kick-off at the 1966 World Cup semi-final, he ran out of the gum he used to chew to generate spit for his hands - so the England trainer popped out of Wembley and down the road to buy some from a news kiosk just in time to stave off Banks' panic.
MADRID (AP) — Mauricio Pochettino will continue to be praised for his managerial style, but not yet for his titles. He's yet to win one. Pochettino lost his latest bid for a title when Tottenham fell to Liverpool 2-0 in the Champions League final on Saturday. The coach credited with turning
Tottenham may not be ready to win trophies, says Mauricio
Call of Duty Mobile; ESL India Premiership Many fans and pundits were clamouring for Valverde to get the axe after Barcelona's embarrassing Champions League semi-final exit at the hands of
Chelsea were given a fright by Slavia Prague in a 4-3 home win on Thursday that saw them to a 5-3 aggregate victory and a place in the semi-finals of the Europa League. Already 1-0 up from the
Chelsea vs Slavia Prague result, Europa League 2019 report
German champions Bayern Munich have not yet made an offer for Manchester City winger Leroy Sane despite their long-standing desire to sign him, club CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said on Wednesday.
Football: Bayern have not yet tabled bid for Man City's Leroy
Feb 27 - MANCHESTER CITY 1 WEST HAM UNITED 0 . Sergio Aguero's penalty gave champions Manchester City a 1-0 win over West Ham United at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday to stay a point behind Premier League leaders Liverpool.
Aguero penalty gives Man City 1-0 win over West Ham
A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on February 08, 2019, with the headline 'Malcom shines in absence of other Barca stars'.
Malcom shines in absence of other Barca stars
Guardiola Dismisses Klopp's 'No Weaknesses' Claim About City that his Manchester City side are showing "no sign of weakness" in the Premier League title race. Stadium on January 3 and
Cardiff dealt major blow in survival bid (1:18) Ryan Babel's screamer for Fulham left Neil Warnock's Cardiff teetering on the brink of relegation from the Premier League.
Babel strike leaves Cardiff on brink of relegation - Sports
sportsnewsboom.com/2019/04/27/babel-strike-leaves-cardiff-on-brink-of-relegation/
12:09 PM ET * Cardiff on brink of relegation after 1-0 defeat at Fulham * Ryan Babel scored winner with ferocious 25-yard shot * Fulham's third win in a row equalled their Premier League best * Game delayed after Fulham's Odoi knocked out by team mate * Fulham striker Mitrovic blazed over bar from 12
Babel strike leaves Cardiff on brink of relegation
- Crystal Palace moved further away from the Premier League relegation zone with a 3-1 win at fellow strugglers Burnley on Saturday thanks to second half goals from Michy Batshuayi and Wilfried Zaha.
Football: Palace climb away from troube with 3-1 win at Burnley
The teams of the member nations of FIFA, football's world governing body, are ranked based on their game results with the most successful teams being ranked highest. The rankings were introduced in December 1992, and eight teams (Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Spain) have held the top position, of which
England National Team » Record against - World Football
Chelsea have identified a possible replacement for Maurizio Sarri should the Italian leave the Blues and become Juventus' new manager. Sarri replacement who could help tie star down to a new
The reason Maurizio Sarri does not want to start Callum
Pray for no rain: Pep Guardiola's Manchester City to return to China after Beijing debacle Description: Pep Guardiola's Manchester City will hope there is no repeat when they compete in the 2019 Premier League Asia Trophy, which will be held in Nanjing on July 17 and nearby Shanghai on July 20.
Pray for no rain: Man City to return to China after Beijing
worldsoccertalk.com/2019/03/26/pray-for-no-rain-man-city-to-return-to-china-after-beijing-debacle/
Pray for no rain: Man City to return to China after Beijing debacle AFP March 26, 2019 AFP No Comments Shanghai (AFP) - Manchester City will return to China this year for the first time since their ill-fated visit of 2016, when a game with cross-town rivals United was called off at the last minute.
Pray for no rain: Man City to return to China after Beijing
en.rfi.fr/wire/20190326-pray-no-rain-man-city-return-china-after-beijing-debacle
Pray for no rain: Man City to return to China after Beijing debacle Manchester City will return to China this year for the first time since their ill-fated visit of 2016, when a game with
Pray for no rain: Man City to return to China after Beijing
0 Kommentare:
Kommentar veröffentlichen