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.
Lions line up 2 friendlies, to get new coach Yoshida soon The Straits Times; Football: Singapore to play Solomon Islands and Myanmar in friendlies, new national coach soon to be unveiled The
Lions stutter to narrow victory over Solomon Islands, new
Messi torments Liverpool with 600th Barca goal in 3-0 win. Liverpool, who were beaten 3-1 in last year's final by Real Madrid, played far better than the scoreline suggested, carving out a
Official Liverpool FC Store | Liverpool FC Ball
AD
store.liverpoolfc.com/ball
Report Ad
Browse Our Wide Range Of Exclusive Liverpool FC Souvenirs. Shop Online Now.
Serie A: Napoli Draw Puts Juventus Coronation On Hold
Cristiano Ronaldo can stay at the top for several years, says Portugal coach Spread the love Cristiano Ronaldo can continue playing at the highest level for both club and country for at least three to four years, says Portugal coach Fernando Santos.
Portugal coach says Ronaldo can stay at the top for several years
Football: Rashford, Martial give lacklustre Man United win over Watford The Straits Times Football news - Anthony Martial set to miss PSG return leg for injury-hit United
Manchester United vs Watford highlights and reaction as
Football: Double injury blow for Spurs ahead of Liverpool clash Eric Dier sustains an injury during the Euro 2020 qualifier between England and the Czech Republic. PHOTO: EPA-EFE
Double injury blow for Spurs ahead of Liverpool clash | SBS News
Answers.com is the place to go to get the answers you need and to ask the questions you want
Brainly.com - For students. By students.
Asian Cup Pressure comes with the territory, warns Japan skipper Maya Yoshida. Yoshida wants his young teammates to take advantage of the opportunity in the UAE to cement themselves in the Japan side.
SOCCER/ Pressure comes with the territory, warns captain Maya
Speaking ahead of Cardiff's trip to Arsenal on Tuesday, their first match since Sala's plane vanished, Warnock said it had been the most difficult week of his career and admits he had questioned
Warnock says Sala tragedy is most difficult week of his
Real Madrid's 2019/20 home strip appears to have been leaked through a collection of images which have emerged online - and the design is set to delight Los Blancos fans. The kit features a design
Real Madrid Reportedly Set To Unveil Eden Hazard On Monday
Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri confirmed on Friday Cristiano Ronaldo is an injury doubt for the Champions League quarter-final first leg against Ajax on April 10. Ronaldo, a five-time
Ronaldo 'risks missing' Champions League quarter-final first
0 comments:
Post a Comment