Football used to be described as "a man's game." In this so called modern era, I often wonder whether or not this phrase is still true. The game has altered so much over the last 25 years as far as the physical aspect goes. Sadly, I think that it has lost some of the attraction that it once had because of the fact that the physical side of football has been slowly eroded down through the years. Yes, we can all eulogize about the great players in the game today, but I'll guarantee that most of the players placed in that bracket are either forwards or midfielders. It used to be that when going to the match, your appetite would be whetted by looking forward to the confrontations of full back against winger; inside forward against wing half; goalkeeper and centre half against centre forward. It was a joy to see those defenders who had mastered the art of the tackle, whether it be of the sliding type; the block type; or the full blooded ‘come into the office’ type! It also gave the spectator a chance to see something about the character of the players that these defenders were marking, and would also allow them to see whether or not they had heart, courage, and that little bit of ‘devil’ not to be intimidated and to give it back.
All players need the skill to make that top echelon, but skill alone will not see them prevail. They have to have the temperament to survive and progress, and that comes from attitude, character, courage, strength of mind, the will to compete and win, and having a great pride in the shirt that they wear. Unfortunately today, in my own honest opinion, I see a lot of players that lack those extras to make themselves truly great players. Those that do attain greatness, certainly do have that mix.
I got to thinking about some of the great defenders that I have seen during my lifetime, and wondered just how long they would last on the pitch if they played the game today. The conclusion that I came up with was, not more than ten minutes! The rough and tumble and physical aspect, was all part and parcel of football back then and accepted without rancour. Players had to come to terms with it or they would disappear into oblivion – and believe me, many of them did! People today will argue that the game back in the past was brutal and that something had to be done to clean it up. I disagree with what I hear. Yes, the tackle from behind had to be outlawed, but I see far more brutal assaults on players in this modern era than I ever did back then. Today's brutality is more often than not cynical, cowardly, and also downright dangerous. The art of tackling has all but disappeared. This certainly does not surprise me given the edicts handed down by FIFA and our own F.A., and also the various governing football body’s Referee’s Committees around the world. There has also been a great change in referee’s personalities from the moment that they became professional – some of them have egos bigger than today’s star players. As Bill Shankly once said; "the trouble with Referees is that they know the rules, but they don't know the game!" Never has that statement been more truer than in this modern era!
The term "hard men" is often heard and I got to thinking about what that term really meant. What constitutes a ‘hard man?’ Is it somebody who just kicks and intimidates opponents? Is it a player who takes the kicks without retaliating? To me, the epitome of the ‘hard man’ is the player who has an abundance of skill, be it a defender or a forward, who has the physical and mental strength to meet the challenge, who gives and takes without question, is honest in his endeavours and gives his all for the shirt that he wears, and who, at the end of the day, fans grudgingly admire with the greatest of respect. Players from yesteryear whom I would place in this bracket would be Jimmy Scoular, Peter Farrell, Roy Paul, Stan Willemse, Roy Warhurst, Trevor Daniel, Tommy Banks, Roy Hartle, Tommy Docherty, Tommy Cummings, Brian Miller, Alex Forbes, Maurice Norman, Dave Mackay, Dave Hickson, Trevor Ford, Tommy Smith, Ron Flowers, Tony Kay, Dennis Smith. That's twenty without thinking too hard! If I look at today's players, I struggle to come up with very many. Where are today's real ‘hard men?’ All of those players that I mentioned were players that opposing fans grudgingly respected and would not have hesitated to have had them in their own teams. United have had more than their fair share down the years, even going back as far as the first decade of the 20th Century when the famous United half-back line of Duckworth, Roberts and Bell, sprang to prominence. Charlie Roberts was as hard as they came, and in the 20's nobody in the game had a more fearsome reputation than a United centre half by the name of Frank Barson. Busby's first team after he became manager had another rock hard centre half in Allenby Chilton, a player who gave nor asked any quarter. He was followed by Mark Jones, and then came Stan Crowther, Wilf McGuinness, Maurice Setters, Nobby Stiles, John Fitzpatrick, Jim Holton, Kevin Moran, Bryan Robson, Paul Ince, Roy Keane, Jaap Stam. From the forwards, players I would bracket as "hard men" were Jack Rowley, Dennis Law, George Best, Joe Jordan, Norman Whiteside, Mark Hughes, Eric Cantona. Of course Duncan's name is not included because, well, Duncan was just Duncan, and if I start going on about him, there would not be enough print in this edition to allow for anything else!
One player's name is missing though, and to me he is one of, if not 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. United very nearly missed out on signing him as he was courted fastidiously by Bolton Wanderers. Although he had been given trials by United, he didn't hear from them for a while, and was on the verge of signing for the Trotters. However, being fair minded, he did let United know what he was about to do, and they immediately sent for him, and got him down to Old Trafford to put pen to paper and sign part-time professional forms. Prior to this he had been playing his football for St. Helens Town, for whom his father had kept goal a number of years beforehand. He was also working down the pit 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. 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.
All players need the skill to make that top echelon, but skill alone will not see them prevail. They have to have the temperament to survive and progress, and that comes from attitude, character, courage, strength of mind, the will to compete and win, and having a great pride in the shirt that they wear. Unfortunately today, in my own honest opinion, I see a lot of players that lack those extras to make themselves truly great players. Those that do attain greatness, certainly do have that mix.
I got to thinking about some of the great defenders that I have seen during my lifetime, and wondered just how long they would last on the pitch if they played the game today. The conclusion that I came up with was, not more than ten minutes! The rough and tumble and physical aspect, was all part and parcel of football back then and accepted without rancour. Players had to come to terms with it or they would disappear into oblivion – and believe me, many of them did! People today will argue that the game back in the past was brutal and that something had to be done to clean it up. I disagree with what I hear. Yes, the tackle from behind had to be outlawed, but I see far more brutal assaults on players in this modern era than I ever did back then. Today's brutality is more often than not cynical, cowardly, and also downright dangerous. The art of tackling has all but disappeared. This certainly does not surprise me given the edicts handed down by FIFA and our own F.A., and also the various governing football body’s Referee’s Committees around the world. There has also been a great change in referee’s personalities from the moment that they became professional – some of them have egos bigger than today’s star players. As Bill Shankly once said; "the trouble with Referees is that they know the rules, but they don't know the game!" Never has that statement been more truer than in this modern era!
The term "hard men" is often heard and I got to thinking about what that term really meant. What constitutes a ‘hard man?’ Is it somebody who just kicks and intimidates opponents? Is it a player who takes the kicks without retaliating? To me, the epitome of the ‘hard man’ is the player who has an abundance of skill, be it a defender or a forward, who has the physical and mental strength to meet the challenge, who gives and takes without question, is honest in his endeavours and gives his all for the shirt that he wears, and who, at the end of the day, fans grudgingly admire with the greatest of respect. Players from yesteryear whom I would place in this bracket would be Jimmy Scoular, Peter Farrell, Roy Paul, Stan Willemse, Roy Warhurst, Trevor Daniel, Tommy Banks, Roy Hartle, Tommy Docherty, Tommy Cummings, Brian Miller, Alex Forbes, Maurice Norman, Dave Mackay, Dave Hickson, Trevor Ford, Tommy Smith, Ron Flowers, Tony Kay, Dennis Smith. That's twenty without thinking too hard! If I look at today's players, I struggle to come up with very many. Where are today's real ‘hard men?’ All of those players that I mentioned were players that opposing fans grudgingly respected and would not have hesitated to have had them in their own teams. United have had more than their fair share down the years, even going back as far as the first decade of the 20th Century when the famous United half-back line of Duckworth, Roberts and Bell, sprang to prominence. Charlie Roberts was as hard as they came, and in the 20's nobody in the game had a more fearsome reputation than a United centre half by the name of Frank Barson. Busby's first team after he became manager had another rock hard centre half in Allenby Chilton, a player who gave nor asked any quarter. He was followed by Mark Jones, and then came Stan Crowther, Wilf McGuinness, Maurice Setters, Nobby Stiles, John Fitzpatrick, Jim Holton, Kevin Moran, Bryan Robson, Paul Ince, Roy Keane, Jaap Stam. From the forwards, players I would bracket as "hard men" were Jack Rowley, Dennis Law, George Best, Joe Jordan, Norman Whiteside, Mark Hughes, Eric Cantona. Of course Duncan's name is not included because, well, Duncan was just Duncan, and if I start going on about him, there would not be enough print in this edition to allow for anything else!
One player's name is missing though, and to me he is one of, if not 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. United very nearly missed out on signing him as he was courted fastidiously by Bolton Wanderers. Although he had been given trials by United, he didn't hear from them for a while, and was on the verge of signing for the Trotters. However, being fair minded, he did let United know what he was about to do, and they immediately sent for him, and got him down to Old Trafford to put pen to paper and sign part-time professional forms. Prior to this he had been playing his football for St. Helens Town, for whom his father had kept goal a number of years beforehand. He was also working down the pit 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. 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.