Sir Roger

[Cunny]

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The Hall Of Fame: Roger Hunt

Posted 06/02/07 13:05EmailPrintSave

 

 

 

Author Robert Galvin returns to pay tribute to Roger Hunt, considered to be one of England's most under-rated players and who finally received some of the recognition he deserves when he was inducted into the Hall of Fame...

 

 

From his position on the bench, Harold Shepherdson was struck by the reaction of the England players when Roger Hunt scored his second goal against France at Wembley in 1966.

 

 

"Instead of the usual dignified congratulations when a man scores," the England trainer recalled later," the players ran over and mobbed Roger in celebration."

 

 

Inside the stadium the sense of relief, Shepherdson noted, was palpable. In scoring his third goal in as many group games, Hunt guaranteed England's progress to the knock-out stage of the World Cup.

 

 

Such exuberant behaviour, then a rare sight in football, was proof of Hunt's popularity and the professional respect he commanded in the dressing-room.

 

 

Disappointed with England's attitude and performance in beating France 2-0, Alf Ramsey accused the team of complacency at a hastily-convened meeting. He made one exception. "Roger always has the right attitude," was the gist of Ramsey's message to the squad. "He always plays well."

 

 

In 16 appearances for his country, Hunt had scored a remarkable 15 goals. "And even if he didn't score," Martin Peters observed later, "we all knew that Roger would run his socks off for the good of the team."

 

 

He'd found form at exactly the right time. From squad regular, he'd made himself an automatic choice in a matter of weeks. Now he was arguably England's best player during the group stage.

 

 

He wasn't making the headlines, though, despite being the team's leading goalscorer. (He even helped create England's other goal, a spectacular long-range shot by Bobby Charlton against Mexico. "Roger made a fantastic decoy run," Charlton said). In the days following the France game, the football reporters were more interested in the injury sustained by Jimmy Greaves (a badly gashed shin) and Nobby Stiles, whose tackling was upsetting various Frenchmen and FIFA officials.

 

 

"Most of the football writers back then didn't grasp his importance to the England side, but, believe me, the England players did under-estimate his contribution," Stiles told Football365. "Roger always put the interests of the team first."

 

 

In Hunt's case, that meant playing a different role to the one he performed at club level. At Liverpool, Hunt was regarded as a specialist goalscorer. "It was his job to get on the end of things in the penalty area," team-mate Ian Callaghan explained. "Bill Shankly didn't want him chasing about all over the place, wasting energy." To get the ball to him, Liverpool employed two specialist wingers in Callaghan and Peter Thompson.

 

 

"We wanted him to concentrate on goalscoring, in the same way Jimmy Greaves did at Tottenham," Shankly explained later. "Mind you, Roger didn't just slide them in quietly, like Jimmy. He blasted them in."

 

 

Ramsey, of course, opted to play without specialist wingers in the latter stages of the World Cup in 1966. Therefore, he wanted someone up front who was prepared to work tirelessly off the ball. By proving his willingness to follow orders, Hunt had lifted himself up in the England pecking order, from fringe squad member to automatic choice, in a matter of weeks leading up to the tournament. (Initially handed the number 21 shirt, Hunt was the only attacker to start every game at the World Cup.)

 

 

"Alf always picked the same core of players in 1966," Stiles said, "and Roger was one of them."

 

 

Selected for the final against West Germany, Hunt again ran his marker ragged, as Ramsey instructed. It diminished his chances of scoring, but tactically, it did the trick; crucially, when England equalised, it was Hunt who dragged Wolfgang Weber badly out of position, creating the space for Geoff Hurst to score.

 

 

Though subsequently nicknamed 'Sir Roger' by his Liverpool and England team-mates and the Kop, the demands of the World Cup seemed to drain Hunt both physically and psychologically. The following season he struggled for form with Liverpool and, in 1967, he was dropped from the England team by Ramsey, albeit briefly.

 

 

Even though his overall scoring rate, for both club and country, slowed markedly in the second half of the decade, he remained an England regular until January 1969, when he finally decided he'd had enough. He'd never been a favourite of the Wembley crowd; their favourite had always been Greaves, the local lad.

 

 

Hunt walked away from international football following his appearance against Romania, despite being part of Ramsey's plans for the 1970 World Cup. "You mean you won't be coming with me to Mexico, Roger?" was the manager's disappointed response when informed of the decision.

 

 

Based on results, such loyalty was understandable: Hunt was selected 34 times by Ramsey, and he scored 18 goals; more significantly, perhaps, in the seven years since his debut, England had lost only two games in which he played.

 

 

In April 1972, his former England team-mates showed their appreciation by turning up in force (with 56,000 Liverpool fans) for his testimonial at Anfield. It was more than two years since his last game for Liverpool, having scored a club record 245 League goals in the decade since his debut in 1959.

 

 

"I was always glad to see Roger beside me in the England team," Bobby Charlton said at the time. "You could make huge plans around him, and he was greatly missed when he wasn't there."

 

 

"Roger did not receive the credit he deserved from the public nor the press in 1966," Nobby Stiles told the author over forty years later. "So it's great to see him get more recognition today. Roger was also a pillar of the Shankly side that won two titles and the FA Cup during the mid-sixties. He fully deserves his place in the Hall of Fame, because he's one of English football's most underrated players."

 

 

Robert Galvin is the author of 'Football's Greatest Heroes: The National Football Museum's Hall of Fame' which is available from all good bookshops and is well worth a read.

[jimmylibel]

Great that he's getting the recognition.

 

Reading that does make me think a little of another current Liverpool striker who tends to put in a lot of effort and not get the praise he deserves (nationally) at times.

[Bootle Buck]

What a fecking player. I first saw him as a lad against West Ham, playing against Bobby Moore and he gave him a tough game. He was such a huge idol of the Kop back then and It's great to see him honoiured 40 years on. Although his "unofficial knighthood" by the Kop will always be his biggest honour.

[Paul B]

My first hero! It's great to read such a glowing testimonial to a truly remarkable player. I remember gazing up at his huge, tall frame in absolute awe as he stood in front of me at my first ever game. A few days later, my dad took me to a sports shop in the city centre which he was opening and he signed my autograph book and was thrilled when he spoke to me. I remember the Chelsea players mobbing him when he scored the goal at Stamford Bridge that made his Liverpool's top goal scorer of all time. A true, true great. If only we had his like now.

[anny road]

Drinks in my regular

[badtodabone]

my hero when i was growing up