OBITUARY: Nutgrove’s Busby Babe Bill Foulkes who became Manchester United’s defensive rock

THE passing of Bill Foulkes at the age of 81 brings to an end three generations of sporting achievement.

His grandfather Tom was a full-back who played just over 300 games for Saints and captained the team in the first-ever Challenge Cup final in 1897; father James also played at Knowsley Road, without making the seniors, but found fame as a goalkeeper for New Brighton in the Third Division (North) and as a champion crown green bowler, while Bill became a defensive rock for Matt Busby’s Manchester United, playing 688 games for the Red Devils.

Only Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes and Bobby Charlton have played more!

Born in Nutgrove, Bill’s natural sporting inclination was to play rugby, first and foremost.

Yet it was when the family moved to Rainhill that the soccer bug began to bite for Bill and he was a star performer at Whiston Secondary School, as a goal-scoring centre forward for most of the time.

After leaving school he had various jobs including apprentice carpenter at Pilkingtons and working at a brass foundry before becoming a coal-miner like his father at Lea Green Colliery.

Meanwhile his football career was staring to take off, with spells at Prescot Celtic, Whiston Youth Club and St Helens Town, in the Lancashire Combination.

He attracted the attention of Manchester United, who signed him on a part-time contract and he made his debut as a full-back against Liverpool at Anfield in December 1952, where he faced the great winger Billy Liddell.

Bill made excellent progress and won two Under 23 caps for England and made one appearance for the senior side, against Northern Ireland, in Belfast in 1954.

Bill was still part-time at this point. He became a regular in Manager Matt Busby’s first great team at Old Trafford, which included the likes of Stan Pearson, Jack Rowley and Johnny Carey.

Bill married Teresa Suffler at St. Nicholas Church, Whiston in 1955 and went on to win a League Championship medal with United in 1955-56, when he also undertook National Service, at the same time as his team-mate Duncan Edwards.

After a further title win, the team entered the burgeoning European Cup competition and reached the quarter finals, before the terrible Munich air crash, when seven United players – members of the famous Busby Babes - lost their lives.

Bill survived with barely a scratch and helped to search the wrecked aircraft with his team-mate Harry Gregg.

After Munich, Bill was appointed captain of the team and led them out at Wembley in 1958, when they were beaten by Bolton Wanderers.

A central figure in Matt Busby’s re-building plans, Bill became an uncompromising centre half and shared a fine defensive partnership with Nobby Stiles at club level.

United were champions in 1966-67 and reached the European Cup semi-final against Real Madrid.

United looked to be going out of the competition at the Bernabeu until Bill, somewhat uncharacteristically, found himself in the penalty area and slotted George Best’s cross into the net.

Bill scored nine goals during his United career, none more crucial than this. The team went on to lift the European Cup against Benfica at Wembley and fulfil Matt Busby’s post-Munich dream.

Bill joined the backroom staff at Old Trafford on his retirement from playing and continued to manage and coach at clubs including Chicago Sting in the USA, Scandinavia and Hiroshima in Japan.

He returned to England in the early Noughties and lived in retirement in Sale, although he always kept an interest in the game with work for the ‘Football for Life’ project, a coaching scheme for youngsters.

A keen member of Manchester United Past Players, Bill was also made President of St Helens Town FC and opened an exhibition at the World of Glass in 2001 about the sporting clubs of the town.

He was a lovely man, who kept himself supremely fit for the majority of his life and good enough to have been a professional golfer.

Bill leaves behind wife Teresa, three children and seven grandchildren.