Monday, 24th February 2003 marks the tenth anniversary of the death of Bobby Moore, England's greatest ever footballer. We remember Bobby today through the words of those to whom he meant most - the supporters of West Ham.
by Roy CampHaving played for the Barking schools team that a few years before had had Bobby Moore playing in, I was aware of the genius from a very early time. Therefore I went to the Youth Cup Finals of 1958 and 1959 (both of which we lost), the culmination of the youth policy Ted Fenton had instigated at the club.
Bobby Moore, a youth international with a record number of caps at the time was the first player to come through to play in the first team in season 58/59; our first back in the First Division. By season 60/61 he was a regular, and the next season saw his England under-23 manager Ron Greenwood take over at West Ham.
By the end of that season he was captain of West Ham, before the inevitable first full cap came prior to the 1962 World Cup Finals in Chile, in which he played.
After this everybody knows what happened; he became by far our greatest English defender winning the famous three cups in three years at Wembley. He went on to touch thousands of people lives during his career; always a gentleman, a great player and possibly the nicest and most genuine top class player ever.
Everyone who had the honour of watching the master will have their memories and stories to pass down about the man they believe was the best. Therefore it was scandalous that football never gave him the job or respect he deserved after his playing career ended. Not only for football Bobby Moore should have been knighted well before he passed away.
So we celebrate the man who died ten years ago today, because that is what he would have wanted. Sir Bobby Moore will live on forever in all football fans hearts, and so it should be.
ALL STAND FOR THE GREATEST HAMMER OF ALL TIME, AND ALL ROUND GENTLEMAN.....SIRS, I GIVE YOU BOBBY MOORE.
by Adam 'The Smudge'
There is one small piece that I remember vividly from Jeff Powell's authorised biography 'Bobby Moore'. The book is a wondeful account of Bobby's life, written by a true friend.
In the first chapter 'The impact', the author describes how the news of Bobby's death was to have "such a profound impact on the people of Britain, provoke such an extraordinary outpouring of human emotion, inspire such an inprecedented sense of national loss and be borne around the globe with such sadness, was to remain a private matter for a little longer".
At the end of that first chapter, Powell describes how, on the morning after the funeral, one leading tabloid completed its story of the tragic event by reading:
"God can tell Heaven's eleven to start getting changed. The captain has arrived".
by Houston Hammer
Being an "old fart" I had the priviledge of being able to see Bobby play, and not just at the latter stage of his career, but during the prime of his profession. Yes, he was all the things that people say. what can a "layman" possibly more eloquently add to that which has not better been described by the best writers etc. of our generation. however, it is not until one gets older that one can perhaps appreciate all that someone such as this man achieved.
My thoughts are that to be recognized as "great" or to achieve "greatness" one has to "endure". Many stars today (in any sphere) shine brightly and then flame out - therefore one has to be at the very best of one's chosen profession for a long time. Not only did he achieve that but to perform at such a high level for both club and country for so long is perhaps the legacy he leaves. I think that Bobby Moore, or "Mooro" as he was affectionately called by the Upton Park faithful managed to do so with class and dignity.
Greatness - Superior in quality or character; noble - a very apt description of Bobby Moore, I think you will agree.
YOU ARE THE THAT TO WHICH ALL OTHERS ASPIRE OR ARE COMPARED TO.
There aren't any GREAT men, there are just GREAT challenges that ordinary men are forced to meet - William Halsey (paraphrased).
I'm afraid we will not see Bobby's like again, and it is a tribute to the greatness of the man that I believe that he is the ONLY sportsman ever to have had a memorial in Westminster Abbey, a place reserved for our country's MOST REVERED SUBJECTS.
To be remembered in such a place alongside our nations finest is perhaps the highest honour that we could have bestowed upon him. Yes, he should have been awarded a knighthood but I would prefer however, to think that this omission will never overshadow the esteem in which he is held by not only Hammers fans, but fans and players alike all around the world.
That he is held with such high regard by fellow professionals so many years after his death also says more about him than I ever could.
Thank you Bobby for so many, many wonderful memories.
R.I.P.
by Noj (Editor of Bobby Moore Online)
The 24th of February 1993 is now ten years ago, ten years since West Ham and England's greatest player passed away after losing his fight against cancer ...... and how we all miss him. Bobby made 108 apperances for England and 642 for West Ham during his distinguished career which saw him become both club and country's most successful captain, lifting the FA and ECWC cups for West Ham and most famously the World Cup for England.
It was not just his footballing abilities that endeared Mooro to the West Ham faithful though, you would be very hard pressed to find anyone with a bad word to say about him, both as a player and a man. He would always sign autographs for the kids, usually after organising them into an orderly queue and he would always be happy to stop for a chat with the older fans.
Famous for his immaculate performance on the pitch he was also well known as a perfectionist in his private life. If you were to go into the dressing room at the Boleyn you would see players kit strewn all over the place but Bobby would have all his kit folded and would even go as far as to stand on the bench to put his trousers on so that they would not get wet. As a child his mum would even wash and iron his boot laces on a Friday night ready for his games for South Park boys as an 11-year-old.
The event that sums up Bobby Moore best for me is the World Cup game against Brazil in 1970. Mooro had been falsely accused of stealing a bracelet in Columbia and had been placed under house arrest which meant that he was unable to fly to Mexico with the rest of the team. After being cleared he flew to Mexico and walked virtually straight into the biggest game of the tournament and proceeded to play the game of his life. He marked and tackled everyone in sight and despite England losing 1–0 he was by far and away the best player on the pitch. The way that he and Pele sought each other out in the centre circle to swap shirts showed the respect that the two men had for each other and indeed they were to become very close friends.
When you look at the plight of the club at the moment how we could use someone with Mooro’s defensive qualities right now. His ability to read the game and snuff out any danger despite his lack of pace was legendary and his desire to learn throughout his career should be held up to all youngsters in the game that you never know it all.
by Sicknote
On the day Bobby Moore passed away I'd driven home listening to the radio and heard the news as I pulled up at my house. I just sat there; I'd only seen him play in the flesh for England a couple of times and against us when at Fulham. This was the only reason I'd even entertained the notion of watching Fulham play. Even then I was in awe of the man.
After hearing the news and taking it in I went indoors and, without putting the lights on, leant against my kitchen units and shed a few tears. I then felt a bit of a draft and saw a window was smashed behind me; I just glanced at it and returned to my thoughts.
The woman Ii was living with came home a few minutes later and walked in, turned the lights on, and just looked at me. She asked what was up and I told her - not mentioning the glass (which was followed by her telling me to get a grip, and asking 'why's the window broken. We'd had a break in ...)
I went out and didn't speak to her for days - not until the Friday night in fact, when I told her I was going to Sunderland before asking if we had any spare sheets as I was making a banner. This she found, and helped by drawing the bubbles. Once she saw what I was doing I think she started to understand.
So that Saturday I travelled up to a very cold Sunderland. Roker Park was a cracking old football ground with a huge end behind one goal and two wooden style stands on either side with a fairly big open stand at the other end. We had the open stand, the one the wind was blowing (strongly) at. The whole country was to hold one minute's silence before the game. I'd put my banner on the floodlight behind us in the corner but moved it before it ended up in the North Sea. The noisy Sunderland fans to our right hand side were the ones to watch out for; the season before in the Cup they had been more than excitable. This time they were fairly quiet - as were we. In fact there was very little said or done before the kick off; the teams came out and flowers were put on the centre spot by both teams and their representatives (who were struggling to stay put what with the adverse weather conditions).
The minute silence was eerie, yet poignant. The Sunderland fans showed respect for the great man and his Club - and West Ham's fans (one reason why I've always enjoyed going back to and speaking with our friends from the North East). One odd thing that did happen during the silence was a sudden flurry of snow; this was only mentioned in the car on the way home and all thought it was very strange and the part they remembered most from the silence.
As the referee blew the whistle we as one applauded, then as one the Mackems sang their anti-Keegan song (the clown one). We sang nothing as they sang, and when it was finished we clapped them before singing one of the slowest and loudest 'Bubbles' I've ever heard. I had tears running down my face (as I have now recalling it). The Sunderland fans, to a man stood and watched us and applauded us once we'd finished.
The game was as bad a 0-0 draw as you could wish to see, yet it remains one of - if not the - most memorable games I have had the pleasure to be a part of. The following day I went to the Boleyn Ground and put my West Ham flag from the previous day up, and the next saturday I went to the Wolves game - a fantastic tribute to Bobby.
My banner is up there in the loft now, it has lots of bubbles floating around on it and the three cups we won in the 1960's.
It said simply 'a gentleman, a hero and a Hammer - Bobby Moore, rest in peace'.
by Graeme Howlett
I don't recall ever having the pleasure of watching Bobby play in a competitive match for West Ham. Just five years old when he moved on to Fulham my memories are limited in the main to old videos and photographs.
Yet despite this some of my favourite footballing moments involve the great man.
I'm sure that I'm far from alone in having sat for hours watching re-runs of that wonderful match in June '66 when Bobby led England to her one and only World Cup success. His performance on that balmy summers day encapsulated everything that was great about the man.
Two moments from the game stick in my mind; firstly, that pinpoint 60-yard pass to Geoff Hurst that led to the final, deciding goal (and Ken Wolstenhulme's famous 'They Think It's All Over' line), and secondly, the moment immediately before accepting the Jules Rimet trophy from the Queen when Bobby wiped his hand clean of sweat and dirt before shaking her hand. Both on and off the field of play Bobby exuded greatness, yet with an air of humility that is the measure of a true legend.
Even in defeat Bobby was gracious - surely a lesson to many of today's over-pampered, ill-mannered footballers. One of the most striking pictures ever taken on the field of play is that of Bobby embracing Pele after England's 1-0 defeat against Brazil in the 1970 World Cup Finals. Harry Redknapp, a man who played with Bobby in the early 70's had that very picture emblazoned upon the wall directly behind his office desk when later in charge of the club.
On February 24th 1993, the news that Bobby had died - at only 51 years of age - rocked the whole country. Wreaths and messages in their thousands adorned the gates of Upton Park as people from all over the country came to pay their respects to the greatest footballer this country has ever seen. Such scenes of public unity and grief in this country over the loss of one individual are rarely seen, such was the high regard in which Bobby was held.
But Bobby's legacy lives on, and not just within the confines of West Ham's Boleyn Ground where the former South Stand is named after him, and where his collection of memorabilia is displayed within the Club's museum to remind generations of football fans to come of his legendary status.
Robert Frederick Chelsea Moore, the boy from Barking remains the perfect example of a gentleman both on and off the football field. He is not only a West Ham legend, but one of the true greats of world football.
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