dead George Best

[Guest Scot]

Ahh, George. Famous for kicking footballs. And now you've kicked the bucket.

 

Pity you didn't kick the bottle.

 

Prince Vulpine, spors heroes like George do not kick buckets. They fail to rally.

[Guest Scot]

Anyone seen the film Best?

 

Yeah, Grim Rita. I've actually just bought the DVD - it's a cracking drama and it shows George as a genuine nice guy - if a bit sappy. I mean, why would he have been so upset at the Matt Busby tribute match if he hadn't been a genuine guy? Actually, that's where I met the real George Best and Denis Law when I took my brother David and cousin Tommy to the match.

 

And Brinsworth House Baiter, I do sincerely apologise again for my remarks. Actually, some of the jokes were very funny - and I do think they should name a pub in his honour - The Sporting Idol I think would be a fitting tribute - because that's what I believe he once was- although at 24 I'm too young to have seen him play. Let me know if you agree with my idea for a pub naming tribute.

 

No, I don't agree with your idea for a pub naming tribute-mine were much better.

 

Now apologise again.

 

Brinsworth House Baiter, I once more sincerely apologise for my remarks. Actually, your idea for a pub naming tribute was much better. I'll actually lend you my DVD of Best the movie if you want to copy it. By the way, did you see the England v Germany Legends match last night? It was a brilliant night. Escape to victory was on after it - but I had to record it because I didn't get back in time to see it. I'll let you borrow that as well if you fancy. Chat to ya soon. Scot.

[Brinsworth House Baiter 12]

I've got a friend!

 

Yes, I did see that England legends match...hilarious...Boris Johnson's stumbling rugby tackle was the funniest thing I have ever seen and that includes Carry On Up The Khyber.

 

Scot, I'll only chat to you again if you apologise to me for a fourth time...

 

[Guest Guest]

Ahh, George. Famous for kicking footballs. And now you've kicked the bucket.

 

Pity you didn't kick the bottle.

 

Brinsworth House Baiter, deep and sincere apologies again. And yes, I agree, Boris Johnson's tackle was a good one. Somebody did that to me once when I was playing for my school team - I felt as if I'd been hit by an Exocet.

[Six 22]

Ahh, George. Famous for kicking footballs. And now you've kicked the bucket.

 

Pity you didn't kick the bottle.

 

Brinsworth House Baiter, deep and sincere apologies again. And yes, I agree, Boris Johnson's tackle was a good one. Somebody did that to me once when I was playing for my school team - I felt as if I'd been hit by an Exocet.

 

What is going on here???? You've pulled, BHB!

[Guest Scot]

Ahh, George. Famous for kicking footballs. And now you've kicked the bucket.

 

Pity you didn't kick the bottle.

 

 

Has anybody heard that Alex Best's trying to cash in on her time with George by writing a new book which she titled Loving George - although she never said a word when he died?

[Guest Scot]

Waiting for George to die reminds me of the week we were waiting for JP2 to pope his clogs.

 

Pope John Paul II did not pop his clogs. He passed away peacefully.

[Slave to the Grave 22]

Waiting for George to die reminds me of the week we were waiting for JP2 to pope his clogs.

 

Pope John Paul II did not pop his clogs. He passed away peacefully.

 

Actually he poped them which I'm sure is completely different.

[Guest Scot]

Yes, yes , yes. But he was not that good a player was he. He was only good for 5 or six seasons. He wasn't on a par with Charlton (either sibling in fact) or Law. Definetly wouldn't be in my all-time 11.

 

Yes, he was a great player - in fact the greatest player to ever grace the sport.

[Octopus of Odstock 1,855]

Yes, he was a great player - in fact the greatest player to ever grace the sport.

 

 

What utter, utter, UTTER rubbish.

 

Absolute tosh.

 

Best didn't even play at the World Cup, the pinnacle of that sport's achievement.

 

Pele, probably was. I would rate Duncan Edwards higher than Best. Maybe Maradona & Garrincha too, like Best, flawed geniuses on & off the pitch. I always felt Sir Stanley Matthews, Sir Tom Finney or even the seemingly now forgotten Wilf Mannion were greater than Best.

Puskas too, di Stefano maybe, Leonidas or Zico, maybe, Platini or Cruyff, Eusebio and Gerd Muller, too, definitely up there alongside.

 

Best was Northern Ireland's greatest, definitely. One of the greatest, again, yep. But THE greatest, no. It's not your fault, son, you're a young lad, so you never saw any of the above play, and in both all the post-death tributes, and today's video-DVD age, when Mannion & Puskas get overlooked, its easy to think he was, but he wasn't.

 

Hell, Best couldn't even score versus my club Reading, when they played each other in 1970!

[Guest Scot]

He's only had the new liver for 3 years - that doesn't sound like very good mileage. Anyway, who'd consent for their dead relative's liver to be donated to George?  It's be more useful to fry it up with a few onions (yummy).

Or even with some fava beans and a nice chianti.

Mmmmm. Send me the recipe, Mr Lecter.

Lechter's Liver with Fava Beans

 

Could you please stop quoting from that awful movie Silence of the Lambs on this thread?

[Guest Scot]

Yes, he was a great player - in fact the greatest player to ever grace the sport.

 

 

What utter, utter, UTTER rubbish.

 

Absolute tosh.

 

Best didn't even play at the World Cup, the pinnacle of that sport's achievement.

 

Pele, probably was. I would rate Duncan Edwards higher than Best. Maybe Maradona & Garrincha too, like Best, flawed geniuses on & off the pitch. I always felt Sir Stanley Matthews, Sir Tom Finney or even the seemingly now forgotten Wilf Mannion were greater than Best.

Puskas too, di Stefano maybe, Leonidas or Zico, maybe, Platini or Cruyff, Eusebio and Gerd Muller, too, definitely up there alongside.

 

Best was Northern Ireland's greatest, definitely. One of the greatest, again, yep. But THE greatest, no. It's not your fault, son, you're a young lad, so you never saw any of the above play, and in both all the post-death tributes, and today's video-DVD age, when Mannion & Puskas get overlooked, its easy to think he was, but he wasn't.

 

Hell, Best couldn't even score versus my club Reading, when they played each other in 1970!

 

I only saw snippets of George playing - but he was truly out of this world. Actually, Garrincha did have a drink habit which killed him sadly as well. Who in heaven's name was Wilf Mannion? Because I support Newcastle I only know Jackie Milburn and I've also heard of Raich Carter - but I don't know who he was.

[Octopus of Odstock 1,855]

Who in heaven's name was Wilf Mannion? Because I support Newcastle I only know Jackie Milburn and I've also heard of Raich Carter - but I don't know who he was.

 

Wilf Mannion was an absolute genius. I know it's used often, but he was. There's a book about him, Golden Boy. Well worth a read. Very little DVD/video clips of him playing, I would imagine, but if you say Wilf Mannion to any Middlesbrough fan, watch their face light up, even if they never saw him. He was Brian Clough's all-time favourite and a huge influence on Bobby Charlton. That, in itself, should tell you something.

 

That you haven't heard of him isn't your fault, more the media's fixation with "Is it on tape? No? Well, it don't count" and also, those that saw Mannion play are dying off, where as the present media saw George Best play at his pomp, hence when he (and Osgood) died, they were mourning their lost youth.

 

 

Milburn wasa fine player too. By coincidence, we were in Newcastle on the day of Milburn's funeral, my Dad & I. I've rarely seen anything like it.

 

If you do find a decent video/DVD of Mannion playing, check it out. You won't be disappointed. And I'm not a Middlesbrough fan, so I'm not biased here.

[The Pooka 24]

Best was good but not that good. There were lots of flawed geniuses but most of them won a lot more then Best did.

 

And for all that crap about the greatest United side with Best, Charlton, Law blah blah blah. Well they won the League in 1967 and the European Cup in 1968. Other than that the Best era was pretty bleak as far as trophies were concerned. A lot of the 'classic' film of Best is from cup ties when he was tormenting the likes of Northampton who were 3 divisions below him.

 

I am coming round to the view that Thierry Henry is as good a footballer as there has ever been ........ and I don't support Arsenal.

[maryportfuncity 10,010]

I would rate Duncan Edwards higher than Best

 

Octi of Od; Much as I appreciate this post Duncan Edwards' game relied on his strength, positioning and anticipation. Sad to say that he didn't anticipate the Munich aircrash, positioned himself in a forward facing seat and lacked the strength to survive the impact.

[Godot 148]

Best was good but not that good. There were lots of flawed geniuses but most of them won a lot more then Best did.

 

And for all that crap about the greatest United side with Best, Charlton, Law blah blah blah. Well they won the League in 1967 and the European Cup in 1968. Other than that the Best era was pretty bleak as far as trophies were concerned. A lot of the 'classic' film of Best is from cup ties when he was tormenting the likes of Northampton who were 3 divisions below him.

 

I am coming round to the view that Thierry Henry is as good a footballer as there has ever been ........ and I don't support Arsenal.

 

Sorry Pook, I can't agree, Best really was that good. It was a slower pace then so you can't compare him with today's footballers. Whether he was "the" best is a moot point but he was one of the all-time greats in the same league as Matthews, Pele, Maradona and Cruyff. Henry is a great striker but not quite the complete player. After this world cup I think Ronaldino will have confirmed is place in that list.

[pulphack 5]

good grief, it's like being down the pub reading this thread. was best the best? there are two real problems with trying to compare. the first is that very little evidence apart from memory survives beyond the mid sixties - before MOTD and the like, footy was poorly served (just look at the terrible pathe footage they drag out every fa cup final today - which is probably just starting on sky as i type, with the bloody white horse final...). all we can rely on is other people's opinions... go on, you write the next sentence...

 

the other problem is that you get people going 'well, today's players are fitter and the game's faster...' completely missing the point that if mannion, carter, best, puskas, etc were playing today, they would also have the benefit of modern diet and fitness training, and so would be up to speed. all you can say is that players who've pushed the envelope in their era would probably do so today. mind, it would depend - best's alcoholism and today's regimes - would he have been dumped out of the game early because of the first flowerings of the disease?

 

great players don't necessarily play in trophy winning teams - while admitting that mentioning shearer in this sort of company is suspect, he chose newcastle when he could have gone to united and won more. back in the day, best and co. played in an era when the minimum wage had only just been abolished, and freedom of contract was debatable. before that, it was a non-starter. a great player could end up winning very little because of the vagaries of the game's business side. after all, what did matthews win apart from one fa cuip medal?

 

my greatest player is still gorgeous glenda, socks round ankles, getting huffy in the middle of the park because no one would pass to him on a cold november saturday down white hart lane. but when he did get the ball... of course, i was adolescent then, and hadn't been going to live games for long, so that came into it... which is another factor to consider...

[pulphack 5]

not quite right about that - it was the bb-bloody-c, and within one minute of the final programme starting at one that grinning buffoon (and goalhanger) lineker blahs on about the white horse - cue old newsreel of wembley 1923. predictable? shurley shome mishtake...

[Brinsworth House Baiter 12]

You're all wrong.

 

Brian Little was the best ever player, so there.

 

I'm glad I was able to sort that out for you all.

 

Up the Villa!

[pulphack 5]

so are you fickle. or do you just not like o'leary? as it happens, i remember seeing brian little play a couple of times - him and andy gray did play up front together, didn't they, or is my memory going? he was a cracking little forward - yet another injury shortened career. makes a habit of falling out with boards as a manager, though, doesn't he?

[Brinsworth House Baiter 12]

I just don't have much faith in O'Leary, to be honest with you, as a manager, but the rot at Villa Park started a long time before he arrived, so the blame can be squarely landed on someone else's doorstep.

 

Herbert Douglas Ellis...sell up and go!

 

Pulphack, you are indeed right about Little playing up front with Gray and what glorious times they were. As a kid playing footy in the street I was always Brian Little, whereas the other kids were Coppell, Keegan or Dalglish. I was always the odd one out. He was a special player and, but for his knees, I think he would have played a major part our great achievements a few years later. And made more than his one appearance for England.

 

As a manager, again you're right, he does seem to upset boards. I seem to remember reading that he's just left another club by 'mutual consent'.

 

He'll always be a God to me though.

[Cowboy Ronnie 77]

There's a case to be made for Steven Gerrard being better than Best. George won a couple of league titles, which Gerrard may not match in the Chelsea era, but Stevie now has 2 FA Cups, 2 League Cups, UEFA Cup and Champions' League titles, a more impressive international career, and a goal on Saturday that goes down as one of the best and most important ever.

[Guest Scot]

According to this Best had two secret daughters.

 

They can't be bringing this up in the hope of getting an inheritance because he didn't have a bean. In fact he even got his hospital treatment free (estimated cost £100,000)

 

Yeah, that's true, he was absolutely broke. That's because Alex had skinned him in their divorce.

[Guest Scot]

Calum is going to play his dad in a film about his life. Someone's quick off the mark to cash in.

 

Probably Alex. She'll do anything for a few quid.

[Guest Scot]

According to this Best had two secret daughters.

 

They can't be bringing this up in the hope of getting an inheritance because he didn't have a bean. In fact he even got his hospital treatment free (estimated cost £100,000)

 

Yeah, that's true, he was absolutely broke. That's because Alex had skinned him in their divorce. I think she got about 400 grand. She'll do anything to get a few quid. Poor guy - he died absolutely skint.

 

I was just reading one of the Daily Mail threads about him when he was away on holiday in Malta and it said how upset he was about his marriage breakup. I'd be upset as well if I was married to a gold - digging little slut like her who was planning to skin me of my last 400,000 quid. Please don't lynch me for saying that.