Poem
read on RTE 2nd Feb 98 by Harry Gregg
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Wreaths were then laid by the various representatives.
At one point my heart missed a beat when the announcer said "Mr
Roger Byrne will lay a wreath
on behalf of the players' families". For a second I
was confused and then realised that this was Roger's son, born
after his father died.
The whole of Old Trafford seemed to draw in its breath at
that point. Then it was time for the minute's silence.
The crowd needed no signal. When the whistle blew to start the
silence, the crowd was already quiet. For a minute there
was absolute and complete silence within Old Trafford, except
for the ringing of a mobile phone somewhere in West Stand.
During the silence the lads in the present
squad were standing  together, with
arms around each other - anyone who has seen the photo of them
with their heads bowed, supporting each other, will know why the
tears came to my eyes. Then the whistle blew, Nat Lofthouse
laid the last wreath on behalf of Bolton Wanderers and everyone
in the stadium raised the roof as the ballboys carried the wreaths
across the pitch and off through the entrance under L Stand to
place them around the statue of Sir Matt outside the ground.
As the participants left the pitch the United
Calypso was played. As I said, it had been a dignified and
respectful remembrance, but ended on a note of deserved celebration
of the greatest Manchester United team ever.
"THE BUSBY BABES"
Moving description by Linda
Harvey
| In loving memory: For those that died. |
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Roger Byrne, 28
Studious, speedy England international left-back from Manchester
who made his debut in 1951 and was the captain of the remarkable
team. |
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Eddie Colman, 21
Short, compact, right-sided midfielder from Salford
who could, it was said, dummy the grandstand with a swivel
of his hips. |
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Duncan Edwards, 21
Incomparable, the biggest loss to the English game.
The prodigy from Dudley dominated the left side of midfield
and could single-handedly turn a match. |
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Mark Jones, 24
Strong, commanding central defender, born in Barnsley.
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David Pegg, 22
The archetypal left-winger, pacy and tricky, signed
from school in Doncaster.
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Tommy Taylor, 26
Signed from Barnsley for £29,999, led the attack with
bravery and gusto, a "target man" ahead of his time. |
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Liam Whelan, 22
Tall, sinuous inside-forward from Dublin, picked
his way through defences with an unhurried gait.
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Geoffrey Bent, 25
Byrne's understudy, the left-back from Salford
would have enjoyed first-team status elsewhere. |
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