The Official 50 Year Anniversary of the Munich Air Disaster Thread

R.I.P. Busby Babes.

 

R.I.P. Busby Babes & Everyone who lost their life in this tragedy

 

RIP
Forever in our hearts.

 

A Broken Plane, A Broken Dream.
A Broken Heart, A Broken Team.
No Words Were Said, A Silent Vow.
We Loved You Then,We love you Now


RIP Lads …You are Manchester United…Forever in our hearts

0NE LOVE MUFC

 

reading the stories and information by TomClare is really interesting and gives a great look back into this wonderful and painful time in our club's history.

 

R.I.P Busby Babes

You will never be forgotten.

 

Sir Alex read Psalm 103 today at the service...

 

RIP Busby Babes

 

BBC Coverage 2/6/58

Use Real Player

http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/...4x3&bgc=6699CC&nbram=1&nbram=1&bbram=1&news=1

 

I fell in love with this football club a long time ago. Not for the glory, not for the players, but for the style of play. It was something I had never seen before, and I grew up around football. Football the way it should be played. That is the Matt Busby way. That is the way of the Busby Babes. And that is why I'm still here today.

Looking through the history of this club for the first time leaves a huge impression on a kid. It did to me. The tragedy of 6 February 1958 is something that brands your heart, and when you have an inkling of love for something, a past tragedy draws you to it more. While other clubs perhaps have a more glorious history, our tragedy truly comes to Unite those of us who still feel the loss, the pain, and the anger of having lost such a talented and wonderful bunch. Seeing pictorials of the plane, our players in the hospital, Sir Matt receiving his last rights, these our things that have a deeper connect with supporters. It is much more than a European cup. Having risen from the ash. Our history is special.

I'd love to extend my condolences to those who lost family members, team-mates, friends, loved ones, and to the city of Manchester, who suffered a great sport tragedy. If you love Manchester United, you carry the Busby Babes with you, whether you know it or not. The philosophy of our play, our style, our struggles, our goals. That is the Matt Busby way. The Busby Babes here to stay.

With love.

 

It's always a little difficult for me to say much about these types of events, because I think the real effect they have is on the people who are most connected when they do happen. I've thought about why this is so important to the club, other than the obvious fact that 23 people died suddenly, many belonging to one of the great footballing sides assembled in the long history of the English game.

It's amazing to think how truly different things were at the time though. These young men weren't simply footballers--they were a part of the community. The people of Manchester saw them walking the streets, in the shops, the restaurants, and the pubs. They weren't living in mansions, driving sports cars, making thousands of pounds a week--their lifestyles were much closer to those of normal folks. My point isn't to criticize anything about today's players, just to point out the extra connection that the people had to the players at the time. Kids in particular must have considered them as heroes worth emulating both on and off the field.

The 6th of February 1958 must have brought almost unimaginable shock to a society that had perhaps finally recovered from the scars of two devastating wars. To find the news the following morning must have been a terrible reminder to the adult population, and a cruel introduction to the millions of kids who followed the team. It didn't matter whether you were rich or poor, what part of town you lived in, even whether you supported United or City. If you were there, it touched you.

So where are we all these years later? What has the club taken, and what have the fans learned from all of this? How does this affect us, the majority of whom weren't even alive, let alone being fans of Manchester United in 1958?

Beyond the lessons of life about living to your fullest and all, there's the question of how Munich affects the club to this day. First and perhaps the most identifiable trait of this club is the commitment to bringing the fans excitement, not just wins. The players go out with a clear sense of wanting to entertain in the process of winning. The club's identity wouldn't be what it is without that, and I can just about guarantee that the success would not be as great without that.

There is also the continuing commitment to developing quality young players who can not just play but thrive. Even though the game and the stakes have changed, especially over the past ten years, there has been a belief in youth that goes through Bestie, Whiteside, the Fledglings, and all the young stars in the side today. In the days of the Busby Babes, it was rare to have players in the early 20s. Now, it’s the norm, thanks in no small part to the legacy of this club.

The last thing I think about is how players talk about Manchester United as a "family club". It sounds naive, like some sort of marketing slogan, to think of one of the most popular sporting clubs in the world having to do anything with family over the business aspect. Yet, time and time again, you hear it talked about from the players, the coaches, and other club employees. Fifty years ago though, the club, the city, and much of the UK came together as a family. But even since then, there is no doubt that this is a club that takes care of its own and is willing to five a sense of belonging whether the person comes from down the road or halfway around the world.

More than anything though, Munich represents a club rising up when all hope seemed lost to not only find success but reach the highest summits of the game. To think that the survivors, including Matt Busby, were able to rebuild the club totally and win the European Club just ten years later is truly amazing, and that spirit continued through future tough times. Neither relegation nor the dominance of other clubs could permanently keep down United. From Wembley in '68 to "you'll win nothing with kids" to Barcelona in '99 through to today, you can't ever count United out. As long as we remember the importance of Munich, that's something that will never change.

 

Sad day R.I.P

 

We are back home for the next two weeks and to be at Old Trafford today was absolutely ethereal. The Babes were before my time and everything I knew of them are what my old man and my uncle told me.

I also just watched a very touching documentary on MUTV which finished a couple of minutes ago on from how the Babes came about to the lifting up of the European Cup in '68.

RIP to the Babes.

Lost but never forgotten.

 

Like many others this was before my time. But even as a six year old in 1975 when trying to decide which team most touched my heart I was aware of the shadow that loomed over the club from the 50's era even if I didn't understand what it was all about.

As a club we have a history of developing (and to be fair more recently buying) young English talent. With all due respect to Arsenal, I hope never to see a Manchester United side with eleven foreign players. This is not xenophobia but our tradition and contribution to the nation as a whole.

Of the many players lost that day, in Duncan Edwards to have had a player with the midfield engine, desire and tackling ability of Roy Keane in a body with the strength, speed of thought and ability of Wayne Rooney, Manchester United and England lost a gem that day. For Sir Bobby to say he has seen nobody better before or since is high praise indeed.

The best compliment the current team can pay the team of 58 is that in this modern era of Premiership money and foreign players, in having and playing Gary Neville, Michael Carrick, Owen Hargreaves, Rio Ferdinand, Wes Brown, Paul Scholes and Wayne Rooney we are staying true to our roots and traditions started by Sir Matt.

To all lost that day (players or non-players).

 

Truly a sad day for the whole football world. RIP Busby Babes.

 

Many other club would have folded after such a tragedy....the strength of character of these fallen heroes is the common thread that is eternally woven into each player that pulls on the red shirt and takes the field at Old Trafford...RIP lads....gone , but never , ever forgotten....

 

When you are younger and the concept of death and grievance is something you're most likely not to have dealt with in your life, you tend to take the stories of the Babes and how great they were as players and the loss they were to the club and what could've been before the true sadness and bereavement of or for the event is comprehended.

Growing up around people who taught me about every element of the club from those many would consider 'undesirables' to those who, like Tom Clare, impart a wisdom and first-hand account you cannot get from any books connected to the events that weren't written by those who felt the loss, you get to a stage in your growth and attachment to the club where these losses are as hard-felt to you as burying a friend or loved one.

After all, besides family and friends, you spend most of your waking ours following, thinking, fretting and obsessing over this club greedily collecting snippets of information all day and every day from any news sources you can find, and it's simply impossible to say you have a love for something if when that something is hurt or suffering, you are disaffected. This is how I feel the tragedy comes across to those of us who were not born and only know of the tragedy from a second-hand set of perspectives.

I buried my mother's mother (my nana) just a week ago, and the feelings of loss and grievance yesterday left me with that same sense of sadness. A sense of perspective should tell you that a giant corporate machine with millions upon millions of followers is not going to care about little old you in the way your family does, but for all that you take out of the club, all of its highs, for example, are greedily embraced by the supporters, there must be an equal feeling for its losses and lows and if you have truly bought into the sense of family and tradition that Sir Matt Busby and his Babes brought to this club, which has been upheld and we bare witness to every time our club plays a game under Sir Alex Ferguson, you cannot help but understand nor can you underestimate what a tragedy this is. It'd be like us losing the heart of this current team and all the joy they have brought to us over the years.

The one personal regret I have would be that I can't write a piece on the subject that is anything but second-hand information compiled and put to text. It is in this way that I implore people to read Tom Clare's first-hand accounts of the events, the players, the time (era) and anything else he has written about this subject. The emotiveness in such pieces cannot be replicated by writers who were not there, and we should be grateful to him for supplying us with insights of what it must've been like to be a fan at that time.

R.I.P

Forever in our hearts.

 

Re: The Munich 50th Anniversary Thread - Open Discussion

http://www.redandwhitekop.com/forum/index.php?topic=206715.0

An excellent thread, full of wisdom and offering those who wish to expand their knowledge of the aftermath of the tragedy will learn a lot.

 

Re: The Munich 50th Anniversary Thread - Open Discussion

I watched the Harry Gregg programme..re-united which was really sad to watch. You got to see the doctor who treated Sir Matt and Duncan but Gregg had to go out because he was in tears. He describes how he saw Roger Bryne as if he was asleep. I never really knew that Johnny Berry broke his back! I knew his injuries where bad because it ended his career but not that bad.The doctor actually went round pronouncing that the likes of Sir Matt and Duncan were 50-50 but when he got to Berry he said 'I am not god' but Berry survived!

 

Beautiful. And dito. I wish I has first hand experience but the best I have is listening to other who were there and reading accounts from those involved.

Truly a terrible event and a great loss to their families, Man Utd, it's fans and the wider footballing world.

R.I.P.

Harry Boulton.

 

You are all legends who will carry on in our hearts forever. We will never forget the famous Babes and all those whose lives were tragically lost that fateful day.

R.I.P