Sir Tom Finney: Football Legend Dies Aged 91 Former club Preston pays tribute saying Finney was their greatest ever player and one of the all-time greats for England. 11:02pm UK, Friday 14 February 2014 Tom Finney in 1950 and 2006 Sir Tom playing for Preston in 1950 and also pictured in 2006 Email Former England and Preston footballer Sir Tom Finney has died at the age of 91. The club announced the extremely sad news of his death on its website. It said: Sir Tom was the greatest player to ever play for Preston North End and one of the all-time greats for England. The thoughts of everyone at the club, and those connected with it, are with his family at this time. Sir Tom was born at his parents home in the street next to the clubs Deepdale stadium and went on to win 76 caps for England. Nicknamed the Preston Plumber after completing an apprenticeship with his familys plumbing business, the forward was famous for his loyalty to the Lancashire football side. He made 433 appearances for the club between 1946 and 1960 and maintained links to the club in later life, becoming president. Preston North Ends forward Tom Finney with Footballer of the Year award He was named Footballer of the Year by writers in 1954 He was knighted in the 1998 Queens New Year Honours list and a statue outside the stadiums National Football Museum depicts a famous image of him splashing through a puddle during a game at Chelsea in 1956. The Deepdale stadium is currently located on Sir Tom Finney Way and the grounds old West Stand was renamed the Sir Tom Finney stand in 1995, with his image on its seats. Former team-mate Bill Shankly, who himself made 297 appearances with Preston, once said that if pressed, he would say Sir Tom was the best player ever born. Ex-England footballer Sir Stanley Matthews had said of Sir Tom: To dictate the pace and course of a game, a player has to be blessed with awesome qualities. Those who have accomplished it on a regular basis can be counted on the fingers of one hand - Pele, Maradona, Best, Di Stefano, and Tom Finney. And another England legend Sir Bobby Charlton said: Sir Tom Finney was one of the greatest footballers there has ever been - he was the type of player that people would travel a long way to see. Match of the Day pundit and former England striker Gary Lineker tweeted: Sir Tom Finney has left us. One of the greatest players this country has ever seen, and a true gentleman. #RIP
Posted on: Fri, 14 Feb 2014 23:15:39 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015