Albert Scanlon
Encyclopedia
Albert Joseph Scanlon was an English football player. He began his career with Manchester United
and was one of the "Busby Babes
" who survived the Munich air disaster
of 1958. Although he sustained severe injuries, he recovered and continued to play league football for Newcastle United
, Lincoln City
and Mansfield Town
. He then went on to play non-league football until his retirement.
, Lancashire
, Scanlon was a nephew of former Manchester United
winger Charlie Mitten
. He attended St Wilfred's School in Hulme. His talent for football was noticed early on, and he was selected to play for the Manchester Boys side. He joined the Manchester United groundstaff in 1950, before signing a professional contract in December 1952.
s in 1953 and 1954 before making his first-team debut against Arsenal
on 20 November 1954. Scanlon was involved in two league title wins – in 1956 and 1957 – but he failed to make enough appearances to earn a winners' medal on either occasion.
On 5 February 1958, Scanlon started on the left wing in United's European Cup quarter-final second leg away to Red Star Belgrade
; for five of the players who started the game, it was to be their last ever match for the club. The next day, on the return journey to Manchester, the team's plane crashed while attempting to take off from Munich airport, in an incident that later became known as the Munich air disaster
. The crash claimed the lives of 23 of the 44 passengers on board the plane, so Scanlon was relatively fortunate to escape with just a fractured skull, a broken leg and kidney damage. He made a full recovery and was back in action at the start of the following season
, going on to appear in every game that season, scoring 16 goals in the process.
Scanlon was sold to Newcastle United
for £
18,000 in November 1960, but his time on Tyneside
was not a success and he then dropped down to a lower level to play for Lincoln City
in February 1962. He was on the move again just over a year later, joining Mansfield Town
in April 1963, just in time to participate in the club's celebrations at being promoted to the Third Division
. Mansfield narrowly missed out on promotion to the Second Division
two years later, finishing third in Division Three, but they dropped to 19th the following season and Scanlon took the opportunity to drop out of league football. He joined Belper Town
in 1966, and retired not long afterwards.
factory not far from Old Trafford
.
On 13 May 2007, Scanlon presented the Premier League trophy to Manchester United along with former team-mate Bill Foulkes
.
Scanlon was admitted to the Salford Royal hospital in Salford with kidney problems and pneumonia on 21 October 2009. He was in intensive care for more than a month, before dying on 22 December 2009, at the age of 74. His funeral was held on 13 January 2010, and more than 300 people attended the service at All Souls Church in Weaste
, including fellow Munich survivors Bobby Charlton
, Harry Gregg
and Bill Foulkes
, and former Manchester United players Denis Law
and Nobby Stiles
.
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
and was one of the "Busby Babes
Busby Babes
The Busby Babes were a group of Manchester United players, recruited and trained by the club's chief scout Joe Armstrong and assistant manager Jimmy Murphy, who progressed from the club's youth team into the first team under the management of the eponymous Matt Busby.The Busby Babes were notable...
" who survived the Munich air disaster
Munich air disaster
The Munich air disaster occurred on 6 February 1958, when British European Airways Flight 609 crashed on its third attempt to take off from a slush-covered runway at Munich-Riem Airport in Munich, West Germany. On board the plane was the Manchester United football team, nicknamed the "Busby Babes",...
of 1958. Although he sustained severe injuries, he recovered and continued to play league football for Newcastle United
Newcastle United F.C.
Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End and Newcastle West End, and has played at its current home ground, St James' Park, since the merger...
, Lincoln City
Lincoln City F.C.
Lincoln City Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Lincoln, Lincolnshire. The club are currently members of the Conference National in 2011–12 following relegation from the Football League....
and Mansfield Town
Mansfield Town F.C.
Mansfield Town Football Club is an English football club from the former mining town of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire. The club was formed in 1897 as Mansfield Wesleyans and changed its name to Mansfield Wesley in 1906 before settling on Mansfield Town in 1910...
. He then went on to play non-league football until his retirement.
Early life
Born in HulmeHulme
Hulme is an inner city area and electoral ward of Manchester, England. Located immediately south of Manchester city centre, it is an area with significant industrial heritage....
, Lancashire
Lancashire
Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
, Scanlon was a nephew of former Manchester United
Manchester United F.C.
Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...
winger Charlie Mitten
Charlie Mitten
Charles "Charlie" Mitten was an English football player, who came through the junior ranks at Manchester United...
. He attended St Wilfred's School in Hulme. His talent for football was noticed early on, and he was selected to play for the Manchester Boys side. He joined the Manchester United groundstaff in 1950, before signing a professional contract in December 1952.
Manchester United
Scanlon made his way through the Manchester United youth system, winning two FA Youth CupFA Youth Cup
The Football Association Youth Challenge Cup is an English football competition run by The Football Association for under–18 sides. Only those players between the age of 15 and 18 on 31 August of the current season are eligible to take part...
s in 1953 and 1954 before making his first-team debut against Arsenal
Arsenal F.C.
Arsenal Football Club is a professional English Premier League football club based in North London. One of the most successful clubs in English football, it has won 13 First Division and Premier League titles and 10 FA Cups...
on 20 November 1954. Scanlon was involved in two league title wins – in 1956 and 1957 – but he failed to make enough appearances to earn a winners' medal on either occasion.
On 5 February 1958, Scanlon started on the left wing in United's European Cup quarter-final second leg away to Red Star Belgrade
Red Star Belgrade
Red Star Belgrade is a football club from Belgrade, Serbia. The club is a part of the Red Star Sports Society.Red Star Belgrade is the most successful Serbian club, with a record of 25 national championships and 23 national cups in both Serbian and ex-Yugoslav competitions...
; for five of the players who started the game, it was to be their last ever match for the club. The next day, on the return journey to Manchester, the team's plane crashed while attempting to take off from Munich airport, in an incident that later became known as the Munich air disaster
Munich air disaster
The Munich air disaster occurred on 6 February 1958, when British European Airways Flight 609 crashed on its third attempt to take off from a slush-covered runway at Munich-Riem Airport in Munich, West Germany. On board the plane was the Manchester United football team, nicknamed the "Busby Babes",...
. The crash claimed the lives of 23 of the 44 passengers on board the plane, so Scanlon was relatively fortunate to escape with just a fractured skull, a broken leg and kidney damage. He made a full recovery and was back in action at the start of the following season
1958-59 in English football
The 1958–59 season was the 79th season of competitive football in England.-Diary of the season:August 1958: The Football League season begins with the new national Third and Fourth divisions that have been created from the old Third Division North and Third Division South.September 1958: Manchester...
, going on to appear in every game that season, scoring 16 goals in the process.
Scanlon was sold to Newcastle United
Newcastle United F.C.
Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End and Newcastle West End, and has played at its current home ground, St James' Park, since the merger...
for £
Pound sterling
The pound sterling , commonly called the pound, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence...
18,000 in November 1960, but his time on Tyneside
Tyneside
Tyneside is a conurbation in North East England, defined by the Office of National Statistics, which is home to over 80% of the population of Tyne and Wear. It includes the city of Newcastle upon Tyne and the Metropolitan Boroughs of Gateshead, North Tyneside and South Tyneside — all settlements on...
was not a success and he then dropped down to a lower level to play for Lincoln City
Lincoln City F.C.
Lincoln City Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Lincoln, Lincolnshire. The club are currently members of the Conference National in 2011–12 following relegation from the Football League....
in February 1962. He was on the move again just over a year later, joining Mansfield Town
Mansfield Town F.C.
Mansfield Town Football Club is an English football club from the former mining town of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire. The club was formed in 1897 as Mansfield Wesleyans and changed its name to Mansfield Wesley in 1906 before settling on Mansfield Town in 1910...
in April 1963, just in time to participate in the club's celebrations at being promoted to the Third Division
Football League Third Division
The Football League Third Division was the 3 tier of English Football from 1920 until 1992 when after the formation of the Football Association Premier League saw the league renamed The Football League Division Two...
. Mansfield narrowly missed out on promotion to the Second Division
Football League Second Division
From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
two years later, finishing third in Division Three, but they dropped to 19th the following season and Scanlon took the opportunity to drop out of league football. He joined Belper Town
Belper Town F.C.
-History:They were established in 1883 and joined the Midland League in 1961. After the 1981–82 season, Belper Town joined the Northern Counties East League Premier Division, winning the title in 1984–85...
in 1966, and retired not long afterwards.
Later years and death
Following his retirement from football, Scanlon's employments included a job as a security worker at a Colgate-PalmoliveColgate-Palmolive
Colgate-Palmolive Company is an American diversified multinational corporation focused on the production, distribution and provision of household, health care and personal products, such as soaps, detergents, and oral hygiene products . Under its "Hill's" brand, it is also a manufacturer of...
factory not far from Old Trafford
Old Trafford
Old Trafford commonly refers to two sporting arenas:* Old Trafford, home of Manchester United F.C.* Old Trafford Cricket Ground, home of Lancashire County Cricket ClubOld Trafford can also refer to:...
.
On 13 May 2007, Scanlon presented the Premier League trophy to Manchester United along with former team-mate Bill Foulkes
Bill Foulkes
William Anthony Foulkes is a former English footballer who played for Manchester United in the Busby Babes teams of the 1950s, and also in the 1960s. His favoured position was centre back. For Manchester United, he played 679 games, third to Ryan Giggs and Sir Bobby Charlton, he also made 3...
.
Scanlon was admitted to the Salford Royal hospital in Salford with kidney problems and pneumonia on 21 October 2009. He was in intensive care for more than a month, before dying on 22 December 2009, at the age of 74. His funeral was held on 13 January 2010, and more than 300 people attended the service at All Souls Church in Weaste
Weaste
Weaste is an inner city area of Salford, in Greater Manchester, England. It is an industrial area, with many industrial estates. The A57 road passes through Weaste, which lies close to the M602 motorway...
, including fellow Munich survivors Bobby Charlton
Bobby Charlton
Sir Robert "Bobby" Charlton CBE is an English former professional football player, a member of the England team who won the World Cup and Ballon d'Or for European Footballer of the Year in 1966...
, Harry Gregg
Harry Gregg
Henry "Harry" Gregg, MBE is a former Northern Ireland international footballer and manager.He played 25 times for Northern Ireland as a goalkeeper and played for Manchester United during the reign of Sir Matt Busby with a total of 210 appearances.-Playing career:Gregg started his career with...
and Bill Foulkes
Bill Foulkes
William Anthony Foulkes is a former English footballer who played for Manchester United in the Busby Babes teams of the 1950s, and also in the 1960s. His favoured position was centre back. For Manchester United, he played 679 games, third to Ryan Giggs and Sir Bobby Charlton, he also made 3...
, and former Manchester United players Denis Law
Denis Law
Denis Law is a retired Scottish football player, who enjoyed a long and successful career as a striker from the 1950s to the 1970s....
and Nobby Stiles
Nobby Stiles
Norbert "Nobby" Peter Stiles MBE is a retired English footballer. He was born in Collyhurst, Manchester.Stiles played for England for five years, winning 28 caps and scoring 1 goal. He played every minute of England's victorious 1966 FIFA World Cup campaign...
.