October / November 2003
Click to
see Obituaries Index
Joe Baker (Sunderland)
I was very
sad to hear of the death of the famous Scottish
Englishman Joe Barker. The 1970-71 season was his last
season as a player in England. This obituary appears in FourFourTwo
December 2003 No. 112 p 46
Joe
Baker ( 1940-2003) In December 1965, England
outclassed European champions Spain in a friendly in
Madrid, convincing Alf Ramsey that his decision to
replace wingers with hard-working wide midfielders
was the tactical future.
Eight months later, nine of that side would provide
the ultimate validation of Ramsey's thinking in the
World Cup final at Wembley, but the two
goalscorers,Joe Baker and George F"astham, were
not among them. Indeed, Baker won only one further
cap.
Baker, who died in October, never seemed quite to fit
with England. Although he was born in Liverpool, he
was of Scottish parentage, brought up in Motherwell,
played for Scotland schoolboys and spoke with a
strong Scottish accent.
An early developer, he made his debut for Hibernian
as a 17 -year-old, and within a year won the first
ofhis eight England caps - becoming the first player
based outside England to be selected for the national
side. Although he managed just one goal in his first
five internationals and was subsequently dropped, at
Hibs the records kept on tumbling.
His annus mirabilis was the 1959-60 season, when he
hit 42 goals, a tally that still stands as the club
record, including nine in a Scottish Cup second round
tie against Peebles Rovers.
In four seasons at Easter Road, Baker registered a
remarkable 159 goals, before, at the age of 21,
joining Torino. The Italians, still rebuilding after
the Superga aircrash, also signed Denis Law that
summer .
Neither forward settled in Italy, though, and while
Baker's feistiness and distinctive short-stepping
gait made him popular among fans, he hardly endeared
himself to club officials, as he followed up a
sending-off for fighting by missing training, pushing
a photographer into a canal and then crashing his
Alfa Romeo and having to spend six weeks in hospital
on a drip.
After just 19 games for the club - and seven goals -
Baker returned to Britain, signing for Arsenal for
70,000 pounds . He notched 100 goals in 156 games for
the Gunners, earning his brief England recall, before
signing for Nottingham Forest, whom he helped to
second in the table in 1967.
Sunderland picked him up for 30,000 pounds in 1969,
and he returned to Scotland in 1971 with Hibs and
Raith Rovers. After retiring in 1974, Baker had two
brief spells as manager of Albion Rovers, but
otherwise stayed away from football, working in
construction and as a publican.
I le collapsed with a suspected heart attack during a
charity golf day at Lanark, and could not be revived,
despite the efforts of former referee David Syme.
By Jonathan Wilson
BBC SPORT Football Striker Baker dies reports the following
Joe
Baker, the first player outside the Football League
to be capped by England, has died aged 62.
Baker was
born in Liverpool but brought up in Wishaw in
Lanarkshire, Scotland.
Hibernian
were his first senior club, the centre-forward having
been signed from Armadale Thistle, and claimed an
incredible 159 goals in four seasons at Easter Road -
all by the age of 21.
It was
while still a teenager with the Edinburgh club that
he won the first of his eight England caps, scoring
in a 2-1 win over Northern Ireland at Wembley.
He made his
final international appearance in 1966, by which time
he had moved to Arsenal via Torino, having joined
Scotland legend Denis Law at the Italian club.
Baker,
whose brother Gerry played for the USA, went on to
star for Nottingham Forest, Sunderland, Hibs again
then Raith Rovers.
His 42
goals in his first spell at Easter Road remains a
record for a single season with Hibs.
Baker on
Monday suffered a suspected heart attack during a
celebrity charity golf tournament at the Lanark Golf
Club and former referee David Syme tried to
resuscitate him.
He was
rushed to hospital in Wishaw but lost his fight for
life.
Scottish
Players' Union assistant secretary Fraser Wishart
told this website: "Joe had been working to help
former players by being very active in the formation
of a former players' association and former players'
benevolent fund.
"You
could not meet a nicer, more genuine man and his
death will be felt very hard here.
"He
was legendary at every club he played for and I
remember his wife telling us how they were mobbed in
Turin by fans when they returned there a few years
ago.
"Our
thoughts are with her and their family."
Hibs
managing director Rod Petrie added: "Everyone at
the club is shocked and saddened by the news today.
"Joe
was a welcome regular at Easter Road and was greatly
admired by all those who had the pleasure of meeting
him."
Also see Brian
Glanville's Guardian Unlimited Joe Baker
and Joe Baker Dies of Heart Attack
FourFourTwo also had the following
two obituaries ...
Vitor Damas (1948-2003)
For
Sporting fans, a minute's silence simply wasn't
enough for Vitor Damas. When, at Sporting's league
game against CD Nacional they were called upon to pay
their respects to the goalkeeper who had succumbed to
cancer a matter of hours before, they responded with
a standing ovation that went on for several minutes.
For a man who came to syrnbolise the club, nothing
else would do.
Damas joined Sporting in 1961, turning professional
five seasons later. So central was he to the club's
fortunes that he became known as Sporting's Eusebio.
"I'm
very sad," Eusebio himself said. "More than
anything else, Damas was a great friend. We met on
the pitch several times and I will never forget the
dignity he demonstrated in victory and defeat. He was
a real gentleman." .
Damas enjoyed spells, with Portillonese and Spanish
side Racing Santander before returning to end his at
the Jose Alvalade.
By Jonathan
Wilson
From FourFourTwo December 2003 No. 112 p 46
Vadym Sosnikhin (Dynamo Kiev)(1942-2003)
The
commanding displays and natural authority ofVadym
Sosnikhin, Dynamo Kyiv defender of the 1960s and
'70s, earned him the title of 'The Director'.
Sosnikhin joined Dynamo in 1951 at the tender age of
nine, making his first-team debut in 1960 when still
only 18 and establishing himself as a regular soon
after. During 13 years at Dynamo - the only club he
played for- he was part of the formidable team that
\von the USSR Championship three times on the trot
between 1965 -67. By the time he won his fourth title
in 1971 he was Dynamo's captain.
He played a total of 2911eague matches and 18 times
in Europe, scoring twice and was pipped to the title
of USSR player of the year no less than six times -
runner-up on three occasions and in third place on a
further three.
After finishing his playing career in 1974, Sosnikhin
went on to spend 17 years working with Dynamo's youth
academy until he retired in 1991.
By Dan Brennan
From FourFourTwo December 2003 No. 112 p 46
Further
October / November 2003 news can be found at ...
|
