|
|
|
|
|
|
|
The Stanley Matthews Statue |
|
|
|
|
|
Outside the stadium is the impressive looking Sir Stanley Matthews statues, which successfully capture the grace and movement of the legendary player of the era. He made his league debut for Stoke aged only 17m in March 1932. He was capped for England two years later, in what was to be the first of 54 caps. He went onto make 355 appearances for the Potters, scoring 62 goals. After the war he joined Blackpool where he made 379 appearances, before returning to Stoke in 1961 at the tender age of 46. At Blackpool he will probably be best remembered for inspiring the team onto victory in the FA Cup Final in 1953, when Blackpool defeated Bolton 4-3. This match was to become known as the 'Matthews Final'. Also at the age of 42 he was to earn the last of his England caps and became the oldest player ever to represent his country. |
|
|
|
|
|
It is probably testament to his genius that he
continued playing until the age of 50. He was knighted in 1965 and had a
brief spell as manager of Port Vale, as well as Hibernians in Malta. He
passed away in 200, aged 85. A plaque on the front of the statue reads; 'SIR STANLEY MATTHEWS FOUNDATION. Statue unveiled on 27th October 2001 by Jean Gough - Patron, Kevin Keegan, ex England International and Manager, Terry Conroy, ex Stoke City, Eric Skeels, ex Stoke City, Three local children'. The sculptors were; Julian Jeffery, Carl Payne and Andrew Edwards. |
|
|
|
|
