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Search: 'Gil Merrick'

Stories

How Birmingham star Jeff Hall’s tragic death left a public health legacy

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The 29-year-old full-back’s sudden and avoidable death from polio in 1959 sparked a national clamour for inoculations and a dramatic fall in the number of cases of the disease

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Gol olimpico

Corners leading to goals is a part of everyday football. But Cris Freddi looks at the rare occasions when a corner goes straight in

It’s known as a gol olimpico in Argentina. The first corner to go straight in during an international match was probably the one taken by Cesareo Onzari against Argentina’s rivals and Olympic champions Uruguay in 1924. It beat a goalkeeper as good as Andres Mazali, and others found their way past Lev Yashin, Peter Shilton and Vitor Baia – which should make David Seaman feel a bit better.

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I See It All

Steve Field appreciates of I See It All by Gil Merrick, the former Birmingham City and England goalkeeper

This book has a curiously casual approach to games and events long since regarded as seminal. You would expect some acknowledgment that 23 England appearances in goal – all between 1952 and 1954 – was, for a Second Division player, rather an unusual record. Or that setting up the Nat Lofthouse strike which con­firmed the “Lion of Vienna” legend was a notable achievement, or even that the 6-3 Wembley defeat against Hungary in 1953 actually took place. The explanation probably lies somewhere between Gilbert Merrick’s famed coolness and a clearly hurried printing deadline hot on the heels of the World Cup cam­paign which ended his international career.

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Worst keepers

A goalkeeping blunder can be remebered more by fans then a 40-yard screamer. Cris Freddi takes us through some of the more memorable howlers

Let’s start with goalkeeping errors that decided FA Cup finals, shall we? There are enough for an article of their own. The most famous of all was perpetrated by a Welshman playing against a Welsh team, back in 1927. When Cardiff’s Scottish centre-forward Hugh Ferguson hit an ordinary ground shot from the edge of the area, Arsenal’s Dan Lewis had time to go down on one knee and scoop the ball into his midriff.

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The Goalkeeper’s History of Britain

John Williams comes off his line smartly to grab a chunk of goalkeeping history

I’m not sure how it is with you, but when I think back to childhood footballing days, things seem decidedly hazy. Detailed accounts of the hours we spent playing and watching are pretty much beyond me now.

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