RIP Gordon Banks, England’s 1966 World Cup-winning goalkeeper, who died yesterday. Arguably the greatest keeper this country has ever produced, he was one of those rare people for whom nobody had a bad word. Banks is best remembered for the “Save of the Century” against Brazil in 1970 (1:15 on this clip), when England had a great chance of winning the World Cup again. Then Banks was struck down by a very mysterious stomach bug. The team were allowed one beer the night before the quarter-final, and it’ll always be suspected that Banks’s drink was spiked. Too ill to play the following day against West Germany, he was replaced by Peter Bonetti. Bonetti was no Banks, England lost 3-2 and didn’t play another World Cup game for twelve years. But June 1970, Gordon Banks was indisputably England’s No.1. Not just as a goalkeeper but, with this at No.1 in the charts, as a pop star.
The original Banksy.

- "Paul? Hello...4th Jun 2014
- I'm going to ...3rd Jun 2014
- First take a ...2nd Jun 2014
- The return of...1st Jun 2014
- Venison, hot ...31st May 2014
- Out with the ...30th May 2014
- Family outing...29th May 2014
- My daughter i...28th May 2014
- On a rainy Ba...26th May 2014
- Pat Kelly sou...25th May 2014
- We know we sh...24th May 2014
- UKIP seem to ...23rd May 2014
- I didn't want...22nd May 2014
- A record you'...21st May 2014
- The three liv...20th May 2014 prev next