Jack Charlton (1935-2020)
‘Big Jack’ Charlton was born into a family with an impressive footballing pedigree in the mining village of Ashington, Northumberland, on 8th May 1935. His mother Cissie's cousin was the legendary Newcastle United and England footballer Jackie Milburn. It was his mother that had taught Jack and his brother Bobby to play football: "I never had a doll. I just wanted to play football with the lads. It's in my blood."
Jackie Charlton was the son of a miner and followed his father down the pit for a short period before a successful trial at Leeds United in 1950 launched his career as a talented professional footballer. He played in the World Cup final victory over West Germany in 1966, alongside his brother Bobby, and was named FWA Footballer of the Year in 1967.
On quitting as a player, he agreed to manage Second Division team Middlesbrough FC in 1973, refusing to sign a contract, drawing a salary of just £10,000 a year, and taking three days off a week for fishing and shooting. His first move was to paint the club stadium at Ayresome Park. Charlton supervised Boro’s remarkable 1973-74 Division Two campaign, when the team stormed to promotion after winning the league by a record 15 point margin.
A Tyne Tees Television documentary followed Middlesbrough in this successful sporting season. The match featured took place against Nottingham County on the 6th April when a crowd of 27,823 people watched Middlesbrough win 4 – 0 against Notts County. In 1974 Jackie Charlton was also named Manager of the Year, the first time that a manager outside of the top-flight had been given such an honour.
Reproduced from the Yorkshire Film Archive
The Charlton's Champions link above is to the Tyne Tees TV documentary that shows the team training, and includes shots of the manager's team talk where Charlton discusses tactics. The film also shows the team relaxing, coverage of the match itself, celebrations, and crowd scenes.
What can you say about Jack Charlton. He was the manager that put MFC on the footballing map in the 70’s and I was there for the ride, and what a ride it was!
The man they called 'Big Jack'
I've no personal memories of the Jack Charlton era - I didn't really follow football then - so I'll leave that task to those who have, but Phil Tallentire's tribute for the Gazette seems a decent way to kick off a tribute thread:
A tribute to Jack Charlton - the man
who invented the modern Middlesbrough
He was also known as "The Giraffe", of course... 🙂
🔴 Thanks for starting a thread but I merged your tribute thread with the one GHW started a minute earlier to avoid duplication - Werder
Desperately sad at hearing the news of Jack’s passing. The early years of his tenure at the Boro are some of the happiest times I had supporting the team both home and away.
The promotion winning side are still to my mind the best side the club has had. After so many years in the wilderness his team took the league by storm and for a few seasons put us on the footballing map.
I still feel to this day that we did not get the recognition we deserved from TV and press. RIP Jack and thanks for some wonderful memories. 😎
The man they called 'Big Jack'
I've no personal memories of the Jack Charlton era - I didn't really follow football then - so I'll leave that task to those who have, but Phil Tallentire's tribute for the Gazette seems a decent way to kick off a tribute thread:
A tribute to Jack Charlton - the man
who invented the modern MiddlesbroughHe was also known as "The Giraffe", of course... 🙂
🔴 Thanks for starting a thread but I merged your tribute thread with the one GHW started a minute earlier to avoid duplication - Werder
No problem, Werder. I probably started it in the wrong forum anyway.
I didn't start going to watch the Boro until the late seventies so I missed out on seeing one of Big Jack's Boro teams in the flesh - though it was probably that 1973-74 promotion winning team that first grabbed my attention when back in the day only the FA Cup Final was shown live.
At the start of that season, I was actually living in Rhodesia after my parents decided to emigrate there but the civil war meant we were soon back in England, where we were initially living with my gran in Whitby. Most people at school there were big Leeds fans and I must admit to following Revie's stars in my glory-hunting formative years too - particularly the Cup Finals.
But it was Big Jack who put Boro on the footballing map and gave the club some rare attention from the media as we stormed to that 15 point championship - I remember the disbelief of hearing that Boro had beaten Sheff Wed 8-0 as that wasn't something you'd associate with Boro.
After the promotion season I can also recall avidly updating my Shoot league ladders and seem to recall that at one point under Charlton Boro were top of the old First Division. I think by that point we'd moved to Thornaby before ending up in Guisborough.
My recollections of Big Jack were him as strong character - a man who was no-nonsense and full of self-confidence. I remember watching him in some TV programme where he'd be coaching kids and teaching them how to gain an extra yard by craftily elbowing their marker in the solar plexus as they turned. You didn't get spin with Big Jack and it's probably what made him a good pundit on TV panels.
Sadly another footballing legend has passed but he certainly left his mark on life and in particular on Middlesbrough Football Club and those who followed football.
I remember towards the end of the promotion season asking my dad for the entrance fee to the boys end, we were playing Sheffield Wednesday and we had already been promoted. It was Friday night and he said " what's the point there's nothing to play for". I woke in the morning and mum said "dad's gone to work but he has left you the money on the mantlepiece". Of course we won 8-0. Great memories for a 11 year old.
@werdermouth I am sure, in that first season in div 1, we flirted with the top spot with Carlisle early in the season.
I'm sure Ken Will clarify my foggy memory
Jack always went onto the pitch after the warm up and collected the players track suits before kick off.
Of course he got a rousing reception from the fans and gave the obligitary wave. It set the tone for the game. I can also remember him being interviewed on MOTD, one of the few times we were on, and the light above him fell on his head. We all thought MOTD had rigged it as we new they didn't like having to accommodate Boro on their show but the smoggy upstarts kept getting results they couldn't ignore
RIP Big Jack - Boro legend
@werdermouth I am sure, in that first season in div 1, we flirted with the top spot with Carlisle early in the season.
I'm sure Ken Will clarify my foggy memory
Sorry, but Boro lost their first home game 0-2 to Carlisle and only drew the next one 1-1 to the other promoted team Luton to be 10th after 3 matches whilst Carlisle were actually top. Boro won 1-0 at Carlisle in the next match, but successive draws at Stoke and at home to Chelsea, then a 0-1 away defeat against Sheffield United saw Boro plummet to mid table with 9 points from the first 7 matches. However after the Boxing Day win at home to Sheffield United Boro had reached the dizzy heights of 2nd. The fact is though that if Boro had won their last 5 matches that season they would have been Champions. Unfortunately they only drew at home to Derby the eventual Champions after leading 1-0 at halftime and then lost at both Leicester and Wolves to finish 7th but only 5 points behind Derby.
In Jack Charlton’s final season though Boro did lead the League table briefly after the first 9 matches with 13 points points and again with 15 points from the first 11 matches. The only other time that Boro have led the League table in the top division was the 3 matches leading up to Christmas Day in 1950 when they had a 3 point lead after beating Newcastle 2-1.
@ken yes it's all coming back Ken,
Just amazing that Carlise were top of the league, albeit breifly
Was there ever a better time to be a Boro fan than when big Jack was our manager? What a terrific job he did and if only the current crop of managers were even half as good we would be flying. A true legend.
I’ll always remember us winning at Fulham late in the promotion season. My family moved to London in 65 so I never saw that many games. My older brother used to take me to matches and I remember trips to Millwall and Charlton in the late sixties which were often dour defeats or draws.
That day at Fulham we sparkled. We were the champions and beat them 4-0 (I think). It was magic and Big Jack was at the heart of it all.
utb
I had really started supporting Boro in 1970 as a 10 year old living in the East London/Essex area. Was taken to all the Local matches by my Dad(born and bred on Costa St) with the occasional trio to Ayresome Park when visiting relatives.
So the early years were always so close but no cigar until Big Jack arrived. By then we had moved to Hull so were able to see more games. Managed to get his autograph when we were collecting some tickets for a game at Christmas in the promotion season and we were at the Sheffield Wednesday eightsome reelers game. I will still have the Pink’un up in the loft!
He put Boro on the map, in a similar way to Robson, but without the big names and turned an average team into a winning team.
Just a shame that he did not buy that striker we needed ............
RIP Big Jack
I become a fan when I saw the FA Cup win over Arsenal on TV in Feb 1977. So it was the Charlton Champions that converted me to a Boro fan in Finland. (Might be that the name sounded exciting, too. My late father was never able to pronaunce the name).
When I visited Boro for the first time in 1980, it was already Phil Neal as a manager. So I was sorry not to see Big Jack live. But I went to see his house in Great Ayton. It was a bungalow towards the rail way station. I already understood his great achievements during the 1970's.
Actually, I chose Sheffield Wednesday as my second favourite team as Jack went there from Boro. The Owls were then in the third tier. So I thought there was no confliction with my bonnie Boro. Just to follow their results. But when Jack moved on, I stopped following their results.
So a saw a Boro game or two under Jack and was always following his career. Especially Ireland in the World Cup. I needed a country to support as Finland qualified to their first major finals only last year. So following Big Jack again was great.
When I was a small boy - I was only a bit over five year old when England won the World Cup - I played a lot of football with my two brothers in the garden. We were often Pele, Jairzinho, the black cat (goalkeeper) - or one of the Charlton brothers. I was once called as a giraffe by my older brother. He was teasing me as I was taller than him. I learnt only later, that I should have been honoured! He knew Jack's nick name - I didn't at the time. I was a defender ...
So when I went to the internet on Saturday morning, I had a tear in my eye. Big Jack was dead. It really felt, I felt like an uncle was taken away from me. I was so proud of him and his Boro team. But we also missed a real English gentleman.
His death was mentioned on TV as well as in my local newspaper here in Finland.
He is one of the real footballing greats in the World - so not just in England. As a player and also as a manager. He will never be forgotten.
A true legend. RIP, Big Jack.
When they speak about someone, anyone, being 'a typical Englishman' they never mean the usual 'bigshot', but always , always, someone like Jack, who was always 'in character' i.e. True to his nature and values. Any quotation straight from his mouth was sure to bring a smile. I was particularly touched by seeing a Millwall supporter saying that they never ever applauded any visiter but they applauded Jack when his champions beat them on their own ground. It's the little things that get you in the end. He was part of a great moment in English sporting history, and as such, was taken for granted, it was to expected I suppose, but a great opportunity missed and cannot be put right now.
This is brilliant from David Squires in the Guardian.
This is brilliant from David Squires in the Guardian.
Seconded - I'll confess to having a tear in my eye by the end of that one, plus lovely that Squires took the time to make his Boro achievements be part of the story.
I remember towards the end of the promotion season asking my dad for the entrance fee to the boys end, we were playing Sheffield Wednesday and we had already been promoted. It was Friday night and he said " what's the point there's nothing to play for". I woke in the morning and mum said "dad's gone to work but he has left you the money on the mantlepiece". Of course we won 8-0. Great memories for a 11 year old.
My sister got married that day, so we didn't get to go to that famous match.
The wedding reception was held at the Marton Country Club, one of Charlie Amer's businesses and where the team assembled for their pre match lunch.
Jack saw the wedding party and came to pass his best wishes to the bride and groom and had his photo taken with them, by the cake if I remember rightly.
Big sis asked would he mind if he had a photo with her two Boro mad younger brothers. He declined and said it should be about the team, so he organised for us both to go and meet our heroes while they were sitting around the table having lunch, and we had our photo taken with them then.
Later on after the reception and sitting in our back yard I could hear the roars in the near distance as the goals were going in.
A fine man and in my opinion the best manager we have ever had.
RIP Jack and thank you for all the memories.
Just been out with a Wednesday fan who was equally full of praise for Big Jack the man. His wife had been out shopping with his two young twins and Jack came across and gave them 5p eachfor some sweets!
Also he was well known for cadging fags from anyone who was smoking!
Today is the final farewell to Jack. I hope his family find some comfort in the esteem in which big Jack was held all around the footballing community.
RIP Big Jack and thanks for the fantastic memories.