Man Utd goalkeeping legend will be fondly remembered in Kerry

‘GREGG pushed some bits of broken metal aside and scrambled out, sure that he was the only one left alive. His nose was bleeding and he had a sore back, but he was otherwise intact, apart from the loss of both shoes. Running around barefoot in the snow he found one and picked up the other.’

This extract from Stanley Williamson’s 1972 book ‘The Munich Air Disaster’ captures the horror and heroism of the late Harry Gregg, who survived the plane crash that killed most of the Manchester United team on February 6, 1958.

Gregg’s (87) passing in Coleraine, County Derry on Sunday last was felt by football fans everywhere, especially in Kerry where Gregg visited.

Gregg’s most memorable meeting was with the late Weeshie Fogarty (a Manchester United fan) on his radio show, Terrace Talk in 2001.

Fogarty referred to Gregg as ‘The Hero of Munich’ and recalled memories of watching United on a foggy night from the Stretford End in 1958 against Real Madrid. Weeshie said:

“One special memory remained etched in my mind. That was the performance of Harry Gregg, who saved his side time after time.”

Gregg visited local clubs in Kerry and presented awards, spent time with supporters while posing for photographs.

Aside from being one the world’s greatest goalkeepers at the time, Gregg’s heroism in the aftermath of the plane crash when he pulled bodies from the wreckage, including a baby and badly inured pregnant woman, is a legacy that rested uneasily with him throughout his life.

In the days before the ‘Belfast Boy’ George Best was the Old Trafford hero; Gregg was United’s mister reliable from the north playing over 247 times for the club.

He also played in the 1958 World Cup finals in Sweden with Northern Ireland.

Speaking about the tragedy

“I heard a child crying and movement. I made my way in over the bodies...’

of the Munich disaster, Gregg told Weeshie:

“All of a sudden there was no screaming, only the tearing of metal. From day light to darkness, I thought I was dead. I saw a light at the top of the aircraft and crawled towards it and stuck my head out the window. It was at that point I saw my first dead body.

“I heard a child crying and movement. I made my way in over the bodies, I was terrified, Weeshie, what I would find. Eventually I found a baby and crawled out...For 40 years I couldn’t talk about it.”

MacMonagle Picture by Don Legendary Manchester United goalkeeper Harry Gregg is interviewed about his life and the Munich Air Crash during a visit to Kerry in 2001.