Black Country Bugle

How schoolboy Benjamin beat Bob and Laurie to it

- By TONY MATTHEWS

FOR several years, most dedicated football fans, statistici­ans, historians, authors, reporters and so forth, believed that the former West Bromwich Albion forward Laurie Cunningham was the first black player to represent England at any level when he appeared in an Under-21 internatio­nal against Scotland at Bramall Lane, Sheffield, on 27 April 1977. Even the F.A. had this written down in their official files.

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 ??  ?? Benjamin Odeje about to make history by becoming the first black footballer for England.aged 15, he was picked for England schoolboys in March 1971
Benjamin Odeje about to make history by becoming the first black footballer for England.aged 15, he was picked for England schoolboys in March 1971
 ??  ?? Bob Hazell of Wolves
Bob Hazell of Wolves

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