Albion man who went on to steer Busby’s side in the master’s absence
Jimmy led United to Wembley while Matt recovered from crash
When Busby retired, many thought Jimmy should have been given the chance to take over
IN the Bugle dated August 24, Steve Gordos remembered, ‘Seven teams faced the drop, but would Albion survive?’
Accompanying the article was a photograph of the West Bromwich Albion team of 1937-38, and one name caught my eye – fourth from right on the back row was a certain J. Murphy.
What was so special you may ask? Well, J. Murphy was certainly an Albion player but twenty years hence he earned plaudits and respect when he assumed control of the Manchester United team after it was so cruelly ravaged in the Munich Air disaster of 1958.
With Matt – later to become Sir Matt – Busby in a Munich hospital bed Jimmy became the guiding hand in steering the team to a Wembley final. When Busby was fit enough to again take over the reins Jimmy faded into the background.
When Busby decided to retire many football judges with a much greater knowledge than myself thought that Jimmy should have been given the chance to take the manager’s chair. Like so many things we shall never know what really happened, but from what I understand he had both the knowledge and respect to have a very good chance of taking the club forward.
Born in Ton Pentre, Glamorgan, Jimmy was a Welsh schoolboy international and signed professional forms for Albion as a seventeen year old in 1928. In season 1930-31 Albion won both the FA Cup and promotion from what was then the Second Division, although Jimmy was yet to establish himself in the side and only made two appearances.
Once in the top flight Jimmy became an established member of the side and he helped Albion to reach the FA Cup final in 1935, which they lost to 4-2 to Sheffield Wednesday.
Jimmy played over two hundred games for Albion before moving to Swindon Town in 1939, although the outbreak of World War II curtailed his time in Wiltshire. Jimmy won fifteen caps for Wales.
Jimmy had missed the fatal flight to Munich because he had been away managing the Welsh team in a World Cup qualifying game. He managed Wales at the 1958 World Cup in Sweden when they reached the quarter finals, losing to eventual winners, Brazil, by a single Pele goal.
Despite approaches to manage both Arsenal and Juventus, Jimmy preferred to remain at his beloved United where he was happy to remain in the background, travelling to work every day by train. How many times has it been said “it wouldn’t/couldn’t happen now?”
Jimmy died suddenly in 1989 and many years later a blue plaque was placed on his former family home in Ton Pentre.