‘BITES YER LEGS’ HUNTER STRICKEN BY COVID-19
Leeds United legend is treated in hospital
NORMAN Hunter, one of the iconic figures in British football, was yesterday being treated in hospital for coronavirus.
The concerning news was confirmed by Leeds United, the club with whom Hunter, now 76, established his reputation as one of the greatest and most uncompromising defenders during the Sixties and Seventies.
A statement on the club website read: ‘ Keep battling Norman, we are all with you.’
Hunter played 726 games in 15 years at Elland Road. In the great sides managed by Don Revie, he won First Division titles in 1969 and 1974, the 1972 FA Cup and League Cup and the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup twice.
Only three Leeds players — Jack Charlton, Billy Bremner and Paul Reaney — have made more appearances for the club than Hunter who, as one of the best centre halves of his era, also won 28 England caps.
None of those came at the 1966 World Cup, where he was behind Charlton and Bobby Moore, but as a squad member he was belatedly handed a winner’s medal in 2009.
Of course, Hunter’s place in footballing folklore goes beyond numbers and trophies.
While invariably rated as a footballer of the highest quality by those who saw him at Leeds between 1962 and 1976 and then for three years in the Bristol City side who reached the top flight, his reputation is generally tied to his uncompromising style.
He drew the nickname ‘ Bites yer legs’ after a banner carried the message at the 1972 FA Cup final and famously got into a punch-up on the pitch in 1975 with Derby County’s Francis Lee — after the pair were sent off!
In issuing warm wishes to his former Leeds team-mate, fellow club legend Trevor Cherry yesterday told Sportsmail: ‘It goes without saying that we all hope and pray that he pulls through now and overcomes this horrendous virus.
‘Everybody of a certain age worries about it — I’m 72 now — but if anyone can fight it off then Norman can.
‘He’s built like that and is a strong lad with a lot of willpower. As soon as I heard the news, I got on the phone to wish him all the best and all the other lads will have done likewise.
‘I’m a Leeds fan and have been to seven or eight home games this season, so I’ve seen Norman, Eddie Gray and a few of the other guys quite a lot in the last 12 months.
‘I know Norman has struggled with his hearing in recent years, but otherwise he looks in good health.’
Messages for a speedy recovery also came in from Bristol City and Barnsley, where Hunter ended his playing career in 1983 before managing the club.
Cherry added: ‘Norman would have got more England caps were it not for the late, great Bobby Moore, but I have so many special memories of playing with him for Leeds.
‘I remember us playing Crystal Palace and Norman getting sent off for a tackle on John Craven. Craven had scored two goals and Norman just buried him, saying, ‘‘There’s no way you’re going to score three, pal!’’ and he got promptly dismissed.
‘Even more memorably, we played Derby County at the Baseball Ground in 1975 when Norman and Franny Lee were sent off for fighting.
‘ I was the one who got in the middle of them when it all kicked off.
‘Walking off, Franny went for Norman again and went looking for him after the game, too — they never made up. I don’t know what went on at all.
‘But he was a top player. It was an unbelievable Leeds side with so many great players but the three key men were Billy Bremner, Johnny Giles and Norman.
‘ We all pray that he pulls through.’