Gordon Banks

Gordon Banks, OBE (born Sheffield, England, 30th December, 1937) is a former English footballer, considered by many to be the best goalkeeper to have played the game.

Hard to Stomach

The day before the game, tragedy struck Banks and England's hopes of making further inroads into the World Cup were dented when he started to complain of an upset stomach. He subsequently spent long periods in the bathroom and despite rest and medication, he did not seem to be recovering in time. But on the day of the game, he offered a glimmer of hope to Ramsey when he said he felt better and asked for a fitness test. He caught a few balls and did some short sprints but something was not right and Ramsey decided he couldn't risk him. Bonetti was summoned to take his place. The overheard remark by Ramsey after Banks' absence from the game was confirmed was: "Of all the players to lose, we had to lose him."

Related Topics:
Stomach - Bathroom

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Bonetti played fine for an hour and England went into a commanding 2-0 lead, with Peters scoring against the Germans again after Alan Mullery had put the defending champions ahead. Ramsey then substituted Bobby Charlton, freeing the dangerous Franz Beckenbauer from his marking duties. Beckenbauer duly hit a low shot under the body of Bonetti, who had been slow to react, and the Germans had hope. In the last ten minutes, veteran striker Uwe Seeler looped a back header over Bonetti to take the game into extra time; then Gerd Müller smashed home the winner in the added period. England's exit from the World Cup had started from the moment Banks had fallen ill.

Related Topics:
Alan Mullery - Franz Beckenbauer - Uwe Seeler - Gerd Müller

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Conspiracies began to surface that Banks had been "nobbled" by someone in England's hotel and that his food had been somehow spiked. This was dismissed by Banks, who watched the game on his hotel TV and saw England go 2-0 ahead. After another visit to the bathroom, he returned to his bed and, feeling rough and sleepy, switched off his TV set to take a nap, assuming the match was won. He was woken by his second understudy, Stepney, who came to his room to signal the devastating final score with his fingers.

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