Geoff Hurst lifting the World Cup Trophy (1966) Source: The Telegraph
As a memory refresher 1966 was the one and only time England hosted the World Cup. It was also the only time that the Three Lions would go on and win it.
Football had come home and the English had a talented squad that included the Charlton brothers (Bobby and Jack), Gordon Banks, Jimmy Greaves, Roger Hunt, Nobby Stiles and the late Bobby Moore as captain. Nicknamed the ‘wingless wonders’ they were targeted for success, provided they didn’t, in the grand tradition of English national teams, find a way of bottling it.
Nevertheless it wouldn’t be easy. They weren’t the favorites. All the usual Football superpowers were there including a powerful Portuguese team whose attack was spearheaded by the ‘Black Pearl’ himself, Eusebio. Brazil were hoping for a third title in a row having emerged victorious in 1958 and 1962. Pele was nearing the apex of his brilliance.
England were drawn in a group with Uruguay, Mexico and France. All respected football nations in their own right. They opened sluggishly with a 0–0 tie against the South Americans before dispatching Mexico and then France by 2–0 apiece. Liverpool forward Roger Hunt was the early hero, scoring three goals for the English in the group stage.
Other big name nations were less fortunate, Brazil crashed to two defeats - at the hands of Hungary and Portugal - and were eliminated (Pele limping off with an injury). Italy’s fate was even more damning, they lost to both the Soviet Union and North Korea, with the latter defeat going down as one of the biggest shocks in World Cup history.They would return home to be bombarded with a bevy of fresh produce by angry supporters.
In the knockout stage England saw off Argentina 1–0 in the quarterfinal (my dad was at that match) and then edged out the high flying Portugal 2–1 in the semi-finals courtesy of a Bobby Charlton brace. On the other side of the draw, the West Germans knocked off Uruguay 4–0 before winning 2–1 against the Soviets, who boasted the presence of Lev Yashin (arguably one of the best goalkeepers in Football history).
So destiny was set. On the 30th of July 1966 at 15:00 BST, England would face off at Wembley against the West Germans to decide football’s highest honor.
Now here is the kicker, Geoff Hurst, our man of focus, was only fourth in England’s strike force depth chart. Yes he scored the winning goal against Argentina but if it weren’t for an earlier injury to Jimmy Greaves (the most prolific scorer in top class British football) he would likely have seen himself on the bench with England manager Alf Ramsey preferring the likes of Charlton, Hunt and Greaves up front for the tournament. Fortune was to prove otherwise however as England ran out with a lineup that day, that every old time football fan would grow to know by heart
Banks (Gk), Cohen, Wilson, Stiles, Charlton J, Moore (c), Ball, Charlton B, Hurst, Peters and Hunt.
As West Ham United fans like to remind everyone three of the players were representing their club including Geoff Hurst himself.
Geoff Hurst today with Harry Kane (a possible Hurst for the future) Source: Tottenham Hotspur website
The game itself was played at a very fierce pace from the starting whistle. A defensive error gave the West Germans an early lead in the 12th minute but Hurst cancelled this out six minutes later. At half-time the score remained 1–1, and that was the tally until Martin Peters gave England the edge in the 78th minute.
All the Three Lions had to do was hold on for twelve minutes. They went in search of a third goal but the Germans held firm (they had a defense that included a young Franz Beckenbauer) and then as the game drew to a close Wolfgang Weber scored the tie goal sending the game into extra time. England were so close but now the West Germans were back into it. 2–2. Had the momentum shifted?
England’s character showed as they pushed forward with Hurst playing a key role in the attack. The chances would come and it did. Hurst fired in a shot that rebounded downward off the upright. The West Germans claimed that the ball didn’t cross the line. The Russian linesman disagreed with them. The referee awarded the goal and England were up 3–2. The teams were in the 101st minute of play.
The controversial Third goal. Source: Sir Geoff Hurst: goal-line technology in 1966 would have stopped 50 years of German moaning
However there was no guarantee that it would hold. The Germans had already come back before. Hurst though was not done. As English fans sat on their nerves he scored again beating the goalkeeper at the near post. The West Ham star had his hat-trick and England would go on to clinch the game and the World Cup - 4–2 in the final.
It was an incredible achievement. Hurst would eventually finish his career with 228 goals in 561 games at the club level. As an England forward he netted 24 times in 49 games. Well short of Bobby Charlton (49 goals in 106 games for England) and Jimmy Greaves (44 goals in 57 international games), but on that day in July he rose to the highest level and was the pivotal figure in England’s greatest footballing triumph. A tremendous achievement by a man who captured with his hat-trick what has alluded Messi, CR7, Big Ronaldo, Pele, Diego Maradona, Müller and other greats of the game. Sensational stuff. I wish I had been born to see it live.
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