Herbert Whalley (6 August 1913 – 6 February 1958) was a footballer who played as a half-back for

Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...

from 1934 to 1946, later serving on the coaching staff at the club. He died in the Munich air disaster in 1958, at the age of 44.

Career

Born in Ashton-under-Lyne, Lancashire, Whalley began his career with nearby

Stalybridge Celtic Stalybridge Celtic Football Club is an English football club based in Stalybridge, Greater Manchester. They are currently members of the and play at Bower Fold. The team traditionally plays in a blue and white strip. In 1921 Stalybridge Celtic ...

in 1933, before transferring to

on 7 May 1934. He made his debut on 30 November 1935 as a left-half in a 0–0 draw with Doncaster Rovers. The outbreak of the Second World War meant he was limited to 38 official appearances for the club; however, he played more than 200 times during the war, as well as making guest appearances for Oldham Athletic and

Bolton Wanderers Bolton Wanderers Football Club () is a professional football club based in Horwich, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in . The club played at Burnden Park for 102 years from 1895 after moving from their original home at Pike's ...

. He made just seven more appearances after the war, following the appointment of

Matt Busby Sir Alexander Matthew Busby (26 May 1909 – 20 January 1994) was a Scottish association football, football player and manager, who managed Manchester United F.C., Manchester United between 1945 and 1969 and again for the second half of the 197 ...

as manager. In the latter years of his career, Whalley trained as a coach. In late 1947, while coaching a schoolboy side, he suffered an eye injury that put an end to his playing career. Busby visited him in the hospital and promised Whalley would always have a job at the club, and Whalley was soon appointed to the club's coaching staff, working predominantly with the youth teams. After Jimmy Murphy officially became assistant manager to Busby in 1955, Whalley was promoted to the role of chief trainer. In that capacity, he travelled with the team to Belgrade for a

European Cup The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...

match against Red Star Belgrade in February 1958; on the journey back to England, the team's plane stopped in Munich to refuel. Bad weather meant the plane struggled to take off, and on the third attempt, it crashed through the end of the runway, killing 23 of the people on board, including Whalley, in what became known as the Munich air disaster.

Legacy

Whalley was played by actor Dean Andrews in the 2011 television drama '' United'', which centred on the successes of the Busby Babes and the decimation of the team in the Munich crash. In July 2021, Whalley was commemorated with a

blue plaque A blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place in the United Kingdom and elsewhere to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person, event, or former building on the site, serving as a historical marker. The term i ...

at Stalybridge Celtic's ground, Bower Fold. In conjunction with the unveiling of the plaque, which was carried out by former Manchester United captain Bryan Robson, the Manchester United under-23s team played a friendly match against Stalybridge Celtic; Manchester United won the match 5–1.

References

External links

Profile
at StretfordEnd.co.uk

at MUFCInfo.com * http://menmedia.co.uk/tamesideadvertiser/news/s/1035544_moving_tributes_to_tragic_united_coach Footballers from Ashton-under-Lyne 1913 births 1958 deaths Stalybridge Celtic F.C. players Manchester United F.C. players Manchester United F.C. non-playing staff Liverpool F.C. wartime guest players English Football League players Association football midfielders English footballers Victims of the Munich air disaster {{England-footy-midfielder-1910s-stub