R.I.P. George Eastham

[Cloughie1975]

Former England midfielder George Eastham has passed away aged 88.
I remember seeing him play for Stoke against Forest as a boy and young teenager from the mid-60s to the
early 70s.
He scored the winner for them in the 1972 League Cup final.

R.I.P. George

 

[Ian Moore Gone Little]

Former England midfielder George Eastham has passed away aged 88.
I remember seeing him play for Stoke against Forest as a boy and young teenager in the mid-60s and early 70s.
He scored the winner for them in the 1972 League Cup final.

R.I.P. George

Like you, I only really knew of him from his Stoke days at the end of his career. I remember enjoying the underdogs beating the flash London team in that final. I believe in his earlier days he was influential in players’ rights (freedom of movement, etc), at a time when even top flight players had to keep an eye on their bank balances. R.I.P.

 

[valspoodle]

Like you, I only really knew of him from his Stoke days at the end of his career. I remember enjoying the underdogs beating the flash London team in that final. I believe in his earlier days he was influential in players’ rights (freedom of movement, etc), at a time when even top flight players had to keep an eye on their bank balances. R.I.P.

Yes, that was my main memory of Eastham, who continued to fight for the right to move (previously it was retain and transfer, I think is how it went) even after a move was granted. All these little pin pricks against the rules gave us the sort of system we have today.

 

[Otis Redding]

I saw him play against us for Arsenal during '60s and for Stoke later; I recall him being a skillful winger. As well as his campaigning for players' rights, he was also a vocal anti-racist later in his career. RIP.

 

[Captain Sinister]

It was strongly rumoured that Eastham was joining Forest from Arsenal at the same time when Joe Baker or John Barnwell came to us from Arsenal.
In the end he elected to go to Stoke.
Big mistake on his part!
A very cultured player.
RIP

Edit: it would have been when Joe Baker joined us, in 1966.

 

[Ian Moore Gone Little]

It was strongly rumoured that Eastham was joining Forest from Arsenal at the same time when Joe Baker or John Barnwell came to us from Arsenal.
In the end he elected to go to Stoke.
Big mistake on his part!
A very cultured player.
RIP

Edit: it would have been when Joe Baker joined us, in 1966.

I suppose he got a League Cup medal for his trouble even if he had to wait for it. In 1966 we were putting the finishing touches to the great 66/67 team, so I’m not sure whose place he would’ve taken. I’m too young to remember much about him but in my mind he’s a playmaker on the lines of John Barnwell, which might explain why we didn’t feel we needed him. Of course, it might’ve been he didn’t feel he needed us…

 

[Captain Sinister]

I suppose he got a League Cup medal for his trouble even if he had to wait for it. In 1966 we were putting the finishing touches to the great 66/67 team, so I’m not sure whose place he would’ve taken. I’m too young to remember much about him but in my mind he’s a playmaker on the lines of John Barnwell, which might explain why we didn’t feel we needed him. Of course, it might’ve been he didn’t feel he needed us…

Forest moved Barnwell back to a more defensive midfield role.
I think Eastham in the No. 10 slot (yes - I know it didn't exist as a concept then) or, more likely alongside Barnwell, in the manner of MGW and Anderson might have made us Champions in 66-67, rather than runners up.
But who knows?

 

[Otis Redding]

It was strongly rumoured that Eastham was joining Forest from Arsenal at the same time when Joe Baker or John Barnwell came to us from Arsenal.
In the end he elected to go to Stoke.
Big mistake on his part!
A very cultured player.
RIP

Edit: it would have been when Joe Baker joined us, in 1966.

Forest moved Barnwell back to a more defensive midfield role.
I think Eastham in the No. 10 slot (yes - I know it didn't exist as a concept then) or, more likely alongside Barnwell, in the manner of MGW and Anderson might have made us Champions in 66-67, rather than runners up.
But who knows?

I'm certainly not disputing what you heard, but I've never been aware of us ever being linked with Eastham. I do know that Johnny Carey had set up deals to sign Allan Clarke from Fulham and Alan Mullery from Spurs in the summer of 1967 until the-then chairman, Tony Wood, refused to sanction them, preferring later to hugely overpay for Jim Baxter against the advice of Carey who knew that Jim's legs had gone and that he had a serious drink problem.

Also, rather than not having Eastham in the team being the reason we didn't manage it, I'd argue far more strongly that we'd have won the double (or at least one of those trophies) in '67 had Brian Labone not cynically crocked Joe Baker in the FA Cup QF, causing him to miss the entire run-in to the end of that season.

 

[Ian Moore Gone Little]

I'm certainly not disputing what you heard, but I've never been aware of us ever being linked with Eastham. I do know that Johnny Carey had set up deals to sign Allan Clarke from Fulham and Alan Mullery from Spurs in the summer of 1967 until the-then chairman, Tony Wood, refused to sanction them, preferring later to hugely overpay for Jim Baxter against the advice of Carey who knew that Jim's legs had gone and that he had a serious drink problem.

Also, rather than not having Eastham in the team being the reason we didn't manage it, I'd argue far more strongly that we'd have won the double (or at least one of those trophies) in '67 had Brian Labone not cynically crocked Joe Baker in the FA Cup QF, causing him to miss the entire run-in to the end of that season.

Having researched that 66/67 season extensively for the ISM book I agree that we would quite probably have won the Cup but for the season-ending (and career-damaging) injury to Joe Baker. Even without him we were very unfortunate to lose the semi-final against Tottenham and we were a better team than Chelsea, who they beat in the final.

I don’t, however, think we would’ve had quite enough to beat Manchester United to the title. We dropped points in the last few league matches as injuries and fatigue kicked in and with all due respect to Sammy Chapman we were weaker with him in Baker’s shirt, but the run United went on after Christmas was insanely good. For months they followed a pattern of winning at home and drawing away and I don’t think even with Baker fit we would have gained the necessary 4+ points on them. If we hadn’t lost 1-0 at Old Trafford to a very late goal from Denis Law there would have been two fewer points needed later in the season and maybe things might’ve been different.

So although we certainly had a genuine tilt at the Double, my view is that we were denied a Cup win by Baker’s injury and denied the title (largely) by that late Law goal.

 

[delroy771]

Such sad news. George Eastham was another legend who was real. I once listened to the story of that League Cup final played in 1972 and how much that goal meant to Stoke. Rest in peace George, he will be so sorely missed.