Sports Poets Society

18 Jan 2025 - The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire) BY JENNA SCOTT HE WAS A PLAYER YOU LOVED  TO WATCH AND HATED TO MARK!     - Former England player  and       manager Sir Bobby Robson The impact Denis Law has had on the beautiful game will last for generations. A Tartan Army and Man United legend, the only Scot to win the Ballon D’or, a striker at his peak who was feared and revered in equal measure around the world, Hampden Hall of Famer, community champion, charity crusader... the list goes on and on.   Denis’s statue unveiled in 2021 outside Provost Skene’s House. His passing will leave a huge hole in the lives of his loved ones as well as the wider footballing community. But we can cherish the memories he has left for us – whether that be spearheading Scotland’s attack as we declared ourselves unofficial world champions with that wonderful Wembley victory against England in 1967 or his tireless efforts to promote grass...

18 Jan 2025 The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire) BY MARC THOMSON TO HELP PEOPLE WHO ARE REALLY  STRUGGLING IN LIFE IS REALLY WONDERFUL.  YOU ARE GIVING SOMETHING BACK    - Denis Law Denis Law’s former team-mates and rivals were all in agreement on one thing: You would rather play with him than against him. As affable and engaging as he was away from the pitch, on it he was a fearless and ferocious competitor. It is this steely will to win of a man hewn in granite that helped Law tackle serious health scares for both himself and his family and come to terms with personal tragedies of losing so many much-loved friends from his playing days. Every time a potentially fatal condition has touched the Law family, it simply gave him the resolve to campaign to heighten awareness and raise funds to find cures. In the early 1990s, Law’s son Andrew was 24 when he was struck by meningitis. Andrew, who had served in the Merchant Navy, was working at a hotel in Cornwa...

18 Jan 2025 The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire) BY MARC THOMSON DENIS WAS MY HERO. HE EPITOMISED  WHAT A SCOT WAS – AS A FOOTBALLER  HE HAD COURAGE, HE WAS DASHING    - fellow Old Trafford icon Sir Alex Ferguson The esteem in which Aberdeen holds one of its greatest sons was immortalised in November 2021 when a 16ft statue of Denis Law was erected in the heart of the city. Law returned to his birthplace to witness the accolade as his likeness – named Legend – was unveiled next to Provost Skene’s House. The sight of the then-81year-old Law beaming with pride and looking happy and relaxed as he joked with onlookers belied his Alzheimer’s diagnosis just months earlier. He admitted “the memory is not as good as it used to be” but also declared the city “means everything” to him. Dons great Sir Alex Ferguson accompanied his idol to the ceremony as the statue of Law in famous figure-pointing goal-celebrating pose was revealed. The former Aberdeen and Manche...

18 Jan 2025 The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire) MY DAD IS MISCHIEVOUS.  HE’S GOT THIS NAUGHTINESS,  THIS TWINKLE IN HIS EYE.  HE LOVES TO MESS ABOUT.    - Law’s daughter Diana jnr MATCH   MADE IN HEAVEN:  Denis Law returned to Aberdeen in December 1962  to marry his sweetheart Diana Thomson. December 11 1962 – it was one midweek match which Denis Law could not miss as he and his bride Diana Thomson tied the knot in Aberdeen.   Diana Thomson lived on Great Western Road, Aberdeen. The day when one of Scotland’s greatest footballers married the love of his life in what would be regarded as a low-key ceremony by today’s standards. However, there was a huge swell of excitement around the city for the wedding with crowds gathering to wish the happy couple well. Granite City prodigy Denis, who went on to win 55 caps for his country and became the only Scot to secure the prestigious Ballon d’Or two years later, was the picture of ...

18 Jan 2025 The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire) BY MARC THOMSON THE PEOPLE OF ABERDEEN HOLD DENIS LAW  VERY CLOSE TO THEIR HEARTS.  DENIS IS A REMARKABLE MAN.    - former Lord Provost Barney Crockett Seven decades ago, Denis Law left his beloved Aberdeen to begin his path to international superstardom, but in truth he never really left the city behind.   Denis Law gleefully receives a football trophy during schooldays. Law was a frequent visitor home, both at the height of and after his footballing career – whether to catch up with family and friends or perform good deeds for the city. A picture taken of the then-rising star during many of his trips back to Aberdeen highlights what Law was really all about. It shows him smartly turned out in a suit enjoying a kickabout in the street with four awestruck boys. There is a childlike, and almost mischievous, glee etched on his face as he wrongfoots the first youngster bold enough to make an attempt to ...

18 Jan 2025 - The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire) BY PAUL THIRD ITALIAN STALLION GAMES: 27 GOALS: 10 I COULDN’T BELIEVE THE WELCOME WE GOT IN TURIN.  THERE WERE 10,000 FANS AT THE AIRPORT WAITING FOR US  – former Torino teammate Joe Baker Denis Law’s legacy as one of Scottish football’s greatest players was almost stopped in its tracks during his brief spell in Italy. February 7 1962 was the day when Law’s move to Torino was almost brought to a premature end when he was involved in a car crash which left his friend and team-mate Joe Baker fighting for his life in a coma. The duo were in Baker’s Alfa Romeo Giulietta with Law’s brother, Joseph, when Baker drove the wrong way around a roundabout and, after swerving to avoid the onrushing traffic, the car flipped six times. Italian media reported the car had been travelling at between 70kph and 80kph when it clipped the curve, with the coverage of two foreign players crashing met with disdain by the local media. L...

RED DREAD: Denis Law is consoled by his City team-mates  after scoring the goal that helped relegate his beloved United. 18 Jan 2025 The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire) BY CALLUM LAW HE HAD PACE, TWO FEET, GOOD CONTROL,  SKILFUL, HE COULD HEAD A BALL.  WHAT OTHER QUALITIES DO YOU WANT?    – former Man City captain Ken Barnes       MAINE STRIKER GAMES: 68 GOALS: 30 For many, Denis Law’s two spells with Manchester City were defined by one moment. It came on April 27 1974 when he scored the final league goal of his career and helped consign his beloved Manchester United to relegation.   Manchester City captain Ken Barnes  welcomes Law to the club in 1960. Law had made the move across the city after his career at Old Trafford came shuddering to a halt under manager Tommy Docherty. Just six years after winning the European Cup, United were struggling badly and faced their local rivals in their penultimate game of the season nee...

WEMB-GLEE: Tartan terror Denis Law scored  in  the 3-2  defeat of World Cup holders England in 1967. 18 Jan 2025 The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire) BY SEAN WALLACE I LOVED THE WAY HE PLAYED,  THE WAY HE SCORED GOALS,  AND THE WAY HE CELEBRATED.  I WANTED TO BE JUST LIKE HIM    – fellow Scotland top scorer Kenny Dalglish Playing for his country was the “ultimate accolade” for Denis Law and eclipsed his Ballon d’Or and trophy wins. The Lawman won two English League titles, the FA Cup and European Cup with Manchester United and was named European Player of the Year in 1963.  Yet none of those achievements matched the honour of wearing the dark blue of Scotland. Capped 55 times, he is Scotland’s joint all-time leading scorer on 30 goals. He said in 2012: “Being selected for Scotland is the greatest honour I have ever had. “I won a few things over the years but to represent my country was the ultimate accolade for me. “Pulling on t...

THREE KINGS: The statue outside Old Trafford celebrates  Red Devils legends Best,  Law and Charlton, all pictured on left.  The world-famous Manchester United trio remained firm lifetime friends off the pitch. 18 Jan 2025 The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire) BY JAMIE DURENT I HAVE NEVER SEEN ANYBODY QUICKER  OVER FIVE TO 10 YARDS OR SEEN ANYONE  GET UP IN THE AIR AS WELL AS HE DID    – former Old Trafford team-mate George Best The Holy Trinity. The three players that were at the centre of putting Manchester United on the global footballing map. Denis Law, Bobby Charlton and George Best are depicted in a statue outside Old Trafford, arm in arm as they were in their heyday.  In the Swinging Sixties, there was nothing groovier on the pitch than the Red Devils’ front three. Best had his model good looks and roguish charm allied to a mercurial on-field ability. Debonair Law excited the crowds with his dynamism in the penalty box. And Char...

18 Jan 2025 - The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire) BY CALLUM LAW HE WAS ONLY A SKINNY LITTLE WHIPPET  BUT WHEN YOU SAW HIM PLAY AT 15,  YOU KNEW HE WAS SOMETHING UNUSUAL    – former Huddersfield manager Bill Shankly       THE SCOTTISH TERRIER GAMES: 81 GOALS: 16 Starting out as a young apprentice at Huddersfield Town, Denis Law did everything – before he even made it on to the pitch. Alongside training, he would find himself cleaning the boots of first-team players, laying out kit, making tea as well as sweeping the dressing rooms and terraces and painting crash barriers at the club’s Leeds Road ground. Despite being kept busy and keenly looked after by senior players such as Jack Connor, future World Cup winner Ray Wilson and Les Massie, who stayed at the same digs, Law suffered from homesickness and was pining for Aberdeen. However, Huddersfield manager Andy Beattie signed a friend of Denis’s from the Granite City to make him feel more ...

18 Jan 2025 - The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire) BY MARC THOMSON We celebrate remarkable life of Aberdonian raised in a council tenement who became global footballing great I HAVE BEEN A VERY LUCKY GUY,  HAVING A BIT OF TALENT ON THE FOOTBALL PITCH  AND BEING ABLE TO PLAY FOR MY COUNTRY    - Denis Law The world of football, Scotland and the city of Aberdeen are in mourning after losing one of the game’s true greats. Former Scotland and Manchester United striker Denis Law has passed away aged 84. His death sparked an outpouring of grief in his home city of Aberdeen as well as at Old Trafford as fans paid tributes at monuments to the man affectionately known as both “The Lawman” and “The King of the Stretford End”. The devoted father-of-five leaves behind sons Gary, Andrew, Robert and Iain, and daughter Diana Jr. The Denis Law Legacy Trust described Law as “Scotland’s greatest ever footballer and a proud Aberdonian”. The Trust said: “We are deeply sadde...