Emlyn Hughes

At 57 years old, Emlyn Hughes has this physical status:

Emlyn Walter Hughes (28 August 1947 – 9 November 2004) was an English footballer.

He started his career at Blackpool in 1964 before heading to Liverpool in 1967.

He made 665 appearances for Liverpool and captained the team to four league titles and an FA Cup triumph in the 1970s.

Two European Cups, including Liverpool's first in 1977; and two UEFA Cup titles were among the domestic honors.

In 1977, Hughes was named Football Writers' Player of the Year.

Hughes won the League Cup with Wolverhampton Wanderers in 1980, winning a complete set of English football domestic titles.

He later played for Rotherham United, Hull City, Mansfield Town, and Swansea City, in addition to Wolves.

Hughes captained the England national team for 62 caps after retiring from football, primarily for the BBC.

In 1980, he was named an OBE for his contributions to sport.

In 2004, Hughes died as a result of a brain tumor at the age of 57.

Early life

Emlyn Hughes was born in Barrow-in-Furness, the son of Fred Hughes, a Great Britain, Wales, Barrow, and Workington Town rugby league footballer.

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Career

Hughes joined Blackpool in the First Division after being refused a trial by local side Barrow. He made his Blackpool debut in 1964 alongside Jimmy Armfield and Alan Ball, initially as an inside forward but later as a left-half.

In February 1967, after 28 appearances for Blackpool, Hughes joined Liverpool for £65,000 (equivalent to £1,255,133 in 2021). Bill Shankly was stopped by the police while driving Hughes to Liverpool for the first time, and said, "Don't you know who I've got in this car?" says manager Bill Shankly.

The captain of England!"

The policeman peered through the window and said he didn't recognise the guy, but Shankly replied, "No, but you will." Hughes did indeed go on to captain his country, becoming the first black captain of the United States. In a 2–1 league victory over Stoke City at Anfield on March 4, 1967, Hughes made his Liverpool debut in a 2–1 victory. In a 6–0 victory over Newcastle United at Anfield on August 26, the same year, he scored his first goal.

During a difficult season for the club, Hughes settled into the midfield, earning the nickname "Crazy Horse" after an unlawful rugby tackle against Newcastle United winger Albert Bennett. Liverpool did not win any awards during his first four seasons as a result of his time as a forerunner of the future, which Shankly was aware of. His versatility was evident throughout his career, starting at left back and central defense, which was a characteristic that was not present in England coach Alf Ramsey's 1969 work.

Ramsey made his debut on November 5th of this year by playing him left back in a friendly against the Netherlands at Amsterdam's Olympic Stadium. England defeated the United Kingdom 1–0. He appeared in the next game in the same position. Hughes scored his first international goal against Wales, the first goal of a 3–0 British Home Championship victory at Ninian Park in 1972.

Hughes' 1970 was a pivotal year in his career. Shankly made a decision to cut some of the senior players who had won two league titles, an FA Cup, and a European Cup Winners Cup final, after Liverpool was defeated by second Division side Watford in the quarter finals of the FA Cup. Hughes, who was not yet 23, survived the cull, alongside Ian Callaghan and Tommy Smith, and the new recruits who would help cement Liverpool's dominance in the 1970s began to arrive.

Meanwhile, England was planning to fly to Mexico to defend the World Cup that had been won four years ago. By the time Ramsey called him into his provisional squad of 27 who departed to South America for altitude-acclimatizing friendly games against Colombia and Ecuador, he had six caps. Hughes played in neither game, but he was picked in the final squad of 22 people. He was Ramsey's youngest player and the only Liverpool player in the team's squad, and he was the only Liverpool player selected.

Hughes, along with Nobby Stiles, was one of only two outfield players to not appear in any game. England advanced to the quarterfinals, where they were defeated by West Germany. During the game, there were concerns about Ramsey's decisions. He controversially withdrew Bobby Charlton and Martin Peters in the second half but retained a physically ill Terry Cooper, who starred at left back for the entire 120 minutes, when Hughes was available to replace him. Hughes will never participate in a World Cup.

Liverpool reached the FA Cup final in 1970-71, losing 2–1 after extra-time to Arsenal, who then won the then-rare double title and FA Cup for the first time. As he collected his loser's medal, Hughes was distraught, and BBC commentator Kenneth Wolstenholme said, "Emlyn Hughes, really sick." Hughes had a reputation for charging upfield from his defensive midfield job on long runs and for repeatedly berating referees by this time.

Tommy Smith wrote in his autobiography that he told him on May 8, 1972, that Hughes had been playing with a number of Arsenal players who were "willing to throw a match for £50 a man." Liverpool lost the vital match at Highbury, ensuring Derby County gained the league championship. Smith wrote that he was "disappointed" with what Hughes said and never talked to him again, and that he never spoke to him off the field again. Ian Callaghan, Smith's sole witness, was still present, according to Smith. Smith also stated that Hughes was attempting to "set him up" and that he wasn't really trying to bribe Arsenal players. Smith said he never told Shankly because it would have "broken his heart."

Hughes appeared for England in the quarter-finals of the 1972 European Championships, under Ramsey once more against West Germany with the same result; victory for West Germany.

Hughes won his first League title with Liverpool and his first European honour with the UEFA Cup against Borussia Mönchengladbach in 1973. Hughes was appointed Liverpool captain after Tommy Smith's publicised fallout with Shankly, who nevertheless retained him in the squad after scoring goals in a dramatic victory over Merseyside rivals Everton at Goodison Park. Smith and Hughes' off-field relationship, which was already strained as a result of the bribery incident 18 months ago, fractured beyond repair after this, although it never directly affected their football.

Ramsey picked Hughes to be left back as England defeated Poland at Wembley Stadium in October 1973. With no other result seeing Poland qualify, only an England victory will guarantee a spot in the 1974 World Cup. England dominated the game, but Polish goalkeeper Jan Tomaszewski denied them repeatedly. After a missed tackle by Norman Hunter in the second half, then Poland had a breakaway, but only Hughes and goalkeeper Peter Shilton were back to defend. The ball was released to Jan Domarski who fired from the edge of the area. Hughes screamed out for a last-ditch tackle, but Domarski's shot cleared his block and slid under Shilton's body and into the net. England equalized thanks to an Allan Clarke penalty, but the match came to an end 1–1 and England failed to qualify.

Liverpool reached the FA Cup final and defeated Newcastle United 3–0, with Hughes winning the trophy from The Princess Anne at the end of the 1973–74 season. Later this month, Hughes was voted England captain, replacing Bobby Moore, by caretaker boss Joe Mercer. On May 11, 1974, Hughes led England out for the first time against Wales in Cardiff, which England defeated Wales 2–0.

Hughes captained England for all of Mercer's seven games as captain, and he took over the role as Ramsey's permanent replacement after Don Revie was appointed as Ramsey's manager. However, Revie dropped Hughes from the squad after the first two qualifiers for the 1976 European Championships, handing over the captaincy to Hughes' former Blackpool teammate Alan Ball.

Hughes spent time with Liverpool following Shankly's retirement in 1974, placing him under his tute. Liverpool received no awards in Paisley's first season as manager, but the club did win another League championship and a UEFA Cup double in 1976.

Don Revie, who played Hughes in the second qualifier for the 1978 World Cup, started the 1976-1977 season with a dramatic recall to England by beginning a surprise visit to England. Kevin Keegan, the national captain and clubmate, Kevin Keegan, was present in the second qualifier. Hughes, a central defender, was now mainly a central defender and played in a defensive team against Italy in Rome, which was the lowest point of Revie's tenure as England boss. England lost 2–0.

Hughes was selected for further games through the early part of 1977, during which Liverpool was searching for their first treble of League Championship, FA Cup, and European Cup glory. They won the title, but they lost the FA Cup final to bitter rivals Manchester United. Hughes led Liverpool to a 3–1 win over Borussia Mönchengladbach in Rome, the first time the team has won Europe's most coveted club title. He was named the Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year by the Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year.

When Keegan was unavailable for the England captaincy against Scotland, Revie gave Hughes the England captaincy for the squad, which will tour South America in the summer. On returning to England, Ron Greenwood took over as England's captain, returning the captaincy to Hughes. Following England's loss to Italy, the team could not qualify for the World Cup, but Hughes nonetheless earned a 50th cap when England defeated the Italians 2–0 in a final qualifier at Wembley at the end of 1977.

In 1978, Hughes was a member of Liverpool's club, which lost its first ever League Cup final to Nottingham Forest's Brian Clough in a replay. Forest lost the league title, but Liverpool lifted the European Cup by a 1–0 victory over FC Bruges at Wembley Stadium, allowing Hughes to lift the trophy for the second year in a row. By this time, Hughes' place in the team was under pressure from a talented young Scottish defender Alan Hansen, who had arrived in Partick Thistle last season for £100,000.

Hughes made just 16 appearances in the side over the past year, enough to earn his final championship medal. Liverpool lost in the FA Cup semi-finals to Manchester United, with Hughes thrown out of place for the winning goal. He never played for Liverpool again. In August 1979, he was sold to Wolverhampton Wanderers for £90,000. Hughes left Liverpool after 665 appearances, scoring 49 goals for the club. Before Welsh striker Ian Rush broke the record more than ten years ago, he made his 59 appearances for England and at Liverpool made him the club's Most Capable Player.

Hughes made his Wolves debut at the Baseball Ground on August 22, 1979, defeating Derby County 1–0. After defeating Nottingham Forest at Wembley 11-0, he continued to win the League Cup in his first season with Wolves – the only trophy he did not win with Liverpool.

Even after leaving Liverpool, he continued to be drafted for England squads. He was active in England's commendable qualifying campaign for the 1980 European Championships for the first time in his 1–1 1980 Home International game against Northern Ireland, winning his 62nd and final cap against Scotland in the next game as a replacement.

Greenwood called him into the squad for the European Championship finals in Italy as an experienced reserve, but Hughes did not appear in any matches, and England was disqualified in group competitions. Hughes was England's only connection with the 1970 World Cup, but his non-participation in either made him the England's Most capped player never to play in a major finals. He was also the fifth player to represent England in three separate decades, with Jesse Pennington, Stanley Matthews, Bobby Charlton, and Peter Shilton as the fifth person to represent England in three separate decades. Hughes' 57 caps in the 1970s made him the most capped England player of the decade.

Hughes left Wolves in 1981 and joined Rotherham United as player-manager. Rotherham, a side that had won the Third Division championship under Ian Porterfield, had a patchy start to the season and was in the relegation zone in January. However, Rotherham climbed from third last to third place in the league after a string of nine victories in a row. Promotion was down by four points, but the Millers' 7th place was the best since the 1960s.

Rotherham continued to play in the Second Division and finished ninth in 1983 at the start of the season. However, the team sank the table, although the team sank down the table. On the morning of 20 March Hughes, Hughes was asked to resign as manager. He refused and was fired, but George Kerr would take his place the next day. Rotherham were relegated after winning just one more game during the season.

Hughes performed for Hull City before becoming a director. He played for Mansfield Town briefly in 1983 but made no appearances for the club. He also played for Swansea City later that year, and with whom he brought his playing career to an end.

Post-football career

Hughes, the former rugby union footballer Gareth Edwards, became a team captain on the long-running BBC quiz A Question of Sport in 1979. In 1981, he left the program but returned in 1984, this time against England's former rugby union captain Bill Beaumont. When not being able to recall an answer, Hughes was much compared to his competitive character and high-pitched protests. He once identified a photo of a muddy jockey as John Reid, but later learned it was Princess Anne. She appeared on the programme later in the same sequence, joining Hughes' crew. When Hughes defied protocol and wrapped his arm around her, he caused a small national debate. "Ma'am" was used throughout. Hughes later joined her team on the much criticized It's a Royal Knockout scheme, Prince Edward's brainchild.

Hughes' time with the BBC included stints as an analyst on radio. "Football has died, and the hooligans have won," Peter Jones said at the Heysel Stadium tragedy in 1985. He was also a member of the BBC Television's coverage of the 1986 FIFA World Cup. During 1986 and 1987, Hughes hosted Box Clever, a short-lived BBC game show. However, he departed A Question of Sport – and the corporation as a whole – in 1987 to join ITV and captain a team on Sporting Triangles. He has also appeared on ITV's football coverage as a pundit. He was also immortalized in comedic strip form in Melchester Rovers' Roy of the Rovers strip; in the Roy of the Rovers strip, he was also published in a youth football magazine Match. He appeared alongside Peter Jones at the Hillsborough tragedy in April 1989. Later, he paid a visit to Andrew Devine, who was left comatose after the disaster, and offered them support and assistance.

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