RIP Jimmy Armfield

[Snake Plissken]

Lost to cancer, aged 82. A wonderful voice on the radio.

[The-Reverend]

That is very sad news, an absolute gent.

[Sits]

Seconded.

[Tramp The Dirt Down]

That is very sad news, an absolute gent.

My very words to a work colleague a few minutes ago

[Dav O'Roso]

Thirded.
Think I had the pleasure of talking to him on a radio phone-in once. A sad loss.

[SouthdownRebel]

Oh, that's sad news. Same experience for me - long before my time as a player but he was always a voice I looked forward to hearing as a radio summariser. A good, sensible thinker about the game who always had something constructive to say - not like the shouty hyperbolists they tend to opt for these days.

[Satchmo Distel]

His class as a summarizer is shown by his longevity - 30+ years

[ian.64]

He was rare as a radio presence in that his years of experience in the sport gave him a relaxed and mature way of conveying his thoughts and opinions, suggesting that the more he spent in the game the more his knowledge grew. Contrast that with useless fartboxes like Robbie Savage and Armfield's way with words will be missed even more.

[Jah Womble]

Yep, that.

RIP - a fine player, too.

[Amor de Cosmos]

I only remember him as a player. The first overlapping full-back in English football I think. RIP

[Third rate Leszno]

There’s not many people in football whose passing makes me genuinely sad, but that’s two in a week.

Jimmy Armfield was a joy to listen to as a summariser on 5live and his absence, together with that of Graham Taylor, just makes the current crop of regulars stand out even more as the woeful shower of dullards and witless gobshites that they are.

I really hope that Blackpool fans are able to find an appropriate way to mark his passing without filling the pockets of the shitheads who run their club.

[Ray de Galles]

I only remember him as a player. The first overlapping full-back in English football I think. RIP

That's covered in a lovely excerpt from this BBC story ;

”(Stanley Matthews) was quite often double marked and that is how we started overlapping.

"The opposition quite often used to have two men on him, a full-back and a winger who dropped back. So I said to Stan in all humbleness one day that if there were two of us and I went round the outside he could put the ball through. He gave me a little nod, that meant no.

"But we played Luton, we were winning 2-0 or 3-0. I gave it to Stan, he was marked so I set off round the outside and Stan put the ball through, right through the gap. I was through on my own - but anyway I shot wide.

"The manager Joe Smith said to me afterwards: 'What was that all about?' I said: 'What?' He said: 'That wing play. I don't know whether you've noticed but the number seven we've got has done quite well without your help so far'.”

[Ray de Galles]

He was rare as a radio presence in that his years of experience in the sport gave him a relaxed and mature way of conveying his thoughts and opinions, suggesting that the more he spent in the game the more his knowledge grew. Contrast that with useless fartboxes like Robbie Savage and Armfield's way with words will be missed even more.

One of the points I've seen made a lot today is that Armfield trained as a journalist after his playing and managerial career. The fact that he used the skills from that role in his work as a broadcaster sets him him apart from the ex-pros now who walk straight off the pitch in to a colour man or punditry gig with nothing but a loudmouth twitter persona to fall back on.

[Mr Beast]

He was still on the radio relatively recently, never once came across as a bumbling old duffer (hello Motson) or an in my day merchant. He'll certainly be missed by me and I'm glad to see by many others.

[jameswba]

Wonderful summariser - demonstrated what good punditry could be.

[Flynnie]

One of the points I've seen made a lot today is that Armfield trained as a journalist after his playing and managerial career. The fact that he used the skills from that role in his work as a broadcaster sets him him apart from the ex-pros now who walk straight off the pitch in to a colour man or punditry gig with nothing but a loudmouth twitter persona to fall back on.

You could say something similar for Taylor. I don't know whether he practiced any journalism but, when you look at Armfield and him, you wonder if Taylor's dad being a sportswriter also had some impact.

[Antepli Ejderha]

I've just read most of those comments in his voice, I think that's his impact on me.

[tee rex]

He was still on the radio relatively recently, never once came across as a bumbling old duffer (hello Motson) or an in my day merchant.

Yes, that's what stood out in his analysis, he could appreciate what he was watching without constantly comparing with the good old days (i.e. his). Enthusiasm for the game, not his own ego.

As a player he suffers even more than others of his generation from the lack of footage. Blackpool were rarely seen on telly (even Granada didn't bother) so he's probably less known than many contemporaries who never won a cap.

[Bored Of Education]

"That's enough about the goals, what about the misses, Jimmy?"

"She's fine, thanks, John"

[denishurley]

I'm 33 and first came across him on Five Live in the early-to-mid 90s. I think it says something about the quality of his journalism that I was surprised to learn he had been a good manager beforehand.

[Amor de Cosmos]

As a player he suffers even more than others of his generation from the lack of footage. Blackpool were rarely seen on telly (even Granada didn't bother) so he's probably less known than many contemporaries who never won a cap.

I guess that's true. He was in the 1966 England squad. As runner-up to Bobby Charlton for FotY that year he probably would have played but for injury. I suppose there's footage from the home internationals from that era somewhere. I was fortunate to see him a couple of times against Spurs. However if you'd asked any kid in England in the early 60s who the best full back in the country was, there'd have been no other name on their lips.

[jwdd27]

Echo all of the above - he was a constant on the radio from my childhood to my mid 40s, and was always pitch perfect - he was a proper journalist who happened to have a top class career in the game behind him. As others have pointed out, such a contrast to the gobshites they primarily use now.

His record as a manager is often overlooked - success at Bolton, and then put Leeds back together after Revie and Clough, getting them to the European Cup Final, where they were unlucky to lose/robbed by a crooked ref. Was sacked despite keeping them in the top half, a decision they no doubt came to regret as they spent the 80s in Div 2. Was also a voice of sanity at the FA for many years, recruiting Venables and Hoddle, who were reasonable successes on the field at least.

Some lovely stories about him and Stanley Matthews, especially when the young Armfield decided he was going to start overlapping the maestro.

[Jon]

You could say something similar for Taylor. I don't know whether he practiced any journalism but, when you look at Armfield and him, you wonder if Taylor's dad being a sportswriter also had some impact.

Yes, ive heard graham Taylor say he always took his treated his radio job as being first and foremost as a journalist, not as an ex-pro, and he cited his dad's background in journalism as the reason why.

Another very sad loss. I echo what everyone has said about his commentating. It was always a bonus when he was doing the game.

[Patrick Thistle]

Great stories on the radio yesterday. I listened to the radio a lot as I was driving for 8 hours.

I particularly liked the story about Howard Wilkinson in a spiky press room angrily asking the assembled journalists how many England caps they'd won. From the back of the room Jimmy spoke up and said "Forty three, Howard."

Also an interview where the interviewer tried to get Jimmy to admit he was gutted to miss out on playing in the 1966 World Cup. Jimmy's response "Isn't it better that we won?"

[Felicity, I guess so]

I used to like the lack of hype and excess in his reports from grounds (all the more noticeable in the Alan Green era). The most common phrase (and I heard it llast night, too, about Matthews in a repeated interview after the Swansea game):

"What 'appened was..."