Old Manchester United in Colour: Faces from the past

The following day, the Reds play out a 3-3 draw with Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough, fighting back from falling 0-2 down to claim a point. Law is not among the goals, but that proves an anomaly in the 1963/64 season, which turned out to be the most prolific of the Scotsman’s career, hitting a club-record 46 goals in 42 Reds appearances in all competitions. He is rewarded for his efforts by being named European Footballer of the Year for 1964.

Law was at his best across that campaign and the image at the top of this article captures his exuberance of the time in full flow. It is one of hundreds of black-and-white photos brought to life with vivid tones, in our recently released Old Manchester United in Colour book, which features many a reimagined shot of Reds from years gone by.

If you cannot wait to see more in the full publication, we have picked out several of the iconic pictures of our former players that are included in the book, for you to cast your eye over in this piece.

A glance at United’s all-time charts for leading appearance-makers and goalscorers quickly throws up familiar names; Wayne Rooney, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Gary Neville and David De Gea are all fresh in the memory of most United supporters.

There’s even a strong chance that the names of George Best, Bobby Charlton and Law ring bells with younger members of United’s fan base, most likely as the trio immortalised in Old Trafford’s forecourt statue. Denis Irwin and Bryan Robson, despite playing for the club in the 21st century, are known now as a club ambassadors, while their former team-mate Mark Hughes is possibly more a recurring opposition boss than an ex-Red spearhead.

Amidst these figures of greater renown, however, are more modest names. Bill Foulkes, Alex Stepney, Tony Dunne, Jack Rowley, Dennis Viollet and Joe Spence are all among the club’s leading appearance-makers, goalscorers or both, yet finding a variety of footage of them in action is nigh-on unheard of. Outside the memories of those who saw them play, their epic careers have been consolidated into a handful of still images, usually in monochrome.

In today’s world, it’s virtually impossible for a player to reach even the cusp of United’s first team without deafening social-media buzz surrounding their prospects. Quite what the carriage workers of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway would have made of their successors’ footballing environment will never be known, but the attention on United players has been growing ever since the days of Newton Heath.

The late 20th century heroes onwards are all there to behold, perfectly preserved in digital video and image archives, but their forebears must also be remembered. From carriage workers to Ballon d’Or winners, the full spectrum of footballers have plied their trade in United’s colours; the greatest story in football played out by a rich and varied ensemble.

CHARLIE ROBERTS

In the image above on the front of our gallery, Roberts is pictured wearing United’s change strip ahead of an away match against Arsenal at the Manor Ground, 2 September 1912.

The Darlington-born deep-lying midfielder is in his final season at the club – joining Oldham Athletic in August 1913 – bringing to an end his eight years as club captain. With him as skipper, the Reds won five trophies: two Football League championships, the FA Cup and two Charity Shields.

JOE SPENCE

Spence is one of Manchester United’s all-time leading appearance-makers with 510 matches, playing from 1919 to 1933. Spence scored 168 goals and was the star of the Reds’ inter-War years, with “Give it Joe!” a familiar shout from the Old Trafford crowd who loved his ability to produce a goal when the team needed it most.

Before this section of text, there is an updated picture of Joe that features in the book, as he poses ahead of an away match against West Ham on 30 October 1926.

NOBBY STILES

Much attention is given to the United Trinity and rightly so, but the guile of those three immensely gifted footballers would not have been so ably expressed but for the grit of those around them. And when it came to grit there have been fewer in Reds history to match Nobby Stiles.

The midfielder was a key cog in Busby’s wonderful 1960s side and equally integral to England’s World Cup win in 1966. He gave every ounce of effort in his 395 matches for the Reds (and 28 games for his country), and above he’s pictured ahead of a league game at Chelsea on 9 January 1971.

NORMAN WHITESIDE

Whiteside is one of those players who made an instant impression on the Old Trafford faithful. He made his debut at the age of 16, against Brighton & Hove Albion in April 1982, then that summer played at the Espana ‘82 World Cup for Northern Ireland.

In his breakthrough season, 1982/83, he became the first United player to score in both domestic cup finals in the same season – ending the campaign with his first winners’ medal (the FA Cup, 1983). Two years later he was the hero at Wembley again, this time hitting the extra-time winner against Everton to bring him a second FA Cup triumph (1985).

ORDER YOUR COPY

To see more revolutionised images from the club's past, you can order Old Manchester United in Colour from United Direct by clicking here or look out for it in all good book stores.

It could prove a perfect Christmas present for the Red in your life!