Geoff Hurst

West Ham United

Hurst's football career began when he was apprenticed to West Ham United at the age of 15. He played alongside Bobby Moore in the 1959 FA Youth Cup final team that lost to Blackburn Rovers (1–2 on aggregate), but both were also in the team that won the Southern Junior Floodlit Cup (1–0 v Chelsea) later that year. Manager Ted Fenton first selected him for a senior game in a Southern Floodlit Cup tie with Fulham in December 1958. He turned professional at the club four months later, and was paid £7 a week with a £20 signing-on fee. His first competitive appearance came in February 1960 when injuries forced Fenton's hand; Hurst put in an indifferent performance and the team lost 3–1. He made only two further appearances in the 1959–60 season, and realised that Bobby Moore was making better progress in the same position than he was. He played six times in the 1960–61 campaign and seriously considered turning his main focus to cricket. In April 1961 Ron Greenwood took over as manager, and drastically changed team training by putting a focus on footballing skill rather than physical fitness. Hurst missed the start of 1961–62 pre-season training due to his cricketing commitments, but went on to make 24 appearances at left-half, and scored his first goal for the club in a 4–2 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers in December 1961. However, he again missed pre-season training the following summer and was dropped after proving to be unfit during the opening game…

1966 World Cup

Hurst made his senior England debut against West Germany on 23 February 1966. He played well, and further performances against Scotland and Yugoslavia secured him a place in the squad for the 1966 FIFA World Cup. However, he put in mediocre performances in warm-up games against Finland and Denmark, and so Jimmy Greaves and Roger Hunt were instead picked for the final friendly game against Poland. Greaves and Hunt were picked for the three group games against Uruguay, Mexico and France, but in the latter game, Greaves suffered a deep gash to his leg which required stitches, and Hurst was called up to take his place in the quarter-final against Argentina. Argentina were talented but preferred a tougher approach to the game, which saw them reduced to ten men. The game was still tightly contested as it entered its final 15 minutes, before Martin Peters swung over a curling cross from the left flank and Hurst, anticipating his clubmate's action, got in front of his marker to glance a near post header past the Argentine keeper. England won 1–0 and were in the semi-finals. Greaves was not fit for the game against Portugal so Hurst and Hunt continued up front, and England won 2–1 thanks to two goals by Bobby Charlton, the second of which was set up by Hurst. As the final against the Germans approached, the media learnt of Greaves' return to fitness and, while appreciating Hurst's contribution, started to call for the return of England's most prolific centre…

Upon his retirement from playing, Hurst moved into management and coaching. He spent three years as player-manager of Telford United in the Southern League before being recruited by Ron Greenwood in the England coaching set up in 1977. He travelled with England to help Greenwood at UEFA Euro 1980 and the 1982 FIFA World Cup, where England failed to make it past the group stages on both occasions.

Chelsea

Hurst joined Chelsea, then in the Second Division, before the 1979–80 season, initially as assistant manager to Danny Blanchflower. When Blanchflower was sacked, Hurst was appointed manager. He hired Bobby Gould as his assistant. Things initially went well, and for much of the season Chelsea were on course for promotion, but two wins from their final seven league games ensured the club finished fourth; missing out on third place and promotion on goal difference. He raised £250,000 through the sales of Eamonn Bannon, David Stride and Trevor Aylott. He then spent £300,000 on Colin Lee, Dennis Rofe and Colin Viljoen; he later acknowledged Viljoen as a mistake whilst bemoaning Lee's bad luck with injury. The following season again began well, with the "Blues" among the early promotion pace-setters before a dismal run set in, with Chelsea winning just three of their final 23 league matches, culminating in Hurst being sacked and Chelsea finished 12th in the league.

Kuwait SC

After being sacked from Chelsea on 23 April 1981, Hurst worked as an insurance salesman…

Hurst was born in Ashton-under-Lyne, Lancashire, England, on 8 December 1941. He had two younger siblings: Diane and Robert. His family moved to Chelmsford, Essex when he was six years old. His father, Charlie Hurst, was a professional footballer who played at centre-half for Bristol Rovers, Oldham Athletic and Rochdale. His mother, Evelyn Hopkins, was from a Gloucestershire family, with her mother's side originally from Germany. As a teenager he was obsessed with football, and was once fined £1 for disturbing the peace after persistently kicking a football into his neighbour's garden. Hurst played one first-class cricket match for Essex, against Lancashire at Aigburth in 1962, although it was not a successful outing: he made 0 not out in the first innings, and was bowled by Colin Hilton, again for 0, in the second. However, he appeared 23 times in the Essex Second XI between 1962 and 1964, usually as a wicket-keeper, before concentrating entirely on football. Under his father's management of the club, Hurst played once for Halstead Town reserves at the age of "about 14".