Norman Hunter

Leeds United

Ground staff to First Division

Leeds were in the First Division when Hunter arrived at Elland Road in the summer of 1959. The team manager was Jack Taylor, who had taken over from Bill Lambton on 1 May 1959. Lambton had signed Don Revie from Sunderland in November 1958 and Billy Bremner, a Scottish Schoolboys international, soon afterwards. Leeds had been promoted from the Second Division in 1955–56, the season in which Jack Charlton became a first team regular, but they had struggled since John Charles left in May 1957, and were relegated after the 1959–60 season. In March 1961, with the team in the lower half of the Second Division table, Taylor resigned and Revie took over as player-manager until March 1962 when he retired as a player and became the full-time manager. This was significant for young players like Hunter and Bremner because Revie initiated a youth development policy which was the basis of the club's future success. Among those who graduated were Paul Reaney, Peter Lorimer, Terry Cooper, Eddie Gray, and Paul Madeley.

Hunter's graduation was in the 1962–63 season when Revie promoted him to the first team. He and Paul Reaney made their debuts in a Second Division match against Swansea Town at Vetch Field on 8 September 1962, Leeds winning 2–0. Hunter formed a central defence partnership with Jack Charlton which lasted for over a decade. Leeds finished fifth in 1962–63, Hunter playing in 36 of their 42 matches, and then won the…

Hunter played three games for the England under-23 team before he was given his debut for the England team. On 8 December 1965, England played Spain in Madrid, and Hunter made his debut after coming on as a substitute. The established partnership between Jack Charlton and Bobby Moore meant that Hunter spent much of his international career as an understudy to Moore; he won 28 caps in total. He was in the squad which won the 1966 FIFA World Cup but did not play in any of the matches. Hunter scored the winning goal against Spain in England's quarter-final qualifying round for the 1968 European Championship, he then started in both the 1–0 semi final defeat to Yugoslavia and the 2–0 victory over the Soviet Union in the bronze medal match. He spent a short part of the 1970 season injured but he was in Alf Ramsey's squad for the summer's World Cup in Mexico, however his only appearance in the tournament was coming on as a late substitute in the 3–2 defeat by West Germany. In 1973, Hunter was in the England team which needed to win their last qualifying tie for the 1974 World Cup in West Germany. The opposition at Wembley were Poland, who just needed a draw to qualify at England's expense. It was 0–0 when Hunter went to make a tackle, but instead trod on the ball and lost it. Poland quickly made a counter-attack allowing Grzegorz Lato to run clear and set up Jan Domarski to score. Allan Clarke equalised with a penalty but England could not score again, and the 1–1 draw saw them…

As Don Revie explained at some length in a tribute to Hunter for his 1974–75 testimonial at Leeds, Hunter's job was to win the ball and move it forward. Revie pointed out that Hunter could read the game so that he was invariably well-positioned, and would win the ball by performing committed and uncompromising tackles when necessary. Aware that Hunter was widely perceived to be a physical player only, Revie emphasised that Hunter had good ball control and his passing was accurate, so he was actually a very skilful player. Like his contemporaries Tommy "Anfield Iron" Smith of Liverpool, Nobby Stiles of Manchester United and Ron "Chopper" Harris of Chelsea, Hunter always had the reputation of being a hard man on the field. However, he said in his autobiography that, of the four, only Smith was "naturally tough" – Harris, Stiles and Hunter himself were all, he said, "laid back off the field". (Hunter and Smith were close friends.) When Hunter died, his long-time Leeds team-mate Eddie Gray directed attention to his skill as a player by saying:

Norman was a truly great football player. A lot of great players have walked through the gates of Elland Road and Norman was right up there with the best of them. It's a sad day for everybody connected with the club. He was a great reader of the game, great left foot, great passer, so influential in our team. Revie described Hunter as "the most honest person I've ever met" and also pointed out the warmth of his personality. Revie remarked…

Norman Hunter was born on 29 October 1943 at Eighton Banks, County Durham. His father, Norman senior, died before he was born. Hunter and his brother Robert were brought up by their mother, Betty, with the help of her sister and two football-playing uncles. He attended Eighton Banks Primary School till he was eleven and then went to Birtley Secondary Modern School till he was 15. He played junior football throughout his school years and, in his autobiography, recalled how one teacher tried to make him become a right-footed player. However, another teacher realised that Hunter had real potential as a left-footed player and encouraged him to develop his natural game. He joined Birtley Juniors FC and had played in only a few games before he was spotted by a talent scout working for Leeds United. After playing in a trial match for Leeds United Juniors against Bradford Park Avenue Juniors, Hunter was invited to join the ground staff at Elland Road. He had just left school and gave up a job as an electrical fitter to pursue his football career.