The Beautiful Game is Played

by theMatthewReview

It is August, 1957, and Matt Crawley and Billy Mason have just made it onto the reserve team of Manchester United! What a thrill! The world opens up for the two friends and they meet pretty girls - the daughter of a man who manages another team and a ticket seller. Then comes tragedy in Munich... (Deals with the Munich Air Disaster on 6 February, 1958, and its aftermath.)

1. Chapter 1

The list of the lads who had made it onto the reserve team for the 1957-1958 season had just been posted on the door of Mr. Busby's office. This was the next stage of living out that boyish dream of playing football, and there was no opportunity quite like the one offered by Manchester United Football Club. Young chaps from Salford, Openshaw, Radcliffe, Hyde, Wigan, and other spots all over Greater Manchester loved the open sessions offered to anyone in their teens that was interested in playing. They came from all the city's walks of life - who could resist the beautiful game, its speed and order, its exhilaration and friendly fury? And now, for eighteen of those young chaps, the thrill was about to grow larger. Imagine the possibility of playing for 'Man United', on that first team of energetic young men who had acquired a certain something that would carry them through match play amongst the best players in the entire country! And these eighteen boys could almost taste it…

Jim Hopkins

Roger Bailey

David Pearson

Tom Pickering

Joey Truesdale

Billy Mason

Matt Crawley

Harry Blythe

Fred Eccles

Peter Dowling

Allan Meares

Tommy Bradshaw

Bob Raybourne

Will Watson

Don Logan

Nate Preston

Tim Avery

Rowan Mays

The delight of being on that list, and the disappointment of not appearing there for many others, might last a week or two before the real work began. This did not guarantee a spot on the first team, not that things were set in stone. One might be on the reserves for six years or so before they decided not to pretend any longer; another's phenomenal gifts might ripen in a year. But let us focus on two lads from Chorlton-cum-Hardy who have been best friends since their primary school days; Billy and Matt. It couldn't be better for them, now, could it? It is true that if Matthew had not made it today, he'd 'just' be going to university in hopes of getting into medical school like his father did. It is true that Billy would see about becoming a police constable right here in his beloved Manchester. But they shine when they play football, that beautiful game.