It was a dream come true for Terry Phelan when he received his maiden Republic of Ireland international call-up from childhood hero, Jack Charlton, in 1991.
Charlton, who was part of the victorious 1966 World Cup England team, passed away on Saturday.
South United FC Technical Director Phelan spoke to The Hindu on Charlton’s lasting legacy.
Excerpts:
Leeds United legend
I started my career with Leeds. Jack — by then a legend at Leeds (with over 600 appearances for the club) — would come to watch the young lads like myself train and play reserve team matches. He would come into our dressing room and tell us stories from his playing days. As a youngster, that was extraordinary.
Ireland call-up
I’ll never forget receiving my debut international call-up from Jack. He wanted the Ireland team to feel like a family. There were wonderful players like Roy Keane, Denis Irwin, Andy Townsend and Jason McAteer in the national team, but Jack left no place for egos in the dressing room. Jack, a World Cup winner, didn’t have an ego himself.
Legacy
By just lifting one finger, Jack could get his message across. Jack would always say — ‘do your jobs, and you will be folk heroes in Ireland’. He was right. Today, I can walk anywhere in Ireland and people will show me love. And that’s thanks to the great Jack Charlton. If he wanted, Jack could have been the Prime Minister of Ireland for a million terms.
