It is 66 years since the Munich air disaster robbed English football of one of its greatest young teams.
Eight Manchester United players from Sir Matt Busby’s brilliant side were killed when the plane carrying them crashed on February 6, 1958, and two more were so badly injured they never played again. Fifteen others aboard also died.
To mark the anniversary and as a tribute to those who were lost, The Athletic has produced a special series of pieces. Read the others here:
In the offices of St Michael’s church, Warfield, there are blank looks. No, they say, they cannot remember anyone asking before. The name doesn’t immediately ring a bell, but they have a list. They have a grid system and, though it is a big old graveyard, that gives them a rough idea of where to look.
Through the black ornate gates, down the path, the gravestone is tucked away to the left. There is nothing showy about it, no clues on the epitaph. Nobody outside a very small circle would know about its relevance to Manchester United and, tragically, the Munich air disaster.
The grave of James Thain and his wife, Ruby (Daniel Taylor/The Athletic)
James Thain was the pilot who crashed the doomed Elizabethan flight off the slush-covered runway of Munich airport on February 6, 1958, with the loss…
