The Great Joe Shaw

[Isaw Joeshaw]

On anther thread, seanbeanstattoo asked for my recollections of Joe Shaw. I'm sure others will also be interested so here they are.

I went to a few matches in the late '40s with my Dad but started going on my own aged 9 in 1950 ( on my own, on the Kop ! ) By this time, Joe was established in the team as a wing half but it was when he was moved to centre half in 1954 that his true genius began to show.

At 5ft. 8 ins. he was small for this position, but what he lacked in height he more than made up for in skill, athleticism and an ability to read the game second to nobody I have ever seen, and I include footballing legends such as Franz Beckenbauer and Bobby Moore in that. I lost count of the number of times I saw him take the ball right off the toes of a forward who thought he was through on goal, then glide effortlessly past 2 or 3 other opponents and deliver an inch perfect pass to one of our forwards. Not for Joe the "gi' it some wellie" approach which was almost universal to centre halves at that time.

But the story which will tell you the most about the greatness of the man comes not from me but from Nat Lofthouse, generally acknowledged as one of England's all time great centre forwards. In the late '80s I was fortunate enough to have lunch with him and a friend of his who knew me, at the Pennine Hilton Hotel. When I arrived Nat approached me, shook hands and the conversation went as follows :-

NAT: " I hear your from Sheffield - which team do you support ?"

ME: "The Blades "

NAT: "Did you ever see Joe Shaw play ?"

ME: "He was my hero"

NAT: "Easily the finest centre half I ever played against . I usually never got a kick and he's the only player I've ever known who could turn good passes into bad ones" ( Bear in mind this is a player who had played against the very best that Britain and Europe had to offer.)

He went on to say what a lovely bloke Joe was and that there would never be another like him, which has proved to be absolutely correct.

I have other stories about the great man but these are probably enough to be going on with.

UTD and God Rest Joe

 

[Tyler Durden]

At least there's one deserved statue in the car park.

 

[8lade]

Made me wonder (I was thinking of the national team at the time) if football managers ever say to players, 'who was the hardest player you've played against?' As an aid to selecting possible team mates.

 

[DaveBassettsgoneonholiday]

I still have Joe Shaw's hat (probably magic too) that was sent to him by the then Arsenal board of directors in recognition of a great goal he scored at Highbury.
I'll have a dig around for pics, I think I put them up on a thread somewhere a while back.

 

[DaveBassettsgoneonholiday]

 

[Longtimesupporter]

My hero and favourite player.

 

[penthouseblade]

On anther thread, seanbeanstattoo asked for my recollections of Joe Shaw. I'm sure others will also be interested so here they are.

I went to a few matches in the late '40s with my Dad but started going on my own aged 9 in 1950 ( on my own, on the Kop ! ) By this time, Joe was established in the team as a wing half but it was when he was moved to centre half in 1954 that his true genius began to show.

At 5ft. 8 ins. he was small for this position, but what he lacked in height he more than made up for in skill, athleticism and an ability to read the game second to nobody I have ever seen, and I include footballing legends such as Franz Beckenbauer and Bobby Moore in that. I lost count of the number of times I saw him take the ball right off the toes of a forward who thought he was through on goal, then glide effortlessly past 2 or 3 other opponents and deliver an inch perfect pass to one of our forwards. Not for Joe the "gi' it some wellie" approach which was almost universal to centre halves at that time.

But the story which will tell you the most about the greatness of the man comes not from me but from Nat Lofthouse, generally acknowledged as one of England's all time great centre forwards. In the late '80s I was fortunate enough to have lunch with him and a friend of his who knew me, at the Pennine Hilton Hotel. When I arrived Nat approached me, shook hands and the conversation went as follows :-

NAT: " I hear your from Sheffield - which team do you support ?"

ME: "The Blades "

NAT: "Did you ever see Joe Shaw play ?"

ME: "He was my hero"

NAT: "Easily the finest centre half I ever played against . I usually never got a kick and he's the only player I've ever known who could turn good passes into bad ones" ( Bear in mind this is a player who had played against the very best that Britain and Europe had to offer.)

He went on to say what a lovely bloke Joe was and that there would never be another like him, which has proved to be absolutely correct.

I have other stories about the great man but these are probably enough to be going on with.

UTD and God Rest Joe

Beautifully done old boy (spelling error at the end aside).

 

[penthouseblade]

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How did you get hold of that?!

 

[Hodgyman]

I had the pleasure of seeing Joe a good number of times in the late 50's and early 60's. I have not seen any better than him since.

The nearest that I saw was Bobby Moore, and still remember seeing a master class from them both at BDTBL in the 60's. It was almost a competition in "Extra Sensory Perception" where both anticipated what was going to happen next and cut out the danger before it happened.

Another earlier, memorable occasion, Bobby Smith of Spurs and England came up against Joe. Bobby was almost a giant of a centre forward and most Unitedites feared the worst as Joe was great but quite small in stature for a centre half. Joe outsmarted him by not jumping for balls the were too high for himself but instead positioned himself where he thought Bobby's headers were going.

I had the honour of a couple of short meetings with Joe and he was a true gentleman and knew how to put a star struck kid at ease.

He was certainly one of our greatest and should be remembered as such.

 

[DaveBassettsgoneonholiday]

How did you get hold of that?!

Joe, and a lot of the other players at that time, was a good friend of one of my Dad's friends..... who was also Richie Humphreys great uncle.
The hat was left to Norman, who left it to me.
I remember turning up at Mum's one dinner hour & Norman had had a "run out" in to the country with some friends. Mum was sat in the back garden with Norman, Tommy Hoyland, Joe & Hettie Shaw.

 

[snootyfenooty]

Another earlier, memorable occasion, Bobby Smith of Spurs and England came up against Joe. Bobby was almost a giant of a centre forward and most Unitedites feared the worst as Joe was great but quite small in stature for a centre half. Joe outsmarted him by not jumping for balls the were too high for himself but instead positioned himself where he thought Bobby's headers were going.

He also used to give big centre forwards a very discreet flick in the scrotal sac just as they were jumping. Accidentally of course.

 

[HodgysBrokenThumb]

On anther thread, seanbeanstattoo asked for my recollections of Joe Shaw. I'm sure others will also be interested so here they are.

I went to a few matches in the late '40s with my Dad but started going on my own aged 9 in 1950 ( on my own, on the Kop ! ) By this time, Joe was established in the team as a wing half but it was when he was moved to centre half in 1954 that his true genius began to show.

At 5ft. 8 ins. he was small for this position, but what he lacked in height he more than made up for in skill, athleticism and an ability to read the game second to nobody I have ever seen, and I include footballing legends such as Franz Beckenbauer and Bobby Moore in that. I lost count of the number of times I saw him take the ball right off the toes of a forward who thought he was through on goal, then glide effortlessly past 2 or 3 other opponents and deliver an inch perfect pass to one of our forwards. Not for Joe the "gi' it some wellie" approach which was almost universal to centre halves at that time.

But the story which will tell you the most about the greatness of the man comes not from me but from Nat Lofthouse, generally acknowledged as one of England's all time great centre forwards. In the late '80s I was fortunate enough to have lunch with him and a friend of his who knew me, at the Pennine Hilton Hotel. When I arrived Nat approached me, shook hands and the conversation went as follows :-

NAT: " I hear your from Sheffield - which team do you support ?"

ME: "The Blades "

NAT: "Did you ever see Joe Shaw play ?"

ME: "He was my hero"

NAT: "Easily the finest centre half I ever played against . I usually never got a kick and he's the only player I've ever known who could turn good passes into bad ones" ( Bear in mind this is a player who had played against the very best that Britain and Europe had to offer.)

He went on to say what a lovely bloke Joe was and that there would never be another like him, which has proved to be absolutely correct.

I have other stories about the great man but these are probably enough to be going on with.

UTD and God Rest Joe

Great story. Please post more. I started at the Lane in 1953, and though I always argue that being a fan is an emotional rather than a rational choice, the difference between Joe Shaw and Peter Swan was all you needed to become a Blade for life. Not many defenders are a joy to watch.

 

[finlaytheblade]

Joe was a credit to the game and a gentleman .
I used to stand on the bramall lane end when I was a lad right up front at the railings
A great player he was but he did have a knack of being over casual occasionally,
this particular match he got caught in possession and the outcome was a corner.
Well!!! Cec Caldwell was captain at the time and he gave Joe a right bollocking right in front of me,you can imagine the verbals that Cec used . just something that has stuck in my memory I was about 11 at the time

 

[stringjunior]

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Bramhall. FFS

 

[seanbeenstattoo]

On anther thread, seanbeanstattoo asked for my recollections of Joe Shaw. I'm sure others will also be interested so here they are.

I went to a few matches in the late '40s with my Dad but started going on my own aged 9 in 1950 ( on my own, on the Kop ! ) By this time, Joe was established in the team as a wing half but it was when he was moved to centre half in 1954 that his true genius began to show.

At 5ft. 8 ins. he was small for this position, but what he lacked in height he more than made up for in skill, athleticism and an ability to read the game second to nobody I have ever seen, and I include footballing legends such as Franz Beckenbauer and Bobby Moore in that. I lost count of the number of times I saw him take the ball right off the toes of a forward who thought he was through on goal, then glide effortlessly past 2 or 3 other opponents and deliver an inch perfect pass to one of our forwards. Not for Joe the "gi' it some wellie" approach which was almost universal to centre halves at that time.

But the story which will tell you the most about the greatness of the man comes not from me but from Nat Lofthouse, generally acknowledged as one of England's all time great centre forwards. In the late '80s I was fortunate enough to have lunch with him and a friend of his who knew me, at the Pennine Hilton Hotel. When I arrived Nat approached me, shook hands and the conversation went as follows :-

NAT: " I hear your from Sheffield - which team do you support ?"

ME: "The Blades "

NAT: "Did you ever see Joe Shaw play ?"

ME: "He was my hero"

NAT: "Easily the finest centre half I ever played against . I usually never got a kick and he's the only player I've ever known who could turn good passes into bad ones" ( Bear in mind this is a player who had played against the very best that Britain and Europe had to offer.)

He went on to say what a lovely bloke Joe was and that there would never be another like him, which has proved to be absolutely correct.

I have other stories about the great man but these are probably enough to be going on with.

UTD and God Rest Joe

Great story. Don't let it be the last. Thanks.

 

[Bert]

Signed picture from the Bert Collection.

 

[Golden Gordon]

Ne'er mind all that! Who's George Price?

 

[DaveBassettsgoneonholiday]

I think I looked it up once, might have been club secretary or such like ?

 

[Bill puntin]

On anther thread, seanbeanstattoo asked for my recollections of Joe Shaw. I'm sure others will also be interested so here they are.

I went to a few matches in the late '40s with my Dad but started going on my own aged 9 in 1950 ( on my own, on the Kop ! ) By this time, Joe was established in the team as a wing half but it was when he was moved to centre half in 1954 that his true genius began to show.

At 5ft. 8 ins. he was small for this position, but what he lacked in height he more than made up for in skill, athleticism and an ability to read the game second to nobody I have ever seen, and I include footballing legends such as Franz Beckenbauer and Bobby Moore in that. I lost count of the number of times I saw him take the ball right off the toes of a forward who thought he was through on goal, then glide effortlessly past 2 or 3 other opponents and deliver an inch perfect pass to one of our forwards. Not for Joe the "gi' it some wellie" approach which was almost universal to centre halves at that time.

But the story which will tell you the most about the greatness of the man comes not from me but from Nat Lofthouse, generally acknowledged as one of England's all time great centre forwards. In the late '80s I was fortunate enough to have lunch with him and a friend of his who knew me, at the Pennine Hilton Hotel. When I arrived Nat approached me, shook hands and the conversation went as follows :-

NAT: " I hear your from Sheffield - which team do you support ?"

ME: "The Blades "

NAT: "Did you ever see Joe Shaw play ?"

ME: "He was my hero"

NAT: "Easily the finest centre half I ever played against . I usually never got a kick and he's the only player I've ever known who could turn good passes into bad ones" ( Bear in mind this is a player who had played against the very best that Britain and Europe had to offer.)

He went on to say what a lovely bloke Joe was and that there would never be another like him, which has proved to be absolutely correct.

I have other stories about the great man but these are probably enough to be going on with.

UTD and God Rest Joe

I share those memories of joe making centre forwards look silly he really was a pleasure to watch and undoubtedly the best centre half never to have a full England cap utb

 

[Klanger]

I had my first season ticket 1961/2, it cost £1 1s. 0d, a shilling a game, but I saw enough of Joe to appreciate his quality, I was too young to appreciate the politics of getting selected for England, but why didn't he get capped? The bastard who was England centre half at the time must have been absolutely brilliant. Was it Billy Wright?

 

[GRUMPY BLADE]

Great story. Please post more. I started at the Lane in 1953, and though I always argue that being a fan is an emotional rather than a rational choice, the difference between Joe Shaw and Peter Swan was all you needed to become a Blade for life. Not many defenders are a joy to watch.

What a great statement:

"the difference between Joe Shaw and Peter Swan was all you needed"

 

[alpine blade]

I used to live in Hollythorpe and often went to Meersbrook Park for a game of football. On the way back I used to stop in at Joe Shaws or Alf Ringsteads. ( big advantage having a dad who played with them !!! ). They both lived on Bisopscourt Rd, 4 doors away from each other.
Joe was my hero when I was a lad and it was always awe inspiring for me to chat to him in later life. He told me some great stories about my own father, especially on an F.A. tour to Australia. They had a great respect for each other as people and players. Joe was the ultimate ball-playing centre half and it was an absolute pleasure knowing him and watching him play.

 

[bornablade]

I used to live in Hollythorpe and often went to Meersbrook Park for a game of football. On the way back I used to stop in at Joe Shaws or Alf Ringsteads. ( big advantage having a dad who played with them !!! ). They both lived on Bisopscourt Rd, 4 doors away from each other.
Joe was my hero when I was a lad and it was always awe inspiring for me to chat to him in later life. He told me some great stories about my own father, especially on an F.A. tour to Australia. They had a great respect for each other as people and players. Joe was the ultimate ball-playing centre half and it was an absolute pleasure knowing him and watching him play.

When Joe Shaw had his testimonial Jimmy Hagan 'came out of retirement' to play in the game. The opposition was an All Stars XI - it was the great and the good of the British game if my memory serves me right.
Just shows how highly Joe was thought of by his peers.

 

[Cyprus Blade]

Best Centre Half I ever saw, including Bobby Moore. Remember at today's heights his 5'8" would equate to around 5'10/11 relatively so he wasn't as short as say Alcock (same height as Shaw) was as CH v Swindon. Height was the only thing he was short of mind you and his anticipation more than made up for it. A crime he never played for England.UTB

 

[Woodwardfan]

Gentleman footballer in every sense, don't remember him ever committing a foul. Great anticipation and a sixth sense what to do with the ball when he'd won it.

I had the privlege of watching him for 10 years until he retired and he will forever be one of my short list of all time heroes.

That famous defence: Hodgkinson, Coldwell, Shaw (G), Richardson, Shaw (J), Summers; the names rolled off the tongue. Played passing football and apart from Richardson, rarely resorted to rough stuff, if at all.

Was he 5'8"? Hodgy was small for a keeper too and yet we never seemed to get anhialated in the air. As someone says above, Joe could anticipate where the big, often clumsy centre forwards were going to head the ball. How we competed from crosses I just can't remeber or even imagine but we rarely took a hiding! Maybe Joe was craftier than I ever realised!!

We were spoiled with pure quality back in the day.

 

[broomhillblade]

Best Centre Half I ever saw, including Bobby Moore. Remember at today's heights his 5'8" would equate to around 5'10/11 relatively so he wasn't as short as say Alcock (same height as Shaw) was as CH v Swindon. Height was the only thing he was short of mind you and his anticipation more than made up for it. A crime he never played for England.UTB

I was fortunate to watch Joe Shaw throughout most of his career. He was my second all-time favourite player, after Jimmy Hagan. Sheffield United players tended not to get picked for England in those days. However, Joe did play in a couple of matches for the Football League, and also went on an FA Tour of Australia in 1951. His anticipation was uncanny - always in the right place at the right time. From my memory he rarely crossed the half-way lane, except perhaps to take a free kick, but then he would trot back into a defensive position. However, I see he did score 8 goals in his Blades career, but I suspect this was when he played as a wing-half back. He played a total of 713 goals in all competitions for the Blades, a total that will never be beaten.

 

[scrap]

I remember Him playing John Charles of the Park, Great Player..

 

[Yewsman]

I remember meeting him at Bramall Lane. This would probably be in the 1980's when I was there in the south stand as a guest of the match sponsors. This small elderly man was there and was introduced to me. It was Joe Shaw who was there as an ex player helping to entertain the guests. Very honoured to meet him but couldn't get over how short he was! I would have seen him play but to be honest I cannot say I remember him as a player.

I also remember reading one of those football magazines in the late sixties/early seventies. There was a feature on Derek Dougan ("the Doog") who as our older readers will remember was a great centre forward who played for Wolves and Northern Ireland. It was in the form of an interview and one question was "who was your most difficult opponent". The answer he gave was "Joe Shaw". He said that although Joe was not tall he was still the best player he had come across in the air as his positioning and timing of his jump was so good.

 

[BushBlade]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ukn...are-taller-fatter-stronger-and-healthier.html

5'8" was above average in the fifties.

 

[Isaw Joeshaw]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/ukn...are-taller-fatter-stronger-and-healthier.html

5'8" was above average in the fifties.

Not for a centre half playing against big, strong centre forwards at the highest level it wasn't.

In their splendid obituary on the great man, the Independent noted that " ...Joe Shaw stood 5ft. 8in in his football socks .... NOTABLY DIMINUTIVE for a professional central defender."