Former Republic of Ireland manager John Giles recalled the first time he met Jack Charlton; a man he would play alongside at Leeds United for ten years.
Charlton who passed away today at the age of 85 played at Leeds United for over 20 years winning the first division championship in 1969 alongside John Giles.
Speaking to Off The Ball, Giles recalled the first time he met Charlton and described the type of player the 6’4 Geordie was.
"I went to Leeds in 1963," he recalled. "I was 22 and Jack was there, I think he was 27 or 28 at the time and I remember I had to strip next to him in the dressing room.
“I met him before that because he was a brother of Bobby, the famous Bobby as we know, and he use to come to Manchester to see Bobby, and I met him there but I didn’t know him very well, I got to know him very well when I went to Leeds.
“He had a strange career at Leeds because Leeds were mostly a second division team and they were in the first division now and again but they weren’t doing very well when Don Revie took over and Jack wasn’t the best trainer in the world, he didn’t look after himself too well and I think Don Revie gave him a warning that if he didn’t buck up he’d be out.
“He then became the best centre half in what’s now the Premier League for at least five season and that includes him playing in the World Cup and winning the World Cup. He was a top-class centre half.”
Giles states that while he respected the man known as Big Jack, he didn’t get on with him too well due to their different approaches on how the game should be played.
“I didn’t get on with him very well as a teammate, we had different ideas about the game. Jack was a big centre half and saw the game through a big centre halves eye.
“He wouldn’t give any credit to [Billy] Bremner or myself who he saw as little fellas who could beat somebody. So, we didn’t have the same philosophy on the game, but we respected each other and off the pitch we got on very well.”
Watch back what Jason McAteer, Kevin Moran, Mick McCarthy, Ray Houghton and Kevin Sheedy said to Off The Ball about their memories of Jack Charlton.
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