One of my all time favourite Spurs players is the great Phil Beal who has turned out for the Spurs Veterans side recently at the grand old age of 67. Beal was an immense club servant for our club and made well over 400 appearances. He was very much "Mr Dependable" and an unsung hero in the teams of the late 60's and early 70's. His timing in the tackle was impeccable and his calmness and vision on the pitch added great stength to our team, and he was the first Tottenham player to be awarded a testimonial whilst still playing. He gained two League Cup winners medals with us, 1 UEFA Cup winners medal and 1 UEFACup runners up medal. He gained International caps at youth level and would surely have gained dozens of full International caps if a certain Bobby Moore hadn't been around at the same time. He remained uncapped at full level which does not do justice to the mans' talent. Beal still does work for the club in the hospitality areas on matchdays, but how great it is to hear he still turns out for a Spurs side at 67. Do any other members of this board have good memories of Phil Beal, I wonder ??
Still playing at 67? Most people do well to be in management at that age! A little before my time, in all honesty, but it's good to hear that one of our ex-players is still going strong. 420 appearances for the club. Not many manage that for anyone any more.
One of my heroes too from the side I grew up with. Playing alongside Mike England - great combination - and as you say, a real 'dependable'. He also hails from Surrey so gave a touch of local interest. Glad to hear he's still kicking' it!!
Such a reliable player was Phil Beal. I still remember his one and only goal against QPR at the Lane. He received the ball in his own half and ran with it into the opposing half,did a one two with (Greaves ?),ran on to the edge of their penalty area and smacked the ball into the roof of the net. Jimmy must have been impressed! Didn't matter who he was marking,that player didn't get much change out of Phil. I envy him playing,even at 67!!!!!!
i remember Phil,took a bit of time to establish himself,little wonder with who was ahead of him,but when he did he was a great defender.good to hear his still working for the club
Phil Beal was part of the Spurs team that I first supported as a young lad back in '71-'72, definitely one of the un-sung heroes (defenders often are it seems) - no real memories to speak of, but if he was part of a team that I decided to support in a family full of Liverpool fans and a couple of gooners then he must have been quality as for still playing at 67 - good on him, I wish I could play even now, and I am 20 years his junior
They were both around at pretty much the same time totsfan, but I don't remember Mullery keeping Beal out of the side. Beal initially got in the side as a RM, but predominantly played at what they used to call left half.
Correct!! As mentioned above, PB predominately played at LH alongside England - and Mullers players RH. Oh, the memories!!!! Lol
He broke his arm didn't he ?? Kinnear was another who did well for us. An obnoxious guy as a manager, but a bloody good RB for us and another who loved our club,
Was a great fan of Phil Beal, that defence of the early 70s was arguably our best ever, and Phil played his full part in that. There's a video of us beating Villa in the 71 lge cup final on you tube i think - PB was crucial in that win. Three of the team from that era Jennings Knowles and England are no-brainers for my all time Spurs XI, and I'm tempted to put Kinnear in at RB as well, but then again I so want to find a place for Stevie P, and RB is the only realistic slot. EDIT - here's the video 50 glorious minutes of Big Match wizardry - just love this one http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kM-RgqVD7Dk
