They think it’s all over: Football less fun now for fans at 1966 World Cup final

Three men who attended England’s 1966 World Cup final triumph exactly 60 years ago have said cheating and the commercialisation of the sport have made football less enjoyable.Gathering to celebrate Bobby Moore leading England to their only World Cup title, friends Norman Cooper, Derek Scott and Ray Liberty reflected on the past with a touch of resentment towards the present.Thursday marks 60 years to the day since England beat West Germany 4-2 after extra time at Wembley to become world champions.Remembering Moore, who famously wiped his hands before meeting the Queen and receiving the Jules Rimet trophy, brought comparisons to the state of today’s game.Bobby Moore holding the World Cup trophy (British Pathe PLC/PA)PA Media“It’s their instinct to cheat now,” said Mr Scott, a 78-year-old former accountant, who felt that made the game harder to watch, which his friends agreed with.“Football’s so different now, there was no cheating, no loads of substitutes coming,” he continued, before Mr Cooper added “no pulling of shirts”.“It was honest, it was so simple,” said Mr Liberty, 81, who used to work as an artist for advertising agencies and still puts his calligraphy skills to good use by writing up each week’s fixtures on the blackboard in the Nascot Arms in Watford, where the friends met and now regularly drink.Beyond the transformation on the pitch, football’s commercialisation leaves a bad taste.Not so much as to stop them from watching – Mr Cooper retains his Manchester City season ticket having supported them since 1964 and Mr Scott had to leave early to watch his beloved Barnet play MK Dons in a goalless pre-season friendly.But enough of a change to make sure England’s victory sits on an even higher pedestal.“It was totally different to now,” said Mr Liberty as he sipped ale from a personalised glass kept behind the bar for him.“Now, we’re playing in Mexico, America, and there’s fanatical support, it wasn’t like that then, there was no hype. (This year) there was flags everywhere.Norman Cooper, Derek Scott and Ray Liberty at the Nascot Arms in Watford (Ben Whitley/PA)PA Wire“I appreciated it more back then, it’s been a long 60 years, it’s so enormously different. It was great, we were a little country, everybody had a bit of it, but how lucky we were (to be at) Wembley – that was the place to be.Read More“I saw the team come in on the bus, of course in those days you could see them, no blacked-out windows.“It seemed to be nicer, more simple. Now, it’s not thrashed down my throat, because I don’t want it to be, but it’s all to do with new shirts.“It’s money, money, money. I don’t mind being a bit old, we had it when it was better, I suppose.”One of the moments synonymous with the 1966 final, Geoff Hurst’s contentious second goal in extra time that Azerbaijani linesman Tofiq Bahramov decided had crossed the line after hitting the crossbar.All three were adamant at the time that the ball did not cross, although Mr Cooper said Channel 4’s colourised replay of the match has given him reason to doubt. Had VAR been in use, 60 years of debate would never have happened.The three fans, who did not know each other at the time of the final but became friends through drinking at the Nascot over the last 20 years, recalled their favourite memories of the day.Mr Cooper, 79, who retired after a 40-year career as a civil servant in the Ministry of Defence, said his best memory was seeing former Manchester City goalkeeper Bert Trautmann, then an advisor to West Germany, walk on to the pitch before the match.Norman Cooper and Ray Liberty look at World Cup memorabilia (Ben Whitley/PA)PA Wire“Beating Germany was good but seeing Trautmann just made it for me, he was a German Mancunian really.”“I loved the whole thing”, said Mr Liberty. “Right from the first game against Uruguay. I’ve got this (the tournament programme) and I wrote something like ‘this is going to be exciting, it was not a good game, but we’re going to be OK’.He remembered seeing heavyweight boxer Muhammad Ali outside Wembley before the final, and said: “I was very confident about winning that game. After the game, I thought ‘I need a beer’ and my dad bought me a pint, it went down pretty quickly.“(After that) I couldn’t drink any more, I was so emotional, I just had to go home. Now, what would people be doing, throwing it down.”“I just went straight home”, said Mr Cooper. “I don’t think we realised we were on the verge of history.”Mr Scott recalled leaving immediately after the game with a friend to holiday in Cornwall.“It was quite an adventure,” he said. “The M4 only went as far as Reading but we stopped in a couple of little villages, and as soon as the locals found that we’d been to Wembley, they were giving us drinks.”The three said much of the game was a blur, with the thrill of extra time “pretty unheard of” according to Mr Liberty. Mr Cooper said the 2-1 semi-final victory over Portugal was a “better football match”.The semi-final between England and Portugal (PA)PA ArchiveThey agreed they might remember the game itself better had they appreciated more what they were seeing.“We didn’t think we’d have to wait another 60 years for them to win,” said Mr Cooper.“We were world champions and had some really great players,” Mr Scott added.Mr Liberty said: “That’s what we’re saying about how vastly different it was. (Manager) Sir Alf Ramsey was quiet, but very confident we were going to win. He picked a team he believed in, and they knitted together beautifully.“Jackie Charlton’s not everybody’s favourite centre-half, but Bobby Moore, classy, very good captain. We probably had the best goalkeeper (Gordon Banks) in the world.”When asked whether England might emulate the 1966 trophy win again, Mr Scott said: “Who knows? Everyone has the same opinion of that second half (in England’s 2-1 semi-final defeat to Argentina this year), how we just closed up – ridiculous.“I don’t think Mr (Thomas) Tuchel will be in charge by then somehow,” said Mr Cooper. “It’s been a bit of a nightmare (since), hasn’t it? 1996, I thought we had a good chance under Terry Venables after (Paul) Gascoigne’s goal against Scotland.”Mr Liberty added: “But it doesn’t work like that. So we’re very privileged, all very happy to have been there. What are the chances you’d have three people who were there all at the same pub?“I’ll be here on Thursday to raise a glass to the boys of ‘66, especially Geoff (Hurst) as he’s the only one left.”“I shall be here”, agreed Mr Scott, telling Mr Cooper: “I might even buy you a beer.”