Ivor Broadis

Ivan Arthur Broadis, known as Ivor Broadis (born 18 December 1922), is an English former professional footballer.

During a career spanning eighteen years from 1942 to 1960, Broadis represented Carlisle United, Sunderland, Manchester City, Newcastle United and Queen of the South, gaining fourteen caps and scoring eight goals for England at international level. Broadis played at inside forward; after retiring from playing in 1960, he pursued a career as a football journalist.^[1]

Early days

Broadis was born in Isle of Dogs, Poplar, London. During the Second World War he completed 500 flying hours on RAF Wellingtons and Lancasters, although he was never on a bombing mission. During the war he'd guested as an amateur for Tottenham Hotspur among other clubs. It was at Tottenham that someone misread his real name (Ivan) as Ivor. And so he inadvertently became known henceforth as Ivor Broadis.^[1]

Broadis recalled to the Northern Echo how he was in Italy when news of the Japanese surrender arrived. "Next day we flew hundreds of troops back to England, some of whom hadn't had leave for five years. I was navigator, so I kept passing round notes telling them where we were. It was very emotional when we came over the white cliffs of Dover and you could see all the bonfires down below. I have very fond memories of that."^[1][2]

Carlisle United (1st spell)

At the end of the war Broadis was posted to Crosby-on-Eden. "Until after the war I'd never been so far north in my life, I thought I'd need a dog team to get up here," recalled Broadis.^[2] When Carlisle United heard how close he was, when he was just 23, they offered him the player/manager's position in August 1946.^[1] Broadis is still the youngest man to have been player/manager in the English Football League.

Broadis is the first manager to transfer himself to another club when he sold himself to Sunderland in January 1949. As Broadis told the BBC, "Carlisle got £18,000 for me. It was an incredible amount in those days".^[3] Broadis was succeeded as manager by Bill Shankly.^[1][4] Broadis continued to live and train in Carlisle.

One day Broadis arrived late for training. Shankly's version of what he said to Broadis: "What do you think you're doing? Who do you think you are? If you do the training we do you can train with us and we'll play five-a-side and you'll run your guts out as an example to everybody else".^[4]

Shankly never said that he made Broadis as a footballer, "but I made him realise what was needed to be a player, and Ivor Broadis was one of the strongest and most dangerous inside forwards that ever played."^[4]

Broadis' description of events with Shankly: "Bill always regarded himself as the man who saved me, really - the man who gave me to England. I would maybe be lapping round and I admit I could have put a lot more into it.^[4]

"You sort of take the routine from the club you are with and that was not good enough for Bill. I was doing what I thought Sunderland would be doing, the way they were doing it. And that wasn't Bill's way. You had to come off jiggered. So Bill regarded himself as putting me right and I think there's a lot of truth in that. His strength was not Liverpool. It was the strength he could give to anybody."^[4]

With Shankly's infectious enthusiasm he would ask Broadis, "Are you doing anything this afternoon? Aye, right then, if you're not, come down to the ground." They would upturn two chimney pots to each be a goal and play one-a-side.^[4]

Sunderland

Of his transfer to Sunderland Broadis remarked, "All I did was exercise the right to be transferred. Blackburn, Man City and Preston were interested but only Bill Murray, the Sunderland manager, came to see me. That's why I joined but it was the board who agreed the fee." On his £12 a week Broadis commented, "When I was playing, the only agent was Dick Tracy."^[2] Broadis went on to grace England’s top division for the next 6 and half seasons.^[1]

Sunderland's big spending transfer fees on Broadis and others led to the club being known at this time as the "Bank of England club." Alongside the likes of England internationals Len Shackleton, Dickie Davis, Willie Watson and Wales' Trevor Ford, Broadis scored 27 goals in 84 Sunderland appearances.^[1][2]

Broadis remembers his playing days with affection but not entirely without regret. The inside-forward lamented, "The sad thing about that Sunderland side was that we should have won the League in 1950. They played me at centre-forward against a relegated Man City with three or four games to go and we lost. We finished third in the end. We should have won the league that year, it would have made such a difference."^[3] In Sunderland's highest post war finish they ended up 1 point behind retaining champions Portsmouth and also runners up Wolves. This is Broadis’ highest ever league finish.^[1]

Manchester City

Broadis moved to recently promoted Manchester City in October 1951, this time for a fee of £25,000. It was there Broadis gained his first England cap and penned his first newspaper column thanks to the Manchester Evening News.^[1]

Newcastle United

Newcastle United signed Broadis two years later for £20,000. The team already included players like Jackie Milburn, Len White, Scotsmen Bobby 'Dazzler' Mitchell and Frank Brennan and Welshman Ivor Allchurch. Like at previous clubs Broadis was well received by the fans and is still warmly remembered. With Broadis at the club Newcastle won the F.A. Cup in 1955 - their last time to date. Broadis did not play in the 3-1 final defeat of ex-club Man City, however, after a disagreement with trainer Norman Smith. His days at St James' Park were numbered.^[1]

International career

Broadis earned 14 caps for the England national football team, scoring 8 goals.^[5] In both Broadis' England games at Hampden Park he played in front of crowds over 130 000. In his three games against Scotland (twice against future Queen of the South team-mate George Farm), Broadis was unbeaten (2 wins, 1 draw). Broadis scored 3 goals against Scotland, all with Farm in goals for the Scots.^[1] On a tour of South America, Argentina v England was abandoned at 0-0 after 22 minutes due to a rain storm.^[1]

In a game of eight goals in Budapest on 23 May 1954 Broadis was the only England player able to score. In reply the speed, skill and movement of the Hungary `Golden Team´ featuring Ferenc Puskás, Sándor Kocsis, Zoltán Czibor, Nándor Hidegkuti and József Bozsik rattled in 7 in giving their opponents a football lesson. After the game bewildered England centre half Syd Owen said, “It was like playing people from outer space”. Tom Finney commented of Broadis, "I remember when he had taken his boots off after the Budapest match, he warned everyone, "Don't touch them unless you're wearing gloves, they're red hot". Broadis added, "It's the first time I've ever come off the pitch with a sunburned tongue!"" This is still England's record defeat. Broadis hadn't played when Hungary won 6-3 at Wembley the previous November.^[1][6]

Broadis played at the 1954 FIFA World Cup. Playing in all 3 England games Broadis scored 2 goals, both against Belgium. Broadis was thus the first Englishman to score twice in a game in the World Cup finals, 30 minutes ahead of Nat Lofthouse who also scored two in the same 4 - 4 draw. Broadis was thus also part of the 1st ever England team to play in the World Cup quarter finals, a level England have surpassed only once away from home.^[1]

#	Date	Opponent	Result	Broadis goals	Competition
1	28 November 1951	Austria	England 2 - 2 Austria	0	Challenge match
2	5 April 1952	Scotland	Scotland 1 - 2 England	0	UK International Championship
3	18 May 1952	Italy	Italy 1 - 1 England	1	Challenge match
4	18 April 1953	Scotland	England 2 - 2 Scotland	2	UK International Championship
5	17 May 1953	Argentina	Argentina 0 - 0 England	0	Challenge match
6	24 May 1953	Chile	Chile 1 - 2 England	0	Challenge match
7	31 May 1953	Uruguay	Uruguay 2 - 1 England	0	Challenge match
8	8 June 1953	United States	USA 3 - 6 England	1	Challenge match
9	3 April 1954	Scotland	Scotland 2 - 4 England	1	UK International Championship
10	16 May 1954	Yugoslavia	Yugoslavia 1 - 0 England	0	Challenge match
11	23 May 1954	Hungary	Hungary 7 - 1 England	1	Challenge match
12	17 June 1954	Belgium	Belgium 4 - 4 England	2	World Cup finals
13	29 June 1954	Switzerland	Switzerland 0 - 2 England	0	World Cup finals
14	2 July 1954	Uruguay	England 2 - 4 Uruguay	0	World Cup finals

Carlisle United (2nd spell)

Broadis returned to Carlisle in July 1955, when he was signed as player/coach for a fee of £3,500 by manager Fred Emery. Broadis stayed at Brunton Park until June 1959 after which he was off to play in Scotland.^[1] He was selected to play for the Third Division North team against the South in 1955/56, 1956/57 and 1957/58.

Queen of the South

In yet another inspired signing for Queen of the South under Jimmy McKinnell Junior, the now massively experienced Broadis joined the Dumfries side for the last of his playing days in 1959. With his passing ability and goal threat^[7] Broadis clearly enjoyed his fine displays at Queens, later saying, "The two seasons I spent at Palmerston Park were the best of my career'.^[1] With Jim Patterson and Bobby Black already at the club when Broadis arrived, they were joined by George Farm in February 1960.^[1]

In his time at QoS he hit four goals on Boxing day 1959 in a 7-1 home win over Queen's Park. The Doonhamers' other goals came from Percy Dunlop (2) and Bobby Black. The consolation goal for Queen's Park was scored by future Aberdeen and Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson.^[1][8] Broadis scored 20 goals in his 63 league games for Queens.^[9]

Broadis´ performances prompted the offer of a contract from top division Hearts. Broadis decided that he would end his playing days with Queens, however, before moving on to the next step in his career.^[1] At the time of his 90th birthday he was the oldest surviving ex-Queens player.^[10]

Later days

Broadis has lived in the same Carlisle semi since 1955.^[2] After playing and coaching Broadis became a football journalist for 45 years.^[2] When Broadis arrived in the Anfield press box, Shankly marched in, gave Broadis a handshake, passed on his good wishes to him and left the scene. If hardness was typical of Shankly, recollection and warmness were also.^[4] Broadis was stopped outside Hampden Park when heading towards Gretna's Scottish Cup semi-final in 2006 for being in possession of an offensive weapon, namely a vacuum flask. He had four sandwiches as well. "Someone passing told the polis that I'd played at Hampden, against Scotland. He let me in on condition that I didn't drink the tea."^[2] Now aged 93, he is the oldest living former England international.^[10]

References

External links

• Ivor Broadis full career profile on the official Queen of the South website

England squad – 1954 FIFA World Cup
1 Merrick 2 Staniforth 3 Byrne 4 Wright (c) 5 Owen 6 Dickinson 7 Matthews 8 Broadis 9 Lofthouse 10 Taylor 11 Finney 12 Burgin 13 Green 14 McGarry 15 Wilshaw 16 Quixall 17 Mullen 18 Chilton 19 Armstrong 20 Jezzard 21 Haynes 22 Hooper Coach: Winterbottom