AS ENGLAND’s manager from 1977 to 1982 Ron Greenwood was the first to take the national side through the qualifying rounds of a World Cup for 20 years. He enjoyed success at club level with West Ham United, winning the FA Cup twice and the European Cup Winners’ Cup.
A thoughtful man, Greenwood was not as instantly recognisable as other holders of the post. But he brought to the England team a wide knowledge of how the game was played around the world. “My happiest moments are sitting on the touchline watching players carry out prearranged tactical moves,” he once said.
Bobby Moore, the England captain, described Greenwood as “the encyclopaedia of football”.
Before his England reign, however, Greenwood had more than demonstrated his ability by building West Ham into a successful team that was recognised for playing attractive football and included the victorious England World Cup trio of Geoff Hurst, Martin Peters and Bobby Moore.
Ronald Greenwood was born in Worsthorn, near Burnley, the son of a house painter who then moved to London during the Depression in the 1930s. He was educated at Alperton School in Middlesex, leaving at the age of 14 to be an apprentice signwriter. The firm did all the work at Wembley and even later when playing Greenwood continued to work there in the close season. He also helped to give the stadium a facelift before the 1948 Olympics.
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After he was spotted playing junior football near Wembley, Greenwood joined Chelsea FC as an amateur in 1940. He served in the RAF and was posted to Northern Ireland, guesting for Belfast Celtic. He also played for Bradford Park Avenue, which he joined for a club record of £3,000 when league football was resumed in 1945.
Four years later he joined the side that he had supported as a child, Brentford. The team was managed by Jackie Gibbons, who had been a team-mate at Bradford PA. Greenwood established himself through his all-round ability as one of the best centre halves in the league, scoring his first league goal at Doncaster in 1951. He played more than 300 matches for the club.
Meanwhile, he gave up his signwriting business and attended a new coaching course at Lilleshall. Soon afterwards his footballing beliefs were influenced further when he saw Hungary beat England 6-3 at Wembley in 1953. He later recalled: “I knew then for sure and reality that football was a combination of thought and intelligence, and fun and concentration, and vim and vigour, and everything if you like, even art if you want to call it that.”
Greenwood rejoined Chelsea in 1952 and, after an unlucky start, he soon found form, showing good positional play in defence and an eagerness to attack. He made 21 appearances in the 1954-55 championship season. Having moved to Fulham he retired at the end of the 1955-56 season. His only international honour as a player was an appearance for the England B team in an away victory against Holland in 1952.
His managerial career took off gradually. For three years he coached the Oxford University team and then for two years he took charge of Walthamstow Avenue, during which time they recorded an FA Cup victory against Queens Park Rangers. He also managed Eastbourne United in the Metropolitan League.
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In 1958 Greenwood became manager of the England Under-23 side for three years, and assistant manager at Arsenal. When he moved to Highbury his reputation for tactical prowess meant that the club was seen by one newspaper as adopting an “Anglo-Continental look”. He admitted that he felt the game would benefit if more continental players signed for English clubs.
Three years later he became manager and coach at West Ham, succeeding Ted Fenton. The club did not possess the financial clout of its rivals, but performed well, with Greenwood encouraging his players to build their stamina and concentrating on tactical simplicity. He was also respected by his players — his nicknames included “the Vicar” and “Reverend Ron”.
Success came in 1964. A string of Greenwood’s shrewd tactical decisions steered the club to the FA Cup Final, where his switch of the side’s tactics at half-time helped to break down second-division Preston; West Ham won 3-2 after twice being behind. The following year his side took on 1860 Munich in the European Cup Winners’ Cup, and in front of 100,000 at Wembley won 2-0 thanks to two second-half goals from Alan Sealey. Greenwood said that the night was “my fulfilment”.
There followed a lull in West Ham’s fortunes, during which time Greenwood denied that he was only a theory man. “As far as I am concerned diabolical is the only word that describes our performance last season,” he said in the summer of 1971, “and there’s nothing theoretical about that.” In 1974 he became “general manager” and the following season West Ham won the FA Cup again.
In 1977 Greenwood was preparing for retirement, but after the resignation of Don Revie (whose Leeds team West Ham famously thumped 7-0) he was appointed temporary England manager for three games. It was believed that he was not selected for the post in 1973 because he was too old. But he was given the post four years later, above the popular choice, Brian Clough.
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Greenwood said that he felt it was a role for an elder statesman, and looked to the Continent, as he often did, to point out the age of successful managers in Germany. And by this stage his credentials were clear; apart from his performance at a club level he had served as a Fifa technical adviser for the World Cup in 1966 and 1970. In the late 1970s he was also on the working party advising the Sports Minister Denis Howell on crowd control.
Late in 1977 Greenwood was given the post permanently, and his first task was to steer England to the finals of the 1980 European Championships. The side qualified easily, with Kevin Keegan scoring seven goals. In Italy they drew 1-1 with Belgium, lost 1-0 to the hosts and won 2-1 against Spain, but this was not good enough to get past the first- round group phase.
The next target was qualification for the 1982 World Cup finals. After defeats in Romania and Switzerland, as Greenwood revealed in his autobiography, Yours Sincerely (1984), he almost retired. But a victory in Hungary followed, and he was persuaded to stay on, but in Oslo in September 1981 England lost 2-1 — prompting the Norwegian radio commentator Bjorn Lillelien’s famous line: “Can you hear me, Maggie Thatcher? Your boys took a helluva beating.”
England needed a point against Hungary in November 1981 to go through. With Bryan Robson, Trevor Brooking and Kevin Keegan playing superbly in midfield they won 1-0.
In the finals, with players such as Robson and Ray Wilkins holding their own on the international stage, England began well: a goal from Robson after 27 seconds against France set up a 3-1 victory. There were then wins against Czechoslovakia and Kuwait and England finished at the top of the group.
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The second phase began with a scoreless draw against Germany and a victory was needed against Spain to ensure qualification for the semi- finals. Greenwood brought the not wholly fit Keegan and Brooking — “Kev and Trev” — off the bench after an hour but they missed easy chances and the game ended without a goal. England’s tournament was over — despite not having lost a game. Greenwood said that he would retire after the World Cup and stuck to his word. He briefly served as a director at his local club, Brighton.
Although Greenwood was criticised during his period as manager for sticking with old players and for changing his mind over strikers, his final record was by no means unimpressive: 33 victories and 10 defeats in 55 games.
Greenwood was appointed CBE in 1981. He was elected to the Football Association’s Hall of Fame in 2002.
He is survived by his wife and two children.
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Ron Greenwood, CBE, England football manager, 1977-82, was born on November 11, 1921. He died on February 9, 2006, aged 84.