Legend?

Not a legend but would definitely have become one.....the great Duncan Edwards. I saw him play at Goodison in September 1957, just a few months before Munich. Far too young to appreciate him but he had that special aura about him that even the youngest could appreciate.
 
I don’t know much about football but many years ago saw footage of George Best playing and even my ignorant self knew I was seeing something very special.
 
Wot, no cricketers? :oops:

Don Bradman and Shane Warne

Legendary status is given a leg-up by having a distinctive and memorable name, epitomised by Lester Piggott, Stirling Moss, Babe Ruth & Cassius Clay/Muhammed Ali; and a George Best was never destined to grind out his career with Accrington Stanley was he :)
 
Sir Gordon Richards? Viv Richards & Clive Lloyd? Are these legends or are they only revered in their own sports. For me if the name can be inserted into a conversation many years after their era and it stimulates the conversation, thats a legend.
 
Some say that to be a legend they have to be universally known by just one name. Well there are only three that I can think of that fall into that category but please correct me if that's not the case.

Pele
Ali
Arkle
 
Mopeds? The most famous one was mentioned earlier - murder to me (get it?)

And as for George Best, I just about saw him play quite a few times - well, as much as Paul Reaney ever let him play anyway.
 
As much as I hate to say it Conor Mcgregor literally transformed UfC single handedly. To make as much money as he did from the sport where fighters were paid very little to cross over sports and fight what many believe to be the greatest pound for pound boxer of all time without ever having had a professional boxing match and be competitive was some feat. Albeit it was probably the catalyst for the tripe celebrity/ influencer/ crossover boxing matches which are making and absolute mockery of the sport currently. His well documented rise to fame from humble begginings showing complete dedication to his art are what working class boys dreams are made of.

However, he turned into a giant bellend and took the gloss off it all. Personally I think his demise was triggered by 2 things a realisation that he wasn't as good as he thought he was which started from the time Nate diaz humbled him twice and ended in the one sided mauling he recieved from Kahbib Nurmagomedov a man he despised. Injuries after this denied him a chance to ever to prove to himself at least that he was as good as he believed he was.

Khabib a humble man quietly spoken also dedicated to only his sport, his family and God. The polar opposite to the loud mouth, material obsessed, impulse driven Mcgregor. Following his career, the drugs, the alchol and and sleeping with as many women as possible and flashing his cash at every opportunity may be the dreams of many single males of today but he's not single. In fact he has his wife by his side who was by his side when he was nothing, just a dead beat living on his parents couch and he has a young family now. I think it's that which I find most grotesque.

If ever you find someone in life who's prepared to stand by your side when you're standing in shit, who's got your back when times are tough, who you know you can look them in the eye and know they're prepared to go that extra inch for you when nobody else will. Then you need to look after and worship them as those sorts of people are rarer than rocking horse shit. Instead he's chose to humiliate her and make an utter fool of himself. I'm no angel as I said previously but I genuinely believe once you're a parent as a man you have 2 responsibilities you lead by example to your sons to show them what a man should be, and you treat your wife like a queen to set a standard for what your daughter will accept from her future partners.

It says something about society as a whole though. I wouldn't rate Mcgregor in the top 20 ufc fighters of all time. Yet he's by far the most well known and at the time most popular. Certainly Khabib was twice the fighter he was and Islam Makhachev from the same camp is destined to be even better. Again another completely brilliant but humble man. Yet who outside of UFC fans would know of him ?

Anyway I have a feeling in another 10 years we'll see Mcgregor divorced, in rehab or jail and in a similar state to Gazza.
 
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Everybody has their views on legends. My dad seen most of the top players from 50s onwards and 3 he said stood out. Duncan Edwards the most talented he saw,Jimmy greaves a phenomenal players and Joe Baker of hibs and arsenal. Can't argue with that. Watching film of greaves he was a fantastic player who of course battled his demons. Edwards looked like a British Beckenbauer but tougher and as a hibs fan I can testify how frightening joe Baker was though injury curtailed his talent.
As for horses alleged for me was a legend having seen him beat the Derby runner up by 10 lengths in the voltigeur and had he not contested the leger maybe been viewed as such. Istabraaq just had that something about him as did the amazingly versatile sea pigeon. All about opinions and everybody's is fine with me but they are the players and horses who I loved.
 
Couldn't leave out Jim Clark. I'm biased as a scot but to me the most gifted driver of all time over many disciplines. Check out his record. Plus an incredibly humble guy. Ayrton senna visited his museum in duns and viewed him as the best ever. That will do for me.
 
Vinny Jones did well for himself outside football based on his hard man image. Mind you, you hear nothing about him these days.

More than 20 years ago Roy Keane split opinion in Ireland down the middle and for many people it still feels like yesterday. Hero for some, hate figures for others.
 
Djokovic, Federer and Nadal. The Goaties.
The success, longevity and standard these guys set was ridiculous.

On one hand you feel sorry for Andy Murray as he would have won at least 10 slams in any other era.
Actually though, he can look back knowing he mixed it with the best ever winning 3 slams. Throw in a couple of Olympics too.
 
Grey said:
Vinny Jones did well for himself outside football based on his hard man image. Mind you, you hear nothing about him these days.

More than 20 years ago Roy Keane split opinion in Ireland down the middle and for many people it still feels like yesterday. Hero for some, hate figures for others.
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I like Keano.

I had 50 quid on the Sunderland/Championship (12/1), Man United/Premier League (5/2) double that season he took over as Sunderland manager.

That bet gave me an immense journey all season and fantastic thrill when it came up.

It's all been downhill since. 😂
 
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