Mr. E. Turnbull.....

[Hibsean]

the legend. Nice one, EEN.
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Thunderbolt which made Turnbull reconsider
THE LEGENDS
MARK BONTHRONE

EDDIE TURNBULL'S name will forever be etched into the history of Hibernian football club as one of their all-time great players and managers - but he could so easily have missed out on a career in the sport altogether.

It's hard to believe now but Turnbull, who devoted his entire professional career to Hibs, was ready to turn his back on the game that would make him a hero to tens of thousands of people but for a chance meeting.
Turnbull, who was born in Falkirk in 1923, did what many young men of his generation did and signed up for the Royal Navy during the Second World War.

He was de-mobbed in 1946 and, although he was coveted by Portsmouth after impressing their scouts while playing for a Navy football side in the south of England, he was homesick and keen to return to Scotland. Successful junior outfit Bo'ness United offered him terms on his return north of the Border but a career in the sport never appealed to him and he turned down the opportunity. However, a chance meeting with a friend, the captain and secretary of Forth Rangers, another local junior side, persuaded Turnbull to dust off his boots and turn out for them one Saturday afternoon when they were short of players.

The match was played at Falkirk's Brockville stadium and the opponents were none other than Bo'ness. The game ended in a 2-2 draw and it turned out to be Turnbull's only outing for Forth Rangers.

Although he didn't feel he had played particularly well, a member of the Hibs coaching staff who happened to be at the tie was impressed enough to send a taxi for him the very next day to take him to Easter Road.

The then Hibs manager Willie McCartney met the young Turnbull and his elder brother and, after a long chat in his office, it was decided there and then that he would sign for the Leith club. It was the end of the 1945-46 season.

Turnbull later recalled: "He [McCartney] could have charmed the birds out of the tree and made a big impression on me. We went into his office, he produced a bottle of whisky and, after a dram or three, I agreed to sign. I got £20 as a signing-on fee and wages of £5 a week."

Turnbull's first outing in the famous green jersey came on August 10, 1946 as Hibs' reserves stormed to a 7-2 victory against Queen of the South. His first shot in the top team, however, had to wait a few months when he featured in a fixture against Czech aces Sparta Prague.

Just a few days later he would make his competitive debut for the Hibees against Third Lanark at Easter Road.

He announced his arrival by scoring one goal and setting up the other in a 2-1 win. It would be the first of many such impressive displays for the Capital outfit.

A few weeks later Turnbull was on the scoresheet again in a match that coined a famous phrase. The 'Turnbull thunderbolt' was born against Motherwell when he latched on to poor kick-out from goalkeeper John Johnstone and cracked a thunderous volley into the top corner.

Turnbull held down his place in McCartney's side for the majority of the season and was selected to play in the 1947 Scottish Cup final, a match Hibs would end up losing 2-1 to Aberdeen.

The next season, though, 1947-48, would prove more successful for Hibs, yet it would be tinged with terrible tragedy.

Hibs and Rangers were neck-and-neck for the majority of the season as they battled it out for the league championship. As they entered the New Year there was nothing to separate them.

The Hibs community was left reeling, however, on January 31, 1948 when, following a 2-0 Scottish Cup triumph away to Albion Rovers, manager McCartney collapsed and died.

Nobody took the news harder than Turnbull who later revealed he had been "devastated" by the passing of the man who had persuaded him to pursue a career in the beautiful game.

As Edinburgh football fans mourned, the Hibs players vowed to deliver the title in memory of McCartney and with Hugh Shaw appointed to replace him the Easter Road side continued their fine form although Rangers remained hot on their heels.

In the end, despite losing their final game of the season away at Dundee, Hibs pipped their Glasgow rivals, who also dropped points in their final fixture, to ensure the coveted trophy would return to the Capital. Turnbull said of their feat: "We did so without the help of any modern coaching.

"We did not see the ball from one week to the next. All we ever did was laps of the track but, come a Saturday, we would still play great football. We would simply run over teams."

That trophy wasn't the only legacy that McCartney left Hibs for he was also responsible for the creation of a the forward line that would be dubbed "The Famous Five".

Bobby Johnstone, Lawrie Reilly, Gordon Smith, Willie Ormond and Turnbull would go on to become the most feared forward line in the Scottish game.

Gordon Smith had been signed, like the others, by McCartney. He was recruited in April 1941 and was widely believed to have been on the brink of joining Hearts before a change of mind.

Ormond signed from Stenhousmuir, Turnbull had come from the junior ranks and Reilly was a product of local juvenile football. The last piece of the jigsaw was the promotion of Bobby Johnstone from reserve football to first-team duties. The Famous Five would first play together on April 21, 1949 in a friendly at Sanquhar against Nithsdale Wanderers, scoring eight goals between them.

A few days later they again played together, this time in Belfast in another friendly. In October, after a shock League Cup defeat, the five came together once again against Queen of the South, and more or less remained in place thereafter.

Hibs' achievement in claiming their first championship in a quarter of a century was recognised across the country and their triumph was not ignored by the national selectors either with five of the squad called up.

Turnbull, now 25, was among those picked and he made his international debut in a 2-0 win over Belgium at Hampden Park. It wasn't until 2006, though that he would receive an international cap, left, after an Evening News campaign.

Back in those days caps were only awarded for games against the other Home nations and the SFA stuck to its guns and refused to recognise Turnbull and a host of other stars for decades.

As the 1947-48 season drew to a close Turnbull seemed to have the footballing world at his feet. With a League Championship in the trophy cabinet Hibs would now bid to become the country's dominant footballing force...

THE FACTS
April 12, 1923: Born in Carronshore, near Falkirk

1946: Signed for Hibs from Forth Rangers after being spotted in his one and only appearance for the junior side.

1946: Marks his debut for Hibs with a goal in a 2-1 win against Third Lanark.

1947: In his debut season Turnbull helps Hibs reach the Scottish Cup final, where they lose to Aberdeen 2-1.

1947/48: Turnbull's talents help Hibs to win their first league title in 25 years.

1948: Makes the first of his eight appearances in Scotland colours during a 2-0 win over Belgium at Hampden.

1950/51: With the Famous Five in full flow, Hibs win the title again.

1951/52: Hibs successfully defend their League title.

1955: Hibs are the first British team to play in Europe, and Turnbull the first Briton to score in European competition, against German side Rot-Weiss Essen.

1958: Plays three times for Scotland at the World Cup finals in Sweden at the age of 35.

1963: Appointed manager of Queen's Park.

1965: Appointed Aberdeen boss and staves off relegation in his first season in charge.

1967: Leads Aberdeen into Europe for the first time in their history.

1970: Leads Aberdeen to a 3-1 victory over Celtic in the Scottish Cup final.

1971: Turnbull is appointed Hibs manager.

1972: Hibs lose 6-1 to Celtic in the Scottish Cup final, but exact revenge in the League Cup final with a 2-1 win.

1973: Hibs achieve one of the most famous results in their history as they hammer arch-rivals Hearts 7-0 at Tynecastle in a New Year's Day derby.

1979: In Turnbull's penultimate season with Hibs, they lose 3-2 to Rangers in the second replay of the Scottish Cup final.

1980: Resigns as Hibs manager.

[Toolpusher]

Aye, was a nice double-page spread in the centre of the EN last night, they seem to have improved their colour printing too?

[Northern Ireland Hibby]

Good article, thanks for that.

The guy is a proper, genuine legend and is a person hero to a few of the Belfast Hibbys.

He was good enough to come over to Belfast to a tribute night we put on for him a couple of years ago. It was a fantastic honour but (If you'll all excuse me a wee story) one wee memory of many sticks out, and will always be stuck in my mind....

We were in the car (I was driving), we were running late as was every single plan for the function. It goes without saying that I'd been trying to be as police and respectful to Sir Ned from the word go.

Stuck in Belfast city centre traffic, with the sound system at the venue not even set up and whole list of things not done, I'd been getting stupid calls on my mobile every 20 seconds from different people: 'What time does it start', 'just to let you know we've arrived in Belfast', 'what is the venue called again', 'what time does it start', 'what are the plans for tonight', 'I can't make it tonight', 'I've got that raffle prize and will bring it tonight' etc etc etc etc.

Now, I'm an irritable guy at the best of times, but I had a lot in my mind and these calls were really annoying me. The phone rang again: 'What time does it start'.

So finally I flipped and slammed the 'off' button on the phone and said, in a bad temper, out loud: "Why the f@#k do people ring me to tell me what they haven't done, what they've done badly or what they're going to do. Why don't they just do what the f@#k they are supposed to do when they are supposed to f@#king do it, and leave us alone".

I thought I'd spoken out of turn and disrespected Sir Eddie, but his face lit up and he started laughing and said: "Aye, that's the way to do it son!".
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It's only a wee story of many, many fond memories from his visit, but it's one I'll always remember as it sums him up for me.

Whataguy.