Jimmy Hill

Jimmy Hill (left) in the 1980s, right his former Fulham teammate Maurice Cook

James William Thomas "Jimmy" Hill OBE (born July 22, 1928 in London , † December 19, 2015 in Hurstpierpoint , West Sussex ) was an English football player and television presenter of the football television program Match of the Day .

Hill's career in football encompassed almost all of the activities that exist in the sport in addition to his playing days: player union, coach, manager, director, chairman, moderator, expert and television executive and assistant referee.

Life

youth

Hill was born in Balham , London in 1928 . He graduated from Henry Thornton Grammar School in Clapham from 1939 to 1945 and later became president of the school's Old Boys Association. Hill also became a supporter of Crystal Palace during his school days . After school, Hill initially worked at the London Stock Exchange , but was then drafted into military service and served in the Royal Army Service Corps during World War II , where he also played football with professional footballers.

Football professional and players union

In 1949 Hill completed some games for the amateur club Folkestone and took part in a trial training at Reading FC . However, Hill received his first professional contract with the then second division club Brentford , where he helped in two seasons as left (which corresponded to a modern left midfielder) scored ten goals for the West London club. In 1952 he moved to league rivals FC Fulham for the then respectable sum of 25,000 pounds . During this time Hill gradually transformed into a striker on the right side of the field (inside right) , where he played several successful seasons with Fulham in tandem with Johnny Haynes . When Fulham reached the semi-finals in the FA Cup 1957/58 , Hill scored one goal in every cup round. The following year Fulham was promoted to the First Division , Hill was only able to enter the scorers list on Good Friday with a hat trick against Sheffield Wednesday . Hill scored 41 goals in a total of nine seasons and 276 league games with Fulham.

In 1957 Hill succeeded Jimmy Guthrie as chairman of the English Players' Union and continued the protracted fight against a wage cap for football players. In 1961 the players' union finally succeeded under his leadership in persuading the clubs to give up the upper limit. Two years later, Hill took on the clubs again when George Eastham was banned from moving from Newcastle United to Arsenal despite an expired contract. The change was enforced by the union in court and thus ended the previously practiced regulation that a club could decide on the change of a player at the end of the contract.

Coventry City Manager

In 1961 Hill ended his career as a football player and began his career as a football manager for third division club Coventry City the next season . Hill introduced the sky-blue jerseys that are still in use today, thereby also changing the nickname from City to "the Sky Blues". He also began adding entertainment for spectators on match days before the game and at halftime, making drinks and snacks free for children, and organizing his own sky-blue train to bring fans to away games.

Coventry City was promoted under Hill in 1964 in the then Second Division and three years later in the First Division . However, before Coventry's first season in the top division, Hill announced his resignation.

TV moderation and Match of the Day

After an abrupt departure from Coventry City, Hill began his new career in television. After a brief stint as a technical advisor on a BBC television series , he was entrusted with running the sports department at London Weekend Television in 1968 . Two years later, as part of the 1970 World Cup , he invited well-known football players as experts to a TV discussion in order to comment on the World Cup games. The debates between Derek Dougan , Malcolm Allison , Bob McNab and others became a must during the World Cup. Hill established the modern form of the "TV expert", as it has become common today for most live broadcasts.

In 1972 Hill left London Weekend Television to become the new host of Match of the Day football television program. He changed the format of the program so that, in addition to the highlights, incorrect referee decisions were also shown with the help of slow motion. In the decades that followed, Hill hosted over 600 shows on Match of the Day and became a national icon during that time. From 1966 to 1998 he was also a reporter or expert on the BBC's programs at every major soccer tournament. Hill was also present at the Hillsborough disaster in 1989, where he covered the tragic events as a correspondent for Match of the Day .

In 1999 Hill moved from the BBC to Sky Sports , where he designed and hosted the discussion show Jimmy Hill's Sunday Supplement . He and three football journalists were having breakfast and discussing the current game day. He ran the show until 2007, when he was replaced by his then co-host Brian Woolnough .

swell

1. ↑ ^{a b c d e f} Jimmy Hill obituary , Guardian article , December 19, 2015
2. ↑ Football legend Jimmy Hill dies aged 87 , article in the Birmingham Mail dated December 19, 2015
3. ^ Brian Woolnough , Daily Telegraph article , Sept. 19, 2012

Web links

Commons : Jimmy Hill  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• A tribute to former Coventry City manager and chairman Jimmy Hill , Coventry FC video on YouTube