60 Facts About Kevin Beattie

Kevin Beattie spent the majority of his playing career at Ipswich Town, the club with which he won both the FA Cup and the UEFA Cup.

Kevin Beattie's playing career included some controversy, notably when he went missing after being selected for England's under-23 team.

Kevin Beattie has been called Ipswich Town's best ever player by many pundits and polls.

Thomas Kevin Beattie was born in Carlisle on 18 December 1953.

Kevin Beattie's family lived in the Botcherby estate and he was one of nine children: five boys and four girls.

Kevin Beattie became known by his middle name, as his father was named Thomas Beattie.

Kevin Beattie's mother was a cleaner at a Lipton tea shop, whilst his father worked for the National Coal Board, delivering coal.

Kevin Beattie supported his local football team, Carlisle United, and idolised players like Hughie McIlmoyle.

Kevin Beattie recalled being "devastated" when McIlmoyle was too busy to sign an autograph outside the club, resolving never to turn down such requests.

Kevin Beattie attended St Cuthbert's Roman Catholic junior school, where he began playing football for the school team, initially as a goalkeeper.

Kevin Beattie's family were unable to afford the football boots he needed, but a teacher named Mr Raffety bought a pair for him.

Kevin Beattie soon became a forward and modelled himself on Chelsea's Peter Osgood.

Kevin Beattie began playing for Blackfriars, a local youth team managed by Raffety, and, from the age of 14, for a pub team, alongside his father.

Kevin Beattie was told that Celtic had shown an interest in him, but the club had been wrongly told that he was not a Catholic, the traditional religion of the majority of the club's fanbase.

Kevin Beattie left school aged 14, and subsequently worked as a machine fitter and delivery boy in factories, a warehouse, a dry cleaner and then a furniture company.

Kevin Beattie travelled to Liverpool and impressed manager Bill Shankly sufficiently for him to be invited back to sign for the club.

Kevin Beattie returned to Liverpool on his own, but nobody from the club arrived to meet him at Lime Street station.

The poverty Kevin Beattie came from was evident when he arrived in Ipswich wearing his father's shoes, so when Ipswich signed him, the club immediately bought him some clothes.

Now earning a wage, Kevin Beattie tried to help support his family, sending money home each week.

Kevin Beattie played in aggregate victories over Real Madrid, Lazio and FC Twente, before the side lost on penalties to Lokomotive Leipzig, Beattie having scored his first European goal in the home leg.

Kevin Beattie appeared in all 42 league games for Ipswich that season, made 15 other appearances in cup competitions, and was presented with the inaugural Professional Footballers' Association's Young Player of the Year award.

Kevin Beattie was voted his club's Player of the Year.

Kevin Beattie's season was prematurely curtailed by a self-inflicted injury: stoking a bonfire at his home, he decided to add petrol; the ensuing flare-up gave him serious burns to his face and neck, leading to him missing six matches.

Kevin Beattie played in 34 games for Ipswich that season, scoring 5 goals, and was selected for the PFA Team of the Year for the third time in a row, along with teammates Mick Mills and Brian Talbot.

Robson disagreed, and Kevin Beattie was left out of the side for the game; Ipswich were knocked out on penalties.

Cortisone injections became commonplace for Kevin Beattie, who returned to the team in time for the FA Cup fourth-round victory against Hartlepool.

Kevin Beattie had three cortisone injections to get through the final.

Kevin Beattie had represented Ipswich 21 times during the course of the season, without scoring a goal.

Kevin Beattie played his last match for Ipswich in April 1981, in an FA Cup semi-final loss to Manchester City in which he broke his arm.

Ipswich won the UEFA Cup at the end of the season, but Kevin Beattie was not presented with a winner's medal as he did not play in the final or even appear on the bench, through injury; 26 years later, a petition was organised by Rob Finch, the writer of Kevin Beattie's 2007 biography The Greatest Footballer England Never Had, calling on UEFA to right the wrong.

Kevin Beattie was finally awarded a medal by UEFA president Michel Platini at the 2008 UEFA Cup Final between Rangers and Zenit Saint Petersburg.

Kevin Beattie retired due to injury in December 1981, following five knee operations in four years.

Kevin Beattie made six appearances for the club, four of those in the league, but when teammate John Lyons committed suicide, Hunter resigned, and Kevin Beattie decided to move on.

Kevin Beattie moved to Norway, signing for fourth division club Kongsberg IF, where he scored more than 60 goals in his first season.

Kevin Beattie signed for Norwegian second division club Nybergsund IL-Trysil in 1988, making five appearances for them before moving back to England.

Kevin Beattie assisted Mike Walker and Duncan Forbes at Norwich City as a scout during Walker's time as manager and performed a similar role for Alan Ball Jr.

Kevin Beattie's last coaching position was a short spell with Barry Fry at Peterborough United.

Perry Groves, who played alongside Beattie at Colchester United, describes how Beattie, ostensibly playing at left-back, emerged to meet a cross from Kevin Keegan, beat two Scottish defenders and "looped a great header" into the goal, voted one of the top 50 goals England have scored.

Kevin Beattie was renowned for his strength, the nickname "Beast" reflecting that, but his quality on the ball.

Kevin Beattie had the sweetest left foot I've ever seen and could hit 60-yard passes, without looking, that eliminated six opposition players from the game.

Kevin Beattie had the strength of a tank, was lightning quick and he could tackle.

In December 1974, Kevin Beattie was involved in an incident that prompted newspaper headlines across the quality and tabloid press.

That Kevin Beattie was "found" playing dominoes with his father in a pub in Carlisle helped substantiate the story, although England manager Don Revie sent Kevin Beattie a telegram wishing him a happy birthday, the following day.

Groves' account, 30 years later, is that when Kevin Beattie's train pulled into Carlisle station, he saw the name, felt homesick and went to visit his father.

Kevin Beattie accepted a lit cigarette from a fan and smoked it whilst collecting his FA Cup winner's medal in 1978.

Kevin Beattie was unemployed on several occasions after finishing his playing career.

Kevin Beattie considered suicide, but was able to care for his wife who was seriously unwell, and, according to Groves, managed to get "his life back on the right track".

In later years, Kevin Beattie worked for broadcast media; he commented on football for BBC Radio Suffolk until the day before his death.

Kevin Beattie co-wrote his autobiography, The Beat, published in 1998.

In May 2012, Kevin Beattie was convicted of benefit fraud and given a 12-week curfew.

Kevin Beattie had failed to disclose his earnings from radio, for fear of losing Income Support.

Kevin Beattie later apologised and described it as a "silly mistake".

Kevin Beattie met his future wife Margaret Boldy, known as Maggie, in the late 1960s or early 1970s in a youth club near to his apprentice accommodation, Kevin Beattie describing it as "love at first sight".

Kevin Beattie's playing career injuries gave Beattie difficulties in later life: by the time he was 53 he was "unable to walk more than half a mile", owing to the arthritis in his knees.

On 16 September 2018, Kevin Beattie died of a suspected heart attack at the age of 64.

Kevin Beattie's funeral was held at the crematorium at Nacton on 26 October 2018.

Former Ipswich and England player Terry Butcher paid tribute to Kevin Beattie, calling him "the complete footballer" and describing his left-footed shot as an "Exocet".

Kevin Beattie was once described by Bobby Robson as the best England player he had seen, and that he could have rivalled Duncan Edwards.

Kevin Beattie was inducted into the Ipswich Town Hall of Fame in 2008, was voted numerous times as Ipswich Town's "best ever player", and features as one of Perry Groves' 20 "Football Heroes" in a book published in 2009.

Kevin Beattie's skills were shown on the pitch as the body double for Michael Caine's prisoner-of-war character, and the two became friends.