William Augustine Whelan (1 April 1935 – 6 February 1958), known as Billy Whelan or Liam Whelan, was an Irish footballer who played as an inside-forward. He died at the age of 22, as one of eight Manchester United players who were killed in the Munich air disaster.
Whelan was born in Dublin. He was one of seven children born to John and Elizabeth Whelan. His father John was an accomplished centre half-back for Dublin club Brunswick and was instrumental in winning the FAI Junior Shield in 1924.[1] His mother was an avid Shamrock Rovers supporter.[2] His father died in 1943, when Whelan was just eight years old. He was not a confident flyer and just before the aeroplane took off from Munich, he was heard to say: "This may be death, but I'm ready."[citation needed]
He played Gaelic games, winning a medal for St Peter's of Phibsboro. Dublin GAA club Naomh Fionnbarra successfully had a railway bridge situated near the place of Whelan's birth renamed after him in 2006, while the Naomh Fionnbarra clubhouse also has Whelan's Manchester United membership card.[3]
He made his first appearance for United during the 1954–55 season and quickly became a regular first team player, and went on to make 98 first-team appearances in four seasons at United, scoring 52 goals. He was United's top scorer in the 1956–57 season, scoring 26 goals in the First Division and 33 in all competitions as United won their second successive league title and reached the semi-finals of the European Cup and FA Cup. Such was the strength of the competition in the United first team that he was soon being kept out of the side by Bobby Charlton. He travelled with the United team to Belgrade for the fateful European Cup tie against Red Star Belgrade, the day before the Munich air disaster, but did not play in the game.[5]
LegacyEdit
Whelan's grave in Glasnevin Cemetery, decorated with a Manchester United scarf
On 8 December 2006, the railway bridge on Fassaugh Road/Dowth Avenue junction in Cabra, Dublin 7, close to Dalymount Park was renamed in his honour. The campaign to have the bridge renamed was initiated and organised by members of the Cabra GAA club, Naomh Fionbarra and sanctioned by Dublin City Council in early 2006. It is close to St Attracta Road, the street in which he was born. The unveiling ceremony was performed by Whelan's Manchester United teammate at the time of the aircrash, Sir Bobby Charlton.
On 4 February 2008, the Irish national postal body An Post issued a 55c postage stamp for the 50th anniversary of the Munich air disaster showing a photo of Liam Whelan.[6]
billy, whelan, 1920s, 1930s, defender, scottish, footballer, other, people, named, william, whelan, william, whelan, disambiguation, william, augustine, whelan, april, 1935, february, 1958, known, liam, whelan, irish, footballer, played, inside, forward, died,. For the 1920s 1930s defender see Billy Whelan Scottish footballer For other people named William Whelan see William Whelan disambiguation William Augustine Whelan 1 April 1935 6 February 1958 known as Billy Whelan or Liam Whelan was an Irish footballer who played as an inside forward He died at the age of 22 as one of eight Manchester United players who were killed in the Munich air disaster Liam WhelanWhelan in May 1957Personal informationFull nameWilliam Augustine WhelanDate of birth 1935 04 01 1 April 1935Place of birthDublin IrelandDate of death6 February 1958 1958 02 06 aged 22 Place of deathMunich West GermanyPosition s Inside forwardYouth careerHome FarmManchester UnitedSenior career YearsTeamApps Gls 1953 1958Manchester United79 43 International career1956 1957Republic of Ireland4 0 Club domestic league appearances and goalsWhelan was born in Dublin He was one of seven children born to John and Elizabeth Whelan His father John was an accomplished centre half back for Dublin club Brunswick and was instrumental in winning the FAI Junior Shield in 1924 1 His mother was an avid Shamrock Rovers supporter 2 His father died in 1943 when Whelan was just eight years old He was not a confident flyer and just before the aeroplane took off from Munich he was heard to say This may be death but I m ready citation needed He played Gaelic games winning a medal for St Peter s of Phibsboro Dublin GAA club Naomh Fionnbarra successfully had a railway bridge situated near the place of Whelan s birth renamed after him in 2006 while the Naomh Fionnbarra clubhouse also has Whelan s Manchester United membership card 3 Contents 1 Club career 2 Legacy 3 Honours 4 See also 5 ReferencesClub career Edit nbsp Whelan back row far left in a Manchester United team photo in 1957Whelan began his career with Home Farm before joining Manchester United as an 18 year old in 1953 He was capped four times for the Republic of Ireland national team including a surprising 4 1 victory against Holland in Rotterdam in 1956 but did not score 4 His brother John played for Shamrock Rovers and Drumcondra F C and his eldest brother Christy played for Transport F C He made his first appearance for United during the 1954 55 season and quickly became a regular first team player and went on to make 98 first team appearances in four seasons at United scoring 52 goals He was United s top scorer in the 1956 57 season scoring 26 goals in the First Division and 33 in all competitions as United won their second successive league title and reached the semi finals of the European Cup and FA Cup Such was the strength of the competition in the United first team that he was soon being kept out of the side by Bobby Charlton He travelled with the United team to Belgrade for the fateful European Cup tie against Red Star Belgrade the day before the Munich air disaster but did not play in the game 5 Legacy Edit nbsp Whelan s grave in Glasnevin Cemetery decorated with a Manchester United scarfOn 8 December 2006 the railway bridge on Fassaugh Road Dowth Avenue junction in Cabra Dublin 7 close to Dalymount Park was renamed in his honour The campaign to have the bridge renamed was initiated and organised by members of the Cabra GAA club Naomh Fionbarra and sanctioned by Dublin City Council in early 2006 It is close to St Attracta Road the street in which he was born The unveiling ceremony was performed by Whelan s Manchester United teammate at the time of the aircrash Sir Bobby Charlton On 4 February 2008 the Irish national postal body An Post issued a 55c postage stamp for the 50th anniversary of the Munich air disaster showing a photo of Liam Whelan 6 Whelan is buried in Glasnevin Cemetery 7 Honours EditManchester United 8 Football League First Division 2 1955 56 1956 57 FA Charity Shield 2 1956 1957See also EditList of people on the postage stamps of IrelandReferences Edit Junior Notes Dublin Evening Telegraph 5 May 1924 p 4 Liam Whelan a Talent Never To Be Forgotten Irish Independent 6 February 1988 p 16 Remembering Busby Babe Whelan and his GAA connection Hogan Stand 6 February 2021 Eire Triumph Staggers Continent Daily Mirror 11 May 1956 p 16 United Front Liam Whelan Archived from the original on 17 June 2012 Retrieved 6 November 2012 Irish Stamps Collectors News 1 08 PDF An Post Archived from the original PDF on 21 July 2011 Retrieved 4 February 2008 The lost genius of Irish football Remembering Liam Whelan Dublin s Busby Babe The 42 6 February 2018 Retrieved 14 February 2018 Billy Whelan mufcinfo com Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Billy Whelan amp oldid 1169340937, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
