Gil Merrick

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Gilbert 'Gil' Harold Merrick (26 January 1922 - ) is an English footballer and football manager.

Considered one of the best goalkeepers in the UK during the mid-1950s, Gil was one in a long line of great Birmingham City keepers which included the likes of Johnny Schofield and Harry Hibbs. Merrick was a brilliant handler of the ball, he was misfortunate to be the last line of defence against the superb Hungarians, and gained the nickname 'Mister Thirteen', due to the fact he had conceded 13 goals during the two games. Merrick played 700 times for the Blues, making 170 appearances during the Second World War, and was capped 23 times by England.

In May 1960, Merrick took the managerial position at Birmingham City, replacing Pat Beasley after the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup defeat to FC Barcelona. Under Merrick, Blues reached the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup again, this time losing to AS Roma in the final, and also took Blues to the final of the League Cup, where they defeated their local rivals, Aston Villa, over two legs. In the league, Blues failed to make their mark on the top flight of English Football, and Merrick parted company with Birmingham in June 1964. He was replaced by Joe Mallett.