Stan Mortensen

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Personal information
Stan Mortensen
Full name	Stanley Harding Mortensen
Date of birth	May 26, 1921
Place of birth	South Shields, England
Date of death	May 22, 1991 (aged 69)
Nickname	Morty
Playing position	Centre forward
Senior clubs¹
Years	Club	App (Gls)*
1946-1955 1955-1957 1957-1958 1958-1959 1960-1962	Blackpool Hull City Southport Bath City Lancaster City	317 (197) 042 0(18) 036 0(10) 00? 00(?) 00? 00(?)
National team²
1947-1953	England	025 0(23)
Teams managed
1967-1969	Blackpool
¹ Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of January 19, 2007. ² National team caps and goals correct as of January 19, 2007. * Appearances (Goals)

Stanley "Stan" Harding Mortensen (May 26, 1921 — May 22, 1991) was an English professional footballer, most famous for his part in the 1953 FA Cup Final (subsequently known as "The Matthews Final"), in which he became the first and - thus far - only player ever to score a hat-trick in an FA Cup Final at Wembley. He was also both the first player to score for England in a FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign and the first England player to score in the tournament proper.

South Shields-born Mortensen went to war in 1939 as a wireless operator and overcame an injury - sustained when his RAF bomber crashed, leaving him as the only survivor - to become one of England's best post-war players.

During the war, he scored dozens of goals before making a strange piece of history by switching teams to play for Wales when they needed a reserve during a game against England in 1943.

On May 25, 1947, Mortensen made his full England debut against Portugal and immediately announced himself on the scene by grabbing four goals in a 10-0 win.^[1] The next year, Mortensen played all six England internationals and scored seven goals, including a hat-trick against Sweden. In 1953, he played his part - and scored - in England's mauling at the hands of Hungary, but this was a rare blotch on an otherwise outstanding record.

In a playing career spent mostly with Blackpool, Mortensen scored 197 league goals in 317 games. By the end of his career, he had played twenty-five times for England and scored 23 goals.

Between 1945 and 1950, Mortensen scored in twelve consecutive rounds of the FA Cup, including the Final in 1948.

After nine years with Blackpool, Mortensen went on to play for Hull City, Southport, Bath City and, after coming out of retirement, Lancaster City. After retiring for good, he returned to Blackpool as manager for the years spanning 1967 to 1969. He also auctioned his football medals in order to help Blackpool through a tough spell.^{[citation needed]}

Mortensen topped the First Division goalscoring charts in 1951, with 30 goals. His most famous performance occurred two years later in the FA Cup Final of 1953, when he helped Blackpool to a 4-3 win against Bolton, after being 3-1 down, by scoring a hat-trick. Mortensen's third goal came with just a minute left in the game, and Bill Perry's injury-time goal sealed the victory.

Many players have scored twice in FA Cup finals since Morty's unique achievement without getting that elusive third goal. Manchester United's Bryan Robson had a golden opportunity to equal the feat in the replay of the 1983 final but, having scored twice, he passed up the chance to take a penalty awarded later in the game, with Arnold Muhren instead scoring from the spot.

[edit] Death and legacy

Mortensen died four days shy of his 70th birthday, on May 22, 1991, the very day his beloved Blackpool reached Wembley for the first time since that famous afternoon in 1953. They had beaten Scunthorpe United 3-2 on aggregate to reach the Fourth Division play-off final. A minute's silence was held before the final against Torquay United.

On his death, it was said, "I suppose they'll call it the Matthews funeral,"^{[citation needed]} in reference to Mortensen's overshadowing by Stanley Matthews after the 1953 FA Cup Final.

In 2003, Mortensen was posthumously inducted into the English Football Hall of Fame in recognition of his talent and achievements.

On August 23, 2005, a statue of Mortensen was unveiled (by his widow, Jean, and former Blackpool teammate Jimmy Armfield) in front of Bloomfield Road's new North Stand, which now bears his name.^[2]

[edit] Honours

Blackpool

FA Cup winner: 1952/53
Lancashire Cup winner: 1953/54

[edit] Trivia

The month of May became associated with much of his life. During May, he: was born, signed professionally, made his England debut, won the FA Cup, and died.^[3]

[edit] Notes

[edit] External links

Preceded by Ron Suart	Blackpool F.C. manager 1967-1969	Succeeded by Les Shannon

	England squad - 1950 FIFA World Cup
DF Aston \| MF Baily \| FW Bentley \| MF Cockburn \| MF Dickinson \| GK Ditchburn \| DF Eckersley \| FW Finney \| MF Hughes \| FW Mannion \| FW Matthews \| FW Milburn \| FW Mortensen \| FW Mullen \| MF Nicholson \| DF Ramsey \| DF Scott \| DF Taylor \| MF Watson \| GK Williams \| DF Wright \| Coach: Winterbottom