The Last Years
George
once said of himself "I was born with a
great gift, and sometimes that comes with a
destructive streak".
This destructive streak manifested itself
early on in George's career. With his good
looks, impeccable style and women falling at
his feet, his pop star lifestyle quickly
overtook his career as a footballer. But
ultimately the alcohol and wild nights spent
partying would shorten his career and lead
to severe health problems later on.
After leaving Manchester United in 1970
he turned out for a number of clubs and
enjoyed a productive period in the USA.
Although not as fit as he was in his prime
his incredible skills were still undisputed.
In late 1976 he returned to England and
along with Bobby Moore turned out for
Fulham, playing 42 games in two seasons and
scoring eight goals.
In 1979 he made a scoring debut for
Hibernian. At the time the club was lucky to
attract 8,000 to the gates but on the day
George made his debut, over 20,000 fans
turned up - just to say years later, "I was
there!"
The humour that followed George
throughout his career continued at Hibs. In
a game against Rangers George was constantly
abused by the visiting fans who at one point
threw a few beer cans in his direction.
When he went to take a corner, George simply
picked a can up and seemed to take a drink
from it. The abuse stopped to be replaced by
laughter at both ends of the stadium.
His last game for Hibernian was a 2-0 win
against Falkirk after which he returned to
the United States and the San Jose
Earthquakes.
In 1983 George finally ended his football
career with Bournemouth, although he did go
on to play in numerous charity and friendly
matches.
In the 1990's he established himself as a
successful sports commentator with Sky
Sports and a popular after dinner speaker.
In December 2001 he received an honourary
doctorate from Queens University and in
April 2002, Freedom of the Borough of
Castlereagh.
During this time George's health took a
turn for the worst, as years of heavy
drinking finally resulted in severe liver
damage. A liver transplant in 2002 gave new
hope but its success was to be short lived.
Once again personal problems drove George
back to the bottle and this time he was
unable to beat it.
On 1st October, 2005, George entered the
Cromwell hospital in London with flu-like
symptoms. Over the next weeks, his condition
deteriorated and on 25th November,
surrounded by his close family and friends,
he lost his battle for life.
In keeping with his wishes, George came
home to Belfast for the very last time and
was buried beside his mother in Roselawn
cemetery. One hundred thousand people lined
the streets and the grounds of Stormont to
say a fond farewell to their greatest local
sporting hero and millions more around the
world watched as a legend was laid to rest.
In the years and months leading up to his
death, George was passionate about raising
funds for liver research. Alcohol addiction
was something that he himself could not
conquer but he was determined that he would
do all he could to prevent others from
following the same path. Through the
Foundation, set up in his name, his wishes
can now be fulfilled. As George, reflecting
on his own liver transplant and on pledging
his support to raise funds, said "This is
one way to say thank you to everybody."
In
six magical seasons with United George scored 115 goals
in 290 games - six in one game!