'He lifted dark clouds after Munich' - Manchester United bid farewell to the legendary Denis Law
Manchester United fans gathered at Old Trafford to bid farewell to the legendary Denis Law on Tuesday.
Law's funeral procession drove slowly down Sir Matt Busby Way and briefly stopped by the Holy Trinity statue, where Law is immortalised along with Sir Bobby Charlton and George Best.
The King of the Stretford End passed away last month and was laid to rest at Manchester Cathedral after going past Old Trafford for a final time. The Manchester Evening News were at the ground and someone was spotted with a tear in their eye, which showed how much Law meant to supporters.
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United fan Adrian watched Law's debut for the club and said: "My first game was in 1959 away at Elland Road after Munich. Then they signed Denis Law and I wanted to go see him.
"My dad brought me across the Pennines to see Denis make his debut against West Brom in 1962 and he lifted all the clouds, the dark clouds after Munich. He brought light to the stadium again.
"His career here was amazing and he's the only Scotsman to have the Ballon d'Or. He was just a magnificent guy and I met him around three times. He was lovely, funny and a great guy."
Nick also spoke ahead of the funeral cortège's arrival and added: "My late father was a massive fan of Denis Law and he's part of our history and a culture, so I really felt I wanted to come and pay respects today. People sometimes just think of the Fergie years, but there's a lot more history.
"Even today, someone said to me 'who is Denis Law?' when I said I was going to come down to Old Trafford. That person was younger, but it just shows you, if you'd said Gary Neville or Ryan Giggs, they'd know. Denis was one of the last of that generation, a golden generation of footballers."
A fan unfurled a Scotland flag as the funeral procession arrived and respectful applause welcomed the hearse. "Law 10," read the floral arrangement. United academy representatives, all dressed in smart club suits, stood beside the Holy Trinity and paid their respects to a club icon.
Tyler Fredricson, captain of the Under-21s, laid a wreath on behalf of the academy and the U21s' manager, Travis Binnion, spoke to the MEN once the procession had left for the cathedral.
"We're a special club and, unfortunately, in recent times we've lost Bobby Charlton. We also had the Munich memorial last week and then we came out today for Denis Law," said Binnion.
"The lads need to understand the history and we recognise that we're not in the most successful period of the club's history, so some of these boys, if they've not grown up as Manchester United fans - and they are young - will have never watched these players. They need to understand the heritage.
"They need to understand the success and what they're trying to follow, albeit it's very hard to achieve. So alongside paying our respects, it's understanding the history, so they understand what they're representing because to just be told it is not always the best way to learn it."
Binnion continued: "Today was close to the Munich anniversary and we've also had Kath Phipps' funeral recently, so really it's been a sad time in terms of key people associated with the club.
"The players knew it was upcoming, they know for these sorts of events that we wear the suits and appear right. The U18s have the Youth Cup game tomorrow, so we decided it would just be the U21s, the staff and a couple of injured players. We moved the training forward so we could attend."
United have lost Law and Sir Bobby Charlton in the space of 18 months - but they will never be forgotten. Future generations of fans will be taught their respective legacies and United's academy staff will continue to discuss the club's rich history with youngsters who dream of reaching the first-team.
The Munich Air Disaster was a nightmare but United recovered, just as Sir Matt Busby predicted. Law was crucial to the rebuild and his 46-goal haul in 1963-64 remains a club record.
“Grab every opportunity 100 per cent because you only get one shot at life, so make the most of it. I would like to relive it all again," said Law in an interview with the Press and Journal in 2021.
The Lawman certainly made the most of his life across 84 years. May he rest in peace.