15/3/2006

Leigh Roose was a prince among footballers - and a prince among playboys. And now the extraordinary life and times of the glamorous goalkeeper, who came from Holt, near Wrexham, are to be revealed in a new book.

His great skill and showmanship endeared him to fans while his off-field antics would have put George Best in the shade. Roose’s dashing good looks and mischievous charm made him a big favourite with the ladies in Edwardian London.

In 1905, when the Daily Mail published a world XI to play another planet at football he was the undisputed choice for the goalkeeper’s jersey The paper also described him as London’s most eligible bachelor, second only to the legendary Surrey and England cricketer, Jack Hobbs.

That same year he was in the top 10 list of the most recognizable faces and among his many conquests was the music hall superstar Marie Lloyd.

One of his best friends was another all-time Welsh footballing great, Billy Meredith. The wing wizard, who came from Chirk, described Roose as “the prince of goalkeepers.�

But his life was tragically cut short when he died in the trenches on the Somme during the First World War.

Roose’s star was still in the ascendant when he played in a historic match between Wales and Ireland at the Racecourse Ground in Wrexham on April 2, 1906. It was captured for posterity by the film pioneers, Mitchell and Kenyon, in the first surviving film of an international football game.

A plaque to honour the film will be unveiled at the Racecourse on the centenary of the big occasion. The plaque will become part of the North Wales Film and Television Trail being organised by the Wales Screen Commission.

Following an appeal to find relatives of those who played in the game, members of Roose’s family are planning to attend the special ceremony.

His nephew, Dr Cecil Jenkins, who lives in Shrewsbury, will be 101 in May and has vivid memories of his famous uncle who won a total of 24 Welsh caps. Dr Jenkins won’t be able to attend the unveiling ceremony but his two sons, David and Nick, are hoping to be there on the day.

According to the retired consultant anesthetist, Roose’s glamorous life was in complete contrast to his upbringing as the son of a Presbyterian minister in Holt. He said: “The first thing I remember is him taking my mother and me just before the First World War to lunch at Scott’s restaurant in Piccadilly. He was in full morning kit with a top hat – he was real man about town. I was only about five or six and it was very exciting for a young boy like me.

“He was a medical student but he never qualified and he apparently led a very glamorous life. He was playing for Stoke at that time. He was working at a hospital in London and one match day he missed the train so he hired a special train, an engine and carriage, and handed the bill to the club.

“I’m glad that the film is being remembered because I was very proud of him. It was tragic that he, like so many others, was killed at such a young age.�

Dr Jenkins’s son, Nick, recounted the story of an astonishing match during Roose’s time at Sunderland. “There was one classic match at a time when Newcastle were the best side in the country – and Sunderland beat them 9-1. It went down in the annals of Wearside and I think it pains the Toon Army to this day.�

Sunderland had wanted to lay on a testimonial match for Roose but they weren’t allowed to do so because he was an amateur. Instead, he was presented with a magnificent illuminated address on behalf of all the people of Sunderland saying how much the appreciated his contribution.

Mr Jenkins said: “It was one of his major clubs and when he joined them they clearly felt he had kept them up in the First Division because things had been looking dicey. That is a great accolade.

“He was very much a larger than life character who played to the gallery. When a carriage picked him up from the station to take him to the game, schoolboys would run after it.�

Top sportswriter Spencer Vignes has written Roose’s biography, Lost in France, which is due to be published later this year.

He said: “Leigh was the most famous footballer of his generation but his legacy seems to have died a death not only because he was part of that generation that was wiped out by the First World War.

“Leigh was the prototype for the modern-day goalkeeper. Up until he came along, goalkeepers were seen as more or less cannon fodder by opposition forwards. There was a technique called rushing goalkeepers where one guy would run at the goalkeeper and knock him down flat and another guy would put the ball into the empty net.

“He was the first guy to fight fire with fire by giving as good as he got and off the back of that he devised his own way of playing the game which was a cross between rugby and football. The rules in those days allowed goalkeepers to walk or run with the ball to the half way line before releasing it and Leigh had such a tremendous kick and long throw that he could easily put the ball in the opposition’s penalty area.

“The Football Association got so fed up with him that they changed the laws of the game which meant that goalkeepers could only carry the ball in their own penalty area.

“He was an amateur footballer at a time when the game was going professional and the FA were constantly trying to investigate his expenses claims which were huge. All he was supposed to get was travelling expenses for the day plus some other bits and pieces. Leigh was so good at what he did and he was so famous in Edwardian Britain that clubs recouped what they paid him with the money they made on the gate.

“It was worth it for the coverage they got because he would attract thousands more people who wanted to see him in action because he was real showman.

“He would talk to the crowd and he was a fantastic gymnast so he would often perform acrobatics on the cross bar when the ball was at the other end. The expenses weren’t just train fares. They paid the rent for his apartment in London and they paid for the finest suits from Savile Row.�

“You can’t believe half the things that he got up to. He was like a Boys’ Own character – he was popular with his team mates and very popular with the ladies. He was a real character and it’s just an amazing story. Even in the days before television and radio, word of mouth meant that Leigh Roose was huge.�

“He was a genuine eccentric. There were certainly elements of George Best in his character because he liked a tipple and he liked the ladies.

“In terms of goalkeepers, the only one in the modern era who came close was the former Manchester United goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel who also changed the way the game was played.�

Richard Coombs, the Film Liaison Manager of the Wales Screen Commission, in North Wales, said: “Leigh Roose was a footballing legend and it is fitting that he played in the historic match that will be commemorated at the Racecourse. I feel sure the occasion will be a marvellous tribute to all that is best about Welsh football.