BORN ON THIS DAY: CHARLIE HURLEY
Born on this day in Cork in 1936 is Sunderland’s Player of the Century, ‘The King’ Charlie Hurley.
Hurley got his first professional contract at the age of 16 for Millwall, a club he went on to make 105 appearances for. The no-nonsense defender quickly made an impression at the Lions and would make 16 appearances in his first season, which would be followed up by making 38 league appearances in his second.
In September 1957, on the back of his impressive form at Millwall, Hurley signed for Sunderland for a fee of around £18,000. His debut didn’t go to plan however, as a 7-0 thrashing at Blackpool would start his Sunderland career. However, Charlie would soon start to make a big impact on Wearside, and was the man who first coined former manager Alan Brown’s nickname “The Bomber.”
Hurley guided the lads to promotion to the top flight in the 1963/64 season, after narrowly missing out on promotion the two years prior: “That day, when we did our lap of honour, was probably the greatest moment of my entire career. We were all sitting in the dressing room afterwards when Syd Collings, our chairman, came in and as he opened the door and all you could hear was ‘Charlie, Charlie, Charlie…’ and Syd said ‘Look lads, you’ll have to go back out again.’ To go out to that kind of call, that kind of support was incredible.”
It would also be a good season for Hurley specifically, as he came second to Bobby Moore in the FWA Footballer of the Year award. He was part of one of the most settled, and most famous, defences in Sunderland’s history, which included notable names such as: Cecil Irwin, Len Ashurst, Martin Harvey and Jimmy McNab.
The King was known for his headed goals and scored his first goal in a 1-1 Boxing Day draw against Sheffield United in 1960. He was one of the most loyal and brave players in English football, and stories are still told to this day of his quality,
Hurley’s incredible twelve year stay on Wearside would come to an end away to Burley in 1969. The Irishman finished his career with two year spell at Bolton Wanderers, making forty-three appearances for The Trotters. Hurley spent five years with Reading where he would gain a promotion with them. During his time with the Royals, he would return to Sunderland for a 1973 FA Cup tie. He received a tumultuous reception from the home fans that almost defied belief.
It was only fitting that on the day of Roker Park’s last match, ‘King Charlie’ was the person who dug up the centre circle which was replanted at the SoL. He sadly passed away on the 22nd April 2024, aged 87.
