A classic football shirt with more than a lot of meaning featured on BBC TV show The Repair Shop recently.
A Manchester United shirt, worn in the 1958 FA Cup Final by Ronnie Cope barely months after the Munich Air Disaster, was brought to the shop in faded condition.
Textile expert Rebecca Bissonnet skilfully restored the faded shirt and bringing it back to “Man Utd red” after Cope’s daughter Sara Johnson brought it to the repair shop.
It had been severely faded through sunlight over the years and being used, (even for painting!), with holes and a ripped label. Sara had taken it with her when she moved out of the family home and displayed it in a frame at the top of her staircase.
Sara told the BBC that Cope should have been on the flight to Munich and had his ticket and bag packed, only for a late change to the team due to injuries meaning he was no longer required, and Geoff Bent went instead, and he sadly perished in the disaster.
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The story of the Man Utd shirt restored on the Repair Shop
The shirt featured the Red Devils’ old badge and the words Wembley 1958 embroidered on the crest.
Sara said: “I originally found it in my dad’s garage in a paint tin when I was about eight.
“I asked my dad what it was and he just went ‘Oh, that’s my United shirt.’
“When I asked why it was in the paint tin he just said ‘I do some painting in it.’
“So I brought it into the house and wore it as a nightie for a while.
“My dad was proud to see it there and when people asked about it, it meant I got to speak about him.”
Ronnie Cope and Manchester United
Crewe-born Cope, who died at the age of 81 in 2016, made 93 league appearances for United and also played for Luton Town.
He had signed for United as an amateur in 1950 and turned professional the following year, though had to wait until 1956 to make his debut, against Arsenal at Highbury.
The story of his signing for United highlights the different era.
Sara explained: “He was playing out and his sister came running over to him and said ‘Ronnie Ronnie you’d better come home, there’s a Rolls Royce outside – and it was Matt Busby wanting to sign him. They gave him a joining fee of £400, and off he went.”
United lost the 1958 FA Cup final 2-0 to Bolton, with Nat Lofthouse scoring a brace.
You can watch the episode on BBC iPlayer here.
