A true Irish and English hero, Jack Charlton

Ahead of the big game next week we can’t think of a better time to look back to man who is a hero on both sides of the Irish Sea, Jack Charlton.

Long before Big Sam, Big Brother and, er, Big Trouble in Little China, there was Big Jack. A living legend in England thanks to being a member of the 1966 World Cup winning squad, he arrived on Irish shores in 1986 after a selection process that was more like the election of a new Pope than a new international manager.

In the end the former Leeds star held off the challenge of Bob Paisley to become the first ever non-Irish boss of the national team. With a squad that had been desperately unlucky not to make it to the last few tournaments, the stage was set for Charlton to break that duck and become a national treasure in the process.

His very first campaign brought success, as he guided Ireland to Euro ’88 in Germany. A bit like sex and The Late Late Show, Ireland had it before Charlton arrived, but he really pushed soccer to the front of the national conversation.

The trip to Germany produced iconic songs (Joxer goes to Stuttgart to name just one), iconic moments (Houghton’s header, Whelan’s volley to name just two) and an entire generation of soccer mad kids were converted for life.

Italia ’90 might have been an even bigger deal as the bandwagon grew and while the style of the team was not one for the purist out there (a view strongly expressed by Eamon Dunphy) the team were the story of that summer, with the quarter-final exit to Italy remaining our best ever performance at a major tournament.

After the euphoria of 1990 things began to unravel a little but there was one more big trip, this time to USA in 1994, another journey with all the usual elements of an Irish major tournament appearance. There were highs (beating eventual finalists Italy) and lows (struggling in the heat to everyone else) and a massive travelling mob of suppirt, known as Jack's Army of course.

Through it all Charlton remained the dominant figure in Irish sport. A bona-fide superstar during his tenure he had bars named after him, became a free man of Dublin and probably never paid for a pint for at least a full decade.

Charlton was also in charge the last time we played England, the infamous Lansdowne riot game in 1995. Charlton condemned the English hooligans at the time, saying it: “I have seen a lot in football but nothing like this.”

When he left the job after failure to make it to Euro 96 in his native England it was a difficult, but probably correct, decision.

Even now, close to 20 years after he left his post, he arguably remains more famous in Ireland than he does in England, where he won so much for club and country, perhaps because of the even greater fame of his brother Bobby.

Now aged 78, any mention of Jack generally brings a broad smile to Irish football fan’s faces. The rather direct style and occasional shabby treatment of certain players has been largely forgotten and the memories of great days and great adventures remain.

And on Wednesday night, we should all take a minute or two to remember Big Jack. He had a few good days at Wembley in his time...