Stan Cullis was an absolute legend who dedicated his life to the Wolves. The manner of his dismissal was a total bloody disgrace!
How ironic is it that on the day the greatest ever man in the history of Wolves would have been 100 years old we get rid of a man who followed in his footsteps? That's where similarity ends because Walter Zenga isn't fit as a fellow manager to tie the laces of the boots that made those great steps!
Stan Cullis was an absolute legend who dedicated his life to the Wolves. The manner of his dismissal was a total bloody disgrace!
Was at the bookstore the other day and saw a book titled "Inverting the Pyramid" - all about footy tactics and strategy through the ages. Cullis was featured heavily in the England chapter. Author believes that he was alot more tactically savvy than given credit for from mainstream perceptions in England.
The Book "Stan Cullis - the Iron Manager" by Jim Holden is a good insight into the wisdom and honesty of the man. This is arguably best read after "The Major - The Life and Times of Frank Buckley" by Patrick A Quirke as Stan Cullis was much inspired by Frank Buckley. The Charles Hughes coaching manual is another interesting book which goes a long way to understanding the theories of the long ball game.
I find it interesting that many of the older generation who rubbish the long ball game would also argue what a superb footballer Johnny Haynes was. Having seen him play on a number of occasions, his ability to hit a 60-70 yard crossfield ball with such pace, weight and accuracy that a running winger didn't even have to check his stride was a joy to behold.
Stan Cullis built great teams at Wolves and one could argue that whilst Haynes was a brilliant player - we had Peter Broadbent, a Cullis steal from Brentford. Such was Stan Cullis' perception and influence that of the eight players that featured in all three Championship winning seasons in the 1950's, six of them were signed by him - Eddie Stuart, Eddie Clamp, Ron Flowers, Bill Slater, Peter Broadbent and Norman Deeley. The other two were Billy Wright and Jimmy Mullen.
I will stop there as I just love this subject and could go on and on. Suffice it to say that, in my view, Stan Cullis was by far the best manager the Wolves have ever had - and he wasn't a bad player either!