Sort by time | Sort by thread (beta)

Link to this comment:

Share to:
see all

All Comments (395)

Sign In or Sign Up now to post a comment!
  • Heroes to me both; but as a school goalkeeper and then an amateur keeper in the 70's and 80's, my opinion is this: Once Banks threw the ball in the air, the ball is in play as a live ball. Best didn't kick it out of his hands, which would have been a foul. The goal should have stood, and if I'm not mistaken in this incident, the ruling from the ref was "un-sportsman like conduct". Bullshit.

    It was a brilliantly opportunistic goal, and Banks' reaction was pure embarrassment, rightly so.

  • Once the ball leaves Bank's hands it is in play, perfectly legal goal.

  • technically, by modern rules, northern ireland would have had a free kick inside the box after 2 seconds, following the illegal back pass

  • @LIVINGONTHEDOLE Actualy the rule didnt apply back then

  • it was disallowed because even back then england got preferential treatment...

    4th in the world my ass

  • @LIVINGONTHEDOLE Maybe you have been hidden away for a few years but preferential treatment doesn't exist within England....

  • Looks like a perfectly good goal to me.

    Best was the best.

  • Too many bloody rules!! Its even worse now and both soccer and rugby are becoming games for sissys!! HARDEN UP!!!

  • so was it a goal or not?

  • Georgie he knows BEST!

  • It's a goal.....

    

  • should have been a goal.Banks may as well have handed George the ball.

    i wonder what nationality the ref was?

    just sayin.

  • @bumblescum64 probably welsh

  • dick

  • I was there that day, Really young but can still remember it, brilliant goal.

  • you do not close goalkeeper down like that what is it rugby??

  • That was a fair goal. The interpretation of some of the rules of football are really stupid.

  • he did the same to Pat Jennings 1 week later and it was allowed

  • why do they disallowed the goal.........?

  • I remember Thierry Henry did this against Blackburn and Brad Friedel in 2004/2005 i think and it didn't stand.

  • Cheeky genius!

  • the goal was correct, stupid referee

    Love u George <3

  • you're all missing the point. It's not about the back pass rule, or about dancing around in front of the keeper.

    Although the ball is in the air when he kicks it, that movement of the keeper tossing the ball up to kick it out is considered as "one movement" the ball is therefore, according to the rules "still in his hands", and as you all know, one is not allowed to kick the ball out of the goalies hands. And that, my friends, is the reason the goal was disallowed.

  • made Banks look a right mug

  • George actually did the same thing to Pat Jennings the following month when Spurs faced Manchester United and scored.

  • Whether it was a valid goal is really irrelevant. Enjoy it for what it is. A lovely cheeky piece of skill from a player of simply superb ability and ambition. You know it is quite remarkable but Best never ever scored another "goal" for NI after this one. Certainly the most captivating charismatic presence ever seen on an English pitch.

  • If Gordon did'nt think it was a goal,why did he run back to try and stop him?? lol. I met mr banks about 4 wks back and shook the hand that saved Pele's header,told him he is a legend.....nice meeting and nice fella !!!

  • @uglybus7 Regardless of what he thinks the ruling should be, he needs to play until the whistle is blown. Not chasing a ball down just because you think a call should be made is foolish. Players are taught to play the whistle from a very young age.

  • @blingdog9 i agree and it should have stood!!!

  • I do this all the time on FIFA and those goals still count!

  • Look for this pdf at fifa.com: lotg_en_55753.pdf

    "A player must be penalised for playing in a dangerous manner if

    he kicks or attempts to kick the ball when the goalkeeper is in the

    process of releasing it"

    Brilliant idea... excellect execution... outside the rules.

  • I'm in love with the gawa jersey just then..@0:16

  • As I remember this, the ref did not see the incident. Think about it: Banks (probably the best goalie in the world at the time) has the ball safely in his hands for a punt. The ref expects the kick and is running up the field with his back turned to Best and Banks. Suddenly, the ball's in the net! He talks to the English players (but not to Best!). Naturally, he assumes that Best has fouled Banks.

  • 2 legends playing against eachother! The best player ever vs the best gola keeper ever! What a age,!

  • i was at the game with my dad always remember this.could,nt believe how high banks was throwing the ball in the air to kick it.....guys around me in the stand were saying hes setting himself up.so of course mr best took advantage.....in todays game no goal but back then it should of stood...forget the drink and the women george was a footballer a genuius born to early what happenned to him would not happen today with his talent.i think a little bit of this belfast boy died on the 25 nov 2005

  • It's a goal. Sorry Gordon

  • hahaha what a great goal! and the best part is that George Best looks so inocent!

  • copy and paste for are we country, we may not be the best team in the worl but we have had few of the best players like George Best, Norman Whiteside and Gerry Armstrong, wenever we lose a great player one new one is born like goerge best left then came along healy so many yearS later, from ones ashes grows another RIP GEORGE U FILLED ARE HEARTS WITH LOVE PASHION AND HOPE RIP.

  • i'm English and that was a goal George Best at his best.

  • The laws of the game state that the keeper is in possession even when he tosses it up to kick it. Correct decision, then and now.

  • IL Goal è valido!...perchè l'arbitro lo ha annullato???...MITICO GEORGE BEST!!!

  • The rule should be another player can't interfere with the ball until it has touched the foot of the goalkeeper.

  • exactly one reason i like football one great player humilates another

  • Ok, but in the "olden days" they could catch the ball,drop and catch it again???

  • 0:02 Keepier can't catch the ball into his hand from the pass of his teammate.

  • @Kisiel7 They could 'in the olden days'.

  • @Kisiel7 he could back then

  • BRILLIANT! Perhaps the best footballer that ever lived, let his life be a lesson for youngsters.

    DON'T RIDE THE LAURELS! Always make sense of your actions, never let your self control be controled by nought then self.

    Poor George,

  • Tossing the ball in the air to kick the ball is considered one motion. If you interrupt this, the referee may award you with a yellow card for unsportsmanlike behaviour.

    I'm not sure when this rule was applied, but i remember Ole Gunnar Solskjær scoring a goal this way, which was also disallowed.

  • RIP George, thanks for the memories you genius

  • Comment removed

  • goal should stand. England just cant face the fact that George Best made banks look like a complete moron...

  • He should have booted it right into his face...

    

  • If only Best knew how good he was..

  • @rydeoride If he did, he wouldn't have been as good.

  • @surfguy87 haha yh maybee your right..

  • It should've been allowed. PS - let's not talk about Diego didn't he assfuck you brits enough?

  • Jajajajajaaa

  • In those days according the the rules it was a goal. Banks could legally not have claimed obstruction as he was free to clear the ball, he just failed to bank ( no pun ) on Bests lightening reflexes. Never the less Banks was the best goalkeeper England has ever had by far & Best was the best outfield player the world had ever had, including Pele, Eusabio, Platini & Norman Corner.

  • @ALBIONTYKE I seem to remember at the time it was widely thought the goal should have stood, but Best was certainly not better than Pelé- he had great talent and was a brilliant exciting entertainer but Pelé achieved so much more.

  • @ALBIONTYKE Norman Corner, hahaha

  • It was disallowed because it's a foul by Best on Banks. That's it.

  • @AlexR4444 what foul? no obstruction piss off

  • @johnsonjarvisjervis A player isn't allowed to take the ball from the keeper's hands. When he is kicking the ball this counts as still being in his possession. It's a basic rule that has existed for a long time. The amount of people who don't know about it, including yourself I presume, is astonishing considering how obvious it is that were it not to be unlawful everybody would be doing it.

  • jajajjaja que grandee!!!!!

  • this is not foul it's a goal !!!

  • The rules have changed since then. You can't dance around in front of the keeper like that when he has the ball in his hands. That's some mickey mouse bullshit.

  • @jeroliver people forget things like rule changes,you're right

  • @jeroliver no the rules haven't changed but its extremely unsportsmanlike so it is looked upon very badly

  • @jeroliver The ball was also passed to the keeper and he picked it up! I thought that was always a rule!

  • @colliehauls The backpass rule didn't come into existence until 1993.

  • @jeroliver georgie was a lion. you are the mouse

  • @jeroliver what the fuck are you talking about?? there are still things like this that are happening in football,,even more funny and with more "micky mouse bullshit"

  • @jeroliver Back in the day, long before this, you could pick up the keeper with the ball and run him into the net.

  • @jeroliver: That ain't Mickey Mouse bullshit. That's the way men played the game before. The keeper was just another player, except he could use his hands. You could steal the ball from them, just as you could steal from anyone else. This goal should not have been disallowed. There was nothing in the rules prohibiting it back then.

  • George Best was the greatest talented football player ever. He had moves that neither Pele nor Maradona nor Cruyff nor Zidane could match. The moves this man had were immortal. Pele came in the right time and in the right place by having legends like Garrincha , Jarzhinio, Tostao, Carlos Alberto, Rivelino, Gerson, Felix behind him. Who did George Best have? He was solo for his National squad. Put Pele on the Albanian national squad (for example) and no one would know him today.

  • bias ref

  • George (Best) Forever RIP You Legend (1946 - 2005) Unforgetable miriaculous Person Nice Guy As well . Like For Best

  • Is that Gordon Banks doing his best clown impersonation?

  • If it isn't an illegal move, to interfer with distribution, then couldn't a team just make a wall in front of the keeper so he can't hit it anywhere?

  • @SebJS74 you could but he'd simply take a step back and kick it over the top then you lose a few players

  • @DevilChaseTha Well, what if the wall takes a step forward, until it gets to the point where he's on his line or penalized for not distributing it. As far as I know, its an illegal move.

  • @SebJS74 mate are you english? he'd jsut run to the side, it only takes one second to boot the ball, in reality it wouldn't work

  • @DevilChaseTha Yes I am, does that mean I have a biased view? No. I think George Best was amazing. What I'm saying is that as far as I know, it isn't allowed. I've heard of multiple cases of it, such as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. I know people who are referees, and my dad played for the England Youth and Sheffield Wednesday as a goalkeeper, yet all of these agree with the idea that it is against the rules. Now if you want to use the fact that I am English against me, so be it. It sounds stupid.

  • @SebJS74 Gary Crosby Nottingham Forest did it against Man City in 1990. youtube it!

  • its considered ungentlemanly conduct you knobs its actually in the football rule book and it has been for a long time look it up you fools

  • I love the incredible amount of referees appearing and commenting here (morons, it's actually legal). Such retards.

    Get your referee license then talk.

  • perfectly good goal, no contact, nothing IN THE LAWS AT THE TIME prevented that. The ref disallowed it because he was running down the field, back to play and didnt see it/ didnt understand how it could have been done legally. Incidentally, Best describes in his memoirs how he studied Bank's distribution style and saw how he tossed it high in the air prior to kicking.

  • Actually, it's a right call because it's illegal for a player to try to get in front of the keeper like that. There's a reason why you don't see players do that.

  • Defintley should have counted. George was so quick to be able to do that it was amazing.

  • I can't believe people who watch football their entire lives would be such morons, this is clearly illegal then and today.

  • Wasn't a goal under the rules at the time, nor would it be a goal now. His timing was unbelievable however. 

  • R.I.P George Best.

  • idk if the rules changed... but first it was a back pass then he picked up the ball and put it down againn and picked it up again... 2 things ur not allowed to do

  • @DaPimpinBlob yeah that only became illegal in the 90s

  • @matiaspasch didnt know that

  • thats a terrible move by best

  • maybe it was a foul , but only george could of done that ,

  • Goal. N

    Banks let go off the bal.

  • If you toss the ball into the air, you are no longer in control of it. I say the goal stands.

  • Best wasn't bothered about that incident...all he was thinking about is getting the match over and going down the pub

  • @TigerIPanzer lol

  • goalkeeper course takes up the ball with his hands on a passport from their own teammate!!! and the ball is in the air when George takes the ball!!!!!

  • I found this having been shocked for the last 10 hours after Lampard's disallowed 'goal' (it was SOOOOO over the line)

    George Best doing this- what a genius!

  • that should have been a goal. The Goalie knew it should have been a goal that's why he tried to make the save afterwards.

  • George Best, making one of the greatest goalkeeper of all time look silly.

  • Gordon Banks being a sissy

  • That goal was legal. Best struck the ball after it was out of Banks' hands, and if the keeper's not touching the ball, everything done with it is basically fair game. The only reason they disallowed it was because only George Best would be crazy enough to even try something like that. Remember: Pele admitted that at the time when they were both playing, Best was better than he was.

  • That was a goal

  • Hahaha this sneaky Irish is a great shameless in the good sense. Remarkable

  • che genio!!!!!

  • @bele4ful Concordo.

  • From the Fifa Laws of the Game (page 33) :An indirect free kick is also awarded to the opposing team if, in the opinion of the referee, a player:

    [snip]

    • prevents the goalkeeper from releasing the ball from his hands

    As soon as Banks went to throw the ball and had to stop becuase of Best, the referee can award an indirect free kick

  • @stanstaunton he released the ball, therefore best is allowed to kick it. no free kick warranted.

  • @IrelandRaven Sorry, but stanstaunton is right. As long as the keeper is in control of the ball, he can not be challanged. In control of the ball includes bouncing it and tossing it in the air. Correct by the referee to disallow the goal.

  • WTF, first of all, it was a backpass at the very start, 2nd he piked the ball up and then droped it and picked it up, those two factors are the real question in this video, LOL who else relized that as soon as they watched this i did

  • @monobrow112233

    Everyone saw it, but everyone else also knows back then it wasn't against the rules.

    The rule wasn't introduced until 1992, long after this game.

    ;-)

    

  • @monobrow112233 Your correct mate it is a backpass but you must be very young as the backpass wasn't outlawed until 1992 , for well over a hundred years the backpass to the goalie was part of the game , they just wanted to sex it up a bit and to be fair it has been a good thing for football .

  • hey people..stop arguing the point was it was it not..a mean who gives a fuck really...the point is it was never before done/filmed anyway and it was george best who had the audacity to try it..

  • i used 2 like best but after this not so much

  • @MySophee and why ? he being too clever there it just shows if he wants a goal he could get it anywhere but not by cheating like maradona hand of god this is foot .he didnot kick the keeper the ball was off the keeper's hand

  • If it has to be one continuous motion from hand to foot,what if he decides to bounce it first, or just throw it ?At what point then is it deemed an open ball eh ?

  • nick1177 You are wrong. Once the ball leaves the goalkeepers hands it is officially anyones ball. If the keeper has the ball in two hands it is not released. If he has the ball in one hand , it can be officially played by any player - as has happened. Therefore , if the ball is released it is free from the goalkeeper and in play. Goalkeepers fault.

  • it was disallowed because you are not allowed to interfear with the releasment of the ball like that.

  • When Best touched the ball it was legally "back in play" from the moment it left Banks's hands - the Ref fucked it up - this was a goal by the rules of Association Football!

  • the ball is only safe in the keepers hands if its in both, u cn try nd get it out if its only in 1

  • LOL what an insane, and it had to be Banks and Best involved! Personally I think goalkeepers should be allowed to kick the ball away, but on the flip side Best did get the ball.

  • ooh its soo bad that im too young to have seen him playing..for me he's the BEST!! untouchable!¨!

  • The referee was right, the soccer rules do not allow the player to do that when the goal keeper try to return the ball to the match

  • best had style like no one else. R.I.P. legend.

    he is what made me like football

  • after all these years I still love watching this......the referee was totally baffled and didnt know what to do.........of course it should have been allowed.......

    George best......pure genius.....i was lucky enough to see him play at Old Trafford when I was a Young Kid aged 8 to 12.....

  • i agree golfa. it looked very cheeky but it was well legal

  • Once Banks tossed the ball in the air to kick it, that was a live ball; I read the ref disallowed it for "unsportsman like conduct", but the goal should have been able to stand, as Best's foot never made contact with the 'keeper. Banls should have found another way to dispose of the ball upfield.

  • Banks is one of the best goalkeeper ever, however in this video looks like an idiot. btw, the goal shouldn't be disallowed. notice also that Bestie had the moustache! He said in an interview with the FourFourTwo magazine he had had the moustache for a while but didn't like it, hence shaved it out.

  • amazing!

  • Classic :)

  • I remember once Brian McClair did a similar thing to a goalie and that too was disallowed.

  • i thought the old rules were that the keeper had to bounce the ball to make the opposing player have to leave?

  • Best himself said it was his best goal!

  • 0:19 parece que le hace burla a Gordon banks jajajajajaja que grandeee..

    George best the genius!!!

  • your argentinian player isn't hated for his short drug problem, he is hated for the "hand of god" handball goal that was allowed to stand.

  • Maradonna was a cheat, pure and simple. I don't hate him, I thought at the time he was the best player in the world. Shame he had to win a game by cheating. And by the way there is an apostrophe in couldn't and it should be you're just jealous not your... I'm guessing English isn't your first language? I can tell that civilised isn't a language you understand.

  • he died at 59 you lacking of facts prik, Best will always be double the player Maradona the handballing, ephidrine taking cheat disqualified from the world cup. At least best had a drink problem, and always played with heart and no cheating on the pitch! Best takes Maracheata any day of the week.

  • because maradonna cheated in a massive game and will be forever known for it. And Best is a hero for what he did on the field not off it. You make a stupid argument, I dont even know why Im responding to this shit.

  • @harunyahyadotorg You have a point, but that is so so harsh

  • This wasn't disallowed because Best fouled Banks but because nobody else could have done that without fouling the keeper.

  • @MBC1955

    True, the ref said he didn't know what to do,

    he'd never seen anything like it , so he called a foul.

  • @MBC1955 no, it was disallowed because no one but Best could have done that to Banks without fouling him

  • @MBC1955 Gary Crosby scored a similar goal for Forest, he came from behind Andy Dibble of Man City, headed it out of his palm & scored! its on youtube from 1990. The goal stood, this didn"t because it was political! You can"t have an Irishman showing up the great Banks at the hight of the troubles. ps i am English, but this is a FACT.

  • @dan32113 this happened before the troubles began - in fact its just a poor decision

  • Look at Best's acceleration after Banks shimmies him before attempting to kick the ball

  • ref needs a brain check ¬_¬

  • Out from the Todays-View a legal goal .Best at his best!!

  • That was back in the day when you can get 3 yellows, goalies could catch throw ins and passbacks, and people were actually going for the ball.

  • He did not kick the ball out of banks hands. He waited until Banks tossed the ball up to kick it, and therefore the goal was LEGAL.

    See for yourself! Freeze the frame!  Good goal.

  • I don't know about the rules at that time, but now, this is a part of releasing the ball, I think. So if it happened today, it would have been an illegal goal. Remember Solskjær?

  • @Str3ssed This is true. When Solskjaer did it, he got yellow carded.

  • @MacLanny Actually, if you watched the Solskjaer goal a while back you'll understand. This goal is ilegal. Basically, between the keeper having the ball in his hands and drop kicking it is considered one motion. You cannot stop it until the keeper has kicked the ball.

  • @feldman61 irish robbed yet again

  • @MacLanny i dont know what the rule was in the 70s but now you cant do that because it has to be 1 continous motion from hand to foot!!

  • @MacLanny It was disallowed because the rules state that as long as the goalkeeper is in control of the ball the oppenents are not allowed to interfere. The goal keeper is in control of the ball when he bounces it and toss it in the air. Therefore this was a correct judgement by the referee.

  • @MacLanny illegal goal actually, hence it wasn't given. you not allowed to impead the goalkeeper as he makes a kick

  • @MacLanny well, you are right about that, but George isn't allowed to follow the goal keeper and certainly isn't allowed to jump infront of him, so actually no goal,

  • @MacLanny its against the rules actually as the keeper hasn't finished distribution

  • @MacLanny The goal is ILLEGAL. The rules then and now state that the goalkeeper should be allowed to finish distribution. It would have been different if Banks had actually kicked the ball against Best but Best took the ball from Banks before he had finished the distribution of the ball. Whether this is fair or not is disputable, but the referee made the correct decision in line with the rules of the game.

  • @wizzo66 actually the goalie didnt have possession of the ball cuz he tossed it in the air and he snatched it just like how u steal the ball in the rest of the game

  • @10NextRonaldinho10 I don't claim that the goalkeeper had POSSESSION of the ball, he doesn't. The ball has left his hands. But the rules that apply to goalkeeper's distribution are not the same as those outfield. Best has interfered with the distribution, which was and is against the rules. Whether it is fair or not is disputable.

  • @wizzo66 ok look when the goalie tossed the ball in the air he was done with distribution or wth u call it ok mean he tossed it to kick it when he tosssed it no if he had no possession of the ball how can he finish distribution

  • @wizzo66 I'm sorry mate, but your talking out of your hole!! The ball had left Banks hands, therefore the goal should have stood, many officials have come out since stating the same

  • Judge is so stupid

  • You know the truly amazing and sad this is aht Best never ever scored another international goal after that game. His hat trick in the previous match VS Cyprus at the ridiculously early age of 24 were his last goals.

    What an utter tragedy his 1970s wanderings around Stockport, Dunstable was.

  • the English pansies!