The Busby Babes

One cold and bitter Thursday
in Munich, Germany
Eight great football stalwarts
conceded victory
Eight men will never play again
who met destruction there
The flowers of English football
the flowers of Manchester
Matt Busby's boys were flying
returning from Belgrade
This great United family
all masters of their trade
The pilot of the aircraft
the skipper Captain Thain
Three times they tried to take off
and twice turned back again
The third time down the runaway
disaster followed close
There was slush upon that runaway
and the aircraft never rose
It ploughed into the marshy ground
it broke, it overturned
And eight of the team were killed
as the blazing wreckage burned
Roger Byrne and Tommy Taylor
who were capped for England's side
And Ireland's Billy Whelan
and England's Geoff Bent died
Mark Jones and Eddie Colman
and David Pegg also
They all lost their lives
as it ploughed on through the snow
Big Duncan he went too
with an injury to his brain
And Ireland's brave Jack Blanchflower
will never play again
The great Matt Busby lay there
the father of his team
Three long months passed by
before he saw his team again
The trainer, coach and secretary
and a member of the crew
Also eight sporting journalists
who with United flew
and one of them Big Swifty
who we will ne'er forget
the finest English 'keeper
that ever graced the net
Oh, England's finest football team
its record truly great
its proud successes mocked
by a cruel turn of fate
Eight men will never play again
who met destruction there
The flowers of English football
the flowers of Manchester