"The Keeper"
One of the best football feature film dramas.
Screened in cinemas in NZ in 2019.
Life story of Bert Trautmann, the German Manchester City goalie of the 1950's and 1960's (1949 - 1964).
Shows that good players can be scouted from anywhere, in this case a POW camp for German prisoners in Lancashire at the end of the war.
An amazing and controversial life story with Trautmann and Man City facing massive hostility initially even from their own fans by signing a former Nazi soldier so soon after the war (20,000 demonstrated outside Maine Road).
First foreign player to be awarded the English "Footballer of the Year" title.
"In the 1956 FA Cup Final, as City take a strong 3–1 lead Bert is again winning plaudits for his masterful goalkeeping, when a dangerous collision with Birmingham City player Peter Murphy shatters a vertebra in his neck and almost costs him his life. With 20 minutes of the game left to go, and clearly in a bad state, Trautmann refuses to leave the field and continues to make several brave saves, stopping Birmingham City from scoring any further goals and thus winning City the Cup."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Keeper_(2018_film)
Trautmann in his first seasons at Maine road, was a team mate of legendary midfielder Billy Walsh, an Ireland international who later immigrated to NZ and played for Eastern Suburbs and one unofficial match for the All Whites:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billy_Walsh_(footballer,_born_1921)#Manchester_City
Online streaming options here:
https://www.flicks.co.nz/movie/the-keeper/#movie-vods
One of the best football feature film dramas.
Screened in cinemas in NZ in 2019.
Life story of Bert Trautmann, the German Manchester City goalie of the 1950's and 1960's (1949 - 1964).
Shows that good players can be scouted from anywhere, in this case a POW camp for German prisoners in Lancashire at the end of the war.
An amazing and controversial life story with Trautmann and Man City facing massive hostility initially even from their own fans by signing a former Nazi soldier so soon after the war (20,000 demonstrated outside Maine Road).
First foreign player to be awarded the English "Footballer of the Year" title.
"In the 1956 FA Cup Final, as City take a strong 3–1 lead Bert is again winning plaudits for his masterful goalkeeping, when a dangerous collision with Birmingham City player Peter Murphy shatters a vertebra in his neck and almost costs him his life. With 20 minutes of the game left to go, and clearly in a bad state, Trautmann refuses to leave the field and continues to make several brave saves, stopping Birmingham City from scoring any further goals and thus winning City the Cup."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Keeper_(2018_film)
Trautmann in his first seasons at Maine road, was a team mate of legendary midfielder Billy Walsh, an Ireland international who later immigrated to NZ and played for Eastern Suburbs and one unofficial match for the All Whites:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Billy_Walsh_(footballer,_born_1921)#Manchester_City
Online streaming options here:
https://www.flicks.co.nz/movie/the-keeper/#movie-vods