JIMMY HERNONJimmy Hernon, one of England’s footballing stars of the 1940s and ‘50s, who played under the great Bill Shankly, died aged 84 on 7 March, 2009.Mr Hernon was one of Shankly's first signings for Grimsby Town, costing £2,500 from Bolton Wanderers in August 1951, and went on to prove his worth with 15 goals in his first season at Blundell Park.A wizard on the wing, he was mentioned in the same breath by fans as legends Stanley Matthews and Billy Wright.A Scotsman, Mr Hernon loved his time in Grimsby. His eldest son, Ian, was born in the town in 1953 by which time he had become a local hero, Grimsby trawlermen even leaving packages of free fish on his doorstep.He left in January 1954 in a £1,000 transfer to Watford where his star continued to shine, before a knee injury ended his top-flight career.Mr Hernon moved to the southern league, playing for Hastings United and Canterbury until a professional foul put him out of the game for good in 1957.An inside forward, Mr Hernon's career record was a decent 42 goals in 208 games, almost one in five – not bad for a man so slight of build that Bill Shankly used to feed him porridge and whisky to try to bulk him up.However, his game was all about skill and guile, a team player who was a goal-maker rather than scorer.With one deft drop of the shoulder and a quick shimmy, he could leave defenders in a heap on the floor.The late commentator Kenneth Wolstenholme once wrote after watching him in action: "Jimmy charmed me. He stood out like an expensive jewel at a jumble sale."Walter Maclean, Leicester City's chief scout, quickly spotted the youngster's potential and 14 days after first setting sight on him Mr Hernon was signed on, first as a youth player at 16, then as a professional, making his Foxes debut against Crystal Palace in April 1942.A year later came his Second World War call-up. He joined the Royal Artillery and saw action in France, Belgium and Germany. He was also shuttled around war-torn Europe to play in sergeants' football matches, and later discovered Inter Milan had tried to buy him for an extraordinary sum.The Leicester board were keen until it was pointed out it would not look too good selling a serving British soldier to the enemy.Mr Hernon had also discovered the other love of his life by then, Barbara Austick. The pair had met on a double date in Leicester but quickly ditched their partners to be together.He hit seven goals in 31 games at Leicester and became City's first £10,000-plus export, when Division One side Bolton came calling in 1948. They paid £16,000 for him, the second highest transfer fee of the time.Mr Hernon played top tier football between 1948 and 1951 for Wanderers in the same team as Bolton legend Nat Lofthouse.Grimsby was the next stop thanks to Shankly's keen eye for talent.After football, Mr Hernon went on to become a salesman, a chauffeur and a school caretaker.With his usual self-deprecating sense of humour, he used to say: "I started at the top and, with a lot of effort, gradually worked my way down."He died in Hastings.
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