Sport

Manchester United fan auctioning off the world’s ‘largest collection’ of memorabilia this week

Hugh Mortimer's haul includes over 70,000 pin badges.

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant - 26th October 2020
Chris Taylor Auctioneers

A Manchester United superfan is to pass on his memorabilia collection of over 70,000 pin badges through online auction this Wednesday.

Hugh Mortimer’s haul is believed to be the largest Manchester United memorabilia collection in the world.

It includes badges commemorating the Munich Air Disaster, as well as membership badges for a host of different supporter branches and homages to decades of footballing victories, and also includes a huge selection of books – from collector’s editions, to autobiographies – and flags, which have been flown at games home and away.

Speaking on the ever-growing collection back in 2018, the United superfan explained that he wanted to boost his collection of badges to 62,958 as a means of reflecting the anniversary date of the Munich Air Disaster – 6.2.1958 – but judging by the sheer number on offer this week, he’s definitely managed to exceed that number.

Hugh – who started badge collecting at the start of the millennium – said: “United are my one love in life.

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“I’ve spent my life demanding things of the team, because that’s what we do as fans and this is my small way of putting United in the record books and saying thank you for everything,”

He added: I left everything behind me to move to Manchester and be closer to Old Trafford and I’ve never regretted what I did. When I arrived here, I got a job on a stall outside the ground and I would be paid in badges instead of cash, it was a deal that worked well for me and the guy who owned the stall.

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“Some players didn’t have a badge, so I would have batches made up.

Charles Taylor Auctioneers

“My favourite badge is of Joe Jordan because he was my favourite player. He really battled for United and I loved him more than Bryan Robson or Roy Keane.

“He was everything.”

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The memorabilia collection is to be divided into around 300 separate lots at the auction.

Due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the auction will be fully hosted online by auctioneers Charles Taylor – who are based out of Salford – on Wednesday 28th October and bidders interested in the haul are encouraged to contact Charles Taylor as the auction house will be opening its doors by appointment-only for the two days preceding the auction.

Matthew Bateman – Director and Auctioneer at Charles Taylor – said: “As local auctioneers in the shadow of Old Trafford, we were humbled to be approached by the vendor to sell his lifelong collection of Man Utd memorabilia.

“We’ve sold lots of sporting collectors items in the past – a Stirling Moss signed racing suit and an autographed Ayrton Senna racing helmet to name a couple – but none that is as unique and special as this.

“As dedicated United fans ourselves, we’ve followed our team both home and away – so the significance of this collection really isn’t lost on us. We’re all season ticket holders ourselves so, whilst we can’t go and see our team play right now, we hope the winning bidders will take as much pleasure in owning their badges as we know the vendor did collecting them.”

You can find more information ahead of the auction via the Charles Taylor website here.

Sport

A Salford community centre is hosting a specialChristmas-themed pro wrestling show

Danny Jones Danny Jones festive wrestling event Salford community centre

A local community centre in Salford is hosting a Christmas-themed pro wrestling show this festive period and it might just be one of the coolest-sounding fundraisers we’ve heard in a while.

Do sleigh bells and body slams go together? Well, we’re going to find out.

Hosting the special seasonal edition of PinFall Wrestling, the local sports entertainment group based out of Salford Gymnastic Centre, beloved local organisation The Rec will be helping put on a whole evening of fighting action from their 20ft wrestling ring.

Scheduled to get underway on Saturday, 14 December, a whole slew of UK wrestling talent will be competing in PinFall’s Christmas Chaos 2024.

Managed by the Salford Involved Cooperative, a non-profit enterprise that helps fund places like The Rec, nearby gyms and other important community outlets,

Promising “turkey, tinsel and takedowns”, the star-studded roster includes ITV’s World of Wrestling stars Sheikh El Sham and Martin Kirby, plus fan favourites like Commander Sterling.

Better yet, as well as many other familiar faces to those immersed in the British wrestling scene, the event will also feature talent from the Top Rope Wrestling Academy (TRWA), all of which will be making their PinFall debut.

Christmas Chaos takes place at The Rec on Camp Street in Salford (M7 1ZT), just five minutes or so outside of Manchester city centre, with doors opening from 2:30pm.

Adult admission is only a tenner and children aged 15 and under go even cheaper at just £6. Tickets are available HERE and you can even spring for early access through VIP passes if you’re feeling fancy.

Once again, all the funds raised through ticket sales go straight back into the centre and towards organising other community events throughout the year.

Credit: PinFall Wrestling (supplied)

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The Rec is based in East Salford, which has eight out of its 13 neighbourhoods listed as the lowest 10% on the country’s index of multiple deprivation.

They offer a wide range of support services throughout the week that help tackle the effects of poverty in the area including recovery support for those struggling with addiction, refugee and asylum seeker classes, sports, youth activities, food banks and more.

As well as ticketed events like these, they regularly hold free community fun days such as their annual Easter event and Christmas present drive, which saw over 250 presents handed out to locals in 2023.

Working with multiple regional and national organisations such as Greater Manchester Police, the NHS, National Lottery, Sports England, Children in Need, The Mustard Tree and more, the importance of the work done at The Rec cannot be overstated.

More importantly, places like this need constant support directly from the communities that they serve, especially during difficult times like the one we are facing right now. So, if you fancy helping the much-loved Salford community centre and watching some festive wrestling shenanigans, see you there.

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images – Supplied

Sport

Rúben Amorim outlines the three key things Manchester United need to work on

Danny Jones Danny Jones Ruben Amorim first pre-match press conference Man United

Rúben Amorim has conducted his first full press conference as Manchester United manager and has outlined the three key things he wants to address when it comes to his new team.

Amorim officially joined Man United on Monday, 11 November after being given a ‘now or never’ which meant he had to leave his former club Sporting CP in the middle of the season.

Replacing Erik ten Hag, who was sacked less than 24 hours after a 2-1 defeat to West Ham and had overseen a run of bad results, the contract extension he was given in the summer ultimately proved obsolete and now the Portuguese head coach must lift his new side from a measly 13th in the table.

That being said, speaking to the media in his first full pre-match presser ahead of his maiden Premier League outing against Ipswich Town this weekend, Amorim has already highlighted three key areas in which he wants United to improve as a matter of priority.

What did Amorim say in his first full Man United press conference?

Although the 39-year-old coach – who is only three years older than resurgent centre-back Johnny Evans – started off by assuring that his main focus at its core is to win the next match (and the one after that, as the football cliché goes), he boiled the current squad issues down to a troublesome trio.

In his eyes, a lot of it just comes down to pure physical effort.

Improve possession

First and foremost, Amorim was quick to point out that United “lose the ball too often” and simply have to retain it more throughout the 90 minutes.

Although they have enjoyed spells of greater control in games, their average possessions stats in the Premier League not only under ten Hag but Ole Gunnar Solskjær and even short-lived interim boss Ralf Rangnick never flirted too far above 50-53%.

While that might sound like the signs of nothing more than a well-contested game, the club need to be looking at much higher numbers if they want to start being a dominant force again.

Track back more

The second area he said that the team desperately needs to improve in is the distances covered per match, especially when it comes to running back towards their own goal and tracking back during defensive phases.

Addressing it in a rather matter-of-fact manner, he told reporters: “We have to be better at running back, I think that is clear for everybody [to see].” He told Gary Neville something very similar in his other recent interview with Sky Sports.

He said it with a smile on his face but it’s clear that he knows there is a narrative surrounding United in recent years that they just don’t work hard enough, both on and off the ball. Having played mainly in the middle of the park for Belenenses, Benfica and SC Braga, running is a non-negotiable.

Focus on the ‘details’ first

Lastly, Amorim said he believes one of the big things he can do for these players is to help them fine-tune the small things. He added that although there is a feeling that fans want there to be “a lot of change” and pressure to make “big” decisions, he reiterated that “it’s the small things.”

The former utility player knows a thing or two about playing in lots of positions and going back to the opening point of his press conference in which he discussed getting the team to believe in “one thing”, he believes that the minute differences can contribute to changing how they approach the game.

There is understandably lots of talk surrounding his trademark 3-4-3 formation and whether these details refer to tactical tweaks, we will see, but he insists that so long as they put in the effort and pay attention to the little stuff, those on the pitch will start to play in the same way that he wants them to.

You can watch his press conference ahead of the Ipswich away this Sunday in full down below:

Amorim was also happy to casually call out those who ‘don’t believe in’ his new players in his first press conference as Man United coach.

Read more:

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — BeanymanSports (via YouTube screenshot)

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