BEAL, Philip (1960-75)
Position: Defender
Height: 5ft 10ins
Weight: 11st 11lbs
Born: Godstone, Surrey, 8 January, 1945
Signed from amateur January 1962
Transferred to Brighton & Hove Albion July 1975, free
Also played for: Brighton and Hove Albion, Los Angeles Aztecs, Memphis Rogues, Chelmsford City, Crewe Alexandra, Oxford City, Woking
Spurs Record:
Debut: 16 September, 1963 v Aston Villa (FL) (a) won 4-2
Appearances: League 330(3), FA Cup 30, League Cup 27, Europe 30
Goals: League 1
If ever there was a Spurs player who deserved the title ‘Mr Dependable’, that player was Phil Beal. In over 400 games he rarely made a mistake, proving one of the most reliable and trustworthy defenders the club ever had.
Signed as a 17-year old, he worked his way through the youth structure, a defensive half-back who played the game as simply as possible. When he made his debut it was in place of Danny Blanchflower, a player more renowned for his attacking ability, but Beal knew he could never replace the irrepressible Irishman and stuck to playing his own game.
For a couple of years he made steady progress without really getting a lengthy run in the team but his opportunity came in late 1965. Maurice Norman had been playing at full-back but he broke his leg and Beal was called in to cover for him. He settled to the position well and when Norman was forced to retire, he seemed destined to make the place his own. Unfortunately injury then hit Beal. He broke his arm in January, 1967, just before the FA Cup run began. It not only cost him an FA Cup winner’s medal but his place in the team as Joe Kinnear took the chance Beal’s absence gave him.
Beal’s versatility and willingness to fill any role saw him playing regularly and when Dave Mackay left for Derby County, he was the obvious choice to take on the second defensive role now demanded of a half-back.
Alongside big Mike England, Beal had the job of covering for both England and his full-backs. He proved perfectly suited to the role as his positional play and ability to spot danger before a real threat developed came to the fore. If an attacker seemed likely to get through, his speed allowed him to get back and make a tackle from which he would frequently emerge with the ball. When Bill Nicholson felt an opponent needed special attention, Beal would be given the job of man-marker.
A fixture in the team, he helped us lift the League Cup in 1971 and 1973 and the UEFA Cup in 1972 and collected a loser’s medal in the 1974 UEFA Cup. Perhaps the greatest compliment that can be paid Beal is to say that his value was most appreciated on the rare occasions he was absent.
As a defender Beal rarely got the chance to score but he did get his name on the scoresheet once and no-one present will ever forget the goal. It came against Queens Park Rangers in January, 1969. A corner to the visitors ended with Beal emerging from a crowd of players on the edge of his box with the ball. As he moved away from goal he had few options, all his team-mates bar Jimmy Greaves were behind him and his only option was to go forward. As he crossed the half-way line the crowd looked on in shock. When he passed to Greaves relief set in, but he continued his run, collected a return pass from Greaves and from the edge of the Rangers’ box whacked the ball home off the underside of the bar.
At the end of the 1974-75 season Beal was released. He joined Brighton and Hove Albion, spent a year there and then moved to America where he first played for Los Angeles Aztecs, scoring on his debut for them! He returned to the UK three years later and moved to the south west in his retirement but continues to be a regular in N17 on matchdays.