How Kevin Keegan met his wife on a Doncaster fairground ride
The football icon was immensely proud of his Doncaster roots
As the world pays tribute to football icon Kevin Keegan following his death from cancer at 75, we’re taking a look back at his early days in Doncaster - and how he met his wife on a fairground ride.
He was born on Valentine’s Day 1951 at 32 Elm Place, Armthorpe to English parents of part Irish ancestry and he attended his local school, St. Peter’s High School in nearby Cantley.
The house, just off Mere Lane, is an unremarkable brick built property and still stands today in a cul de sac off Mere Lane, near to Armthorpe Academy and Armthorpe Leisure Centre.
At the age of 16, Keegan was spotted playing at amateur level for Pegler, his employer at the time, and signed by fourth division Scunthorpe United – one of just two professional sides in the division.
Reputedly rejected by his home town club of Doncaster Rovers for being too small, Keegan became a first team regular and scored 18 goals in 124 games, attracting the attention of the Merseyside giants Liverpool with legendary boss Bill Shankly snapping him up for£ 35,000 in 1971.
It was while at Scunthorpe that Keegan met his beloved wife of 51 years, Jean (nee Woodhouse).
The pair met as teenagers, on the waltzers at the St Leger fair in Doncaster in 1970 when Keegan was starting his career at Scunthorpe.
Anxious not to seem “too flash” – and aware that Jean had a crush on Manchester United’s George Best – Keegan joked that he worked at a local steelworks to win her over.
The couple married in September 1974 at St Peter in Chains Church in Chequer Road, shortly after Kevin won the FA Cup with Liverpool as a 23-year-old, and remained together throughout his career and retirement.
They had two daughters Laura Jane and Sarah Marie.
Laura (now 47) was born in November 1978 during the height of Keegan’s playing career while he was starring for German side Hamburg SV and winning back-to-back Ballon d’Or titles.
Sarah (44) was born in June 1982 at Princess Anne Hospital in Southampton, just before Keegan represented England at the 1982 World Cup in Spain.
During a glittering career, he won three First Division titles, the UEFA Cup twice, the FA Cup and the European Cup and also became an England regular, making his debut in 1972, becoming captain in 1976 and scoring 21 goals for his country in 63 games - although his World Cup career was limited to just 26 minutes at the 1982 finals in Spain.
Further successful spells followed at Hamburg, Southampton and Newcastle before he made the step into management, taking the reins at Newcastle, (twice), Fulham and Manchester City and of course, England, who he managed from 1999-2000.