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'Jack is what I would’ve regarded as a decent human being' | John Giles on his friendship with Charlton

John Giles has described the late Jack Charlton as a close friend who ‘wasn’t always right bu...



'Jack is what I would’ve regar...
Soccer

'Jack is what I would’ve regarded as a decent human being' | John Giles on his friendship with Charlton

John Giles has described the late Jack Charlton as a close friend who ‘wasn’t always right but was never wrong.’

Speaking on Thursday's Off The Ball, John Giles paid tribute to his former Leeds United teammate who passed away last week.

“Jack is what I would have regarded as a decent human being. Now I didn’t always get on with him especially over football.

“Jack was older than me and the thing about him was - he wasn’t always right but he was never wrong. He was a stubborn bugger over anything, but he was a good honest guy.”

Giles and Charlton played together for ten years under Don Revie, winning a league championship in 1969.

While Giles considered Charlton a close friend, he admits that the two had different philosophies when it came to football.

“I got on very well with Jack and considered him a very good friend and I’m sure he would have considered me a very good friend. I wouldn’t talk to him about football, because it would just end up in a fight but generally speaking, Jack was a good, honest, solid human being.

“He was a great after-dinner speaker. Very funny and brilliant the way he did it because to look at him you’d think that’s the last thing he’d be good at. He was very good with people and he was very clever.”

Describing the character of the former Ireland manager, Giles says how different Jack’s personality differed from his brothers, Bobby.

“Him and Bobby were total opposites. If Jack went into a pub, he’d be up at the counter of the bar, talking to everybody. If Bobby went into the same pub, he’d be sitting down in the corner, mostly on his own not mixing with anyone. They were chalk and cheese the two of them.”

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Irish Soccer Jack Charlton John Giles Leeds United Soccer