The death of Edwards took the heart out of the town of Dudley, which has since worked hard to commemorate his life, including with this statue

There he is in all his glory: eyes down, left arm outstretched, right foot about to be swung forward with menacing force. The backdrop of Dudley market and the surrounding shops might seem inauspicious, but those who knew him feel the statue is perfect, a Black Country boy in the heart of his town, captured in his youthful prime, as if ready to lash that bronze ball all the way up Castle Street and into the zoological gardens beyond.

Even now, 60 years on from the horror of the Munich tragedy, there is something of the comic-book hero about Duncan Edwards. It is not just the tales of how hardened top-flight opponents would bounce off his teenage frame or how his powerful shots would leave