7:35am Saturday 14th November 2009
THE ashes of legendary Bolton footballer Tommy Lawton are at the centre of a row over plans to move Britain’s National Football Museum.
An urn containing the star’s remains is on show at the Preston-based attraction after being donated by his family who wanted to return him to his spiritual home of Lancashire.
Now they are threatening to withdraw them if proposals to move the museum to Manchester are ratified at a meeting of trustees next week.
Lawton’s son, Tom Lawton Jnr, says the former England striker, who died aged 77 in 1996, would be “turning in his urn” over the saga surrounding the future of the attraction.
Mr Lawton, aged 53, said: “There is no way the ashes will go to Manchester.
“It is appalling that the raison d’etre for the museum’s location — being based at the home of professional football — is being ignored. Is this another example of commercialism ruling the game?
“In placing my father’s ashes in the museum, the family focused on the ‘coming home to Lancashire’ aspect.
“I believe the position was best summed up by a comment one of his oldest friends made: ‘Tommy’s ashes’d be turning in his urn’.
“He was a proud Lancastrian, not a Mancunian.”
Lawton was born in Macdonald Street, Moses Gate. He was schooled at Castle Hill in Tonge Moor, where he enjoyed his first significant football season, scoring 30 goals.
He moved to Folds Road School and was a talented Bolton Schoolboys centre forward.
But his home town club missed out on him and he went to play for Burnley. By the age of 16, he was playing with the first team in the Second Division.
Lawton, who was a childhood hero of Nat Lofthouse, scored 231 goals in 390 league games between 1936 and 1956 and netted 22 times in 23 matches for his country.
During his career, he played for Everton, Notts County, Arsenal, Brentford, Burnley and Chelsea.
Mark Bushell, a National Football Museum curator, persuaded Mr Lawton to donate his father’s ashes.
He said: “I think the loss of something so intrinsically linked to football is a huge loss.”
Sir Tom Finney, former England and Preston North End legend, has also threatened to remove his collection of memorabilia if the museum moves out of Preston.
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