Harry Gregg’s autobiography is released this Thursday and extracts appear in today’s News of the World.
Former United idol Harry Gregg has broken a 40-year silence to reveal that some of the biggest names in United's history were caught up in a complex web of lies and deceit. And even the late, great, former manager Sir Matt was forced to take the knowledge of his team's illicit game-rigging to his grave. Gregg, 69, has finally decided to come clean on the dark secret of United's past in an autobiography entitled Harry's Game.
But Gregg confesses: "Yes, match-fixing went on at the biggest club in the world — Manchester United."
Gregg says he is refusing to name names to prevent any hurt for the culprits families.
But he adds: "They know who they are and the shame will haunt them for the rest of their lives."
And he has also lifted the lid on the secret network which it took to fix not one — but THREE — matches on the same day to fill the coffers of United stars.
The former Northern Ireland star says: "There was a bet called fixed odds and if you got a trio of games called correctly you could pick up a fortune.
"Those involved at United used two players at another club so they could sway the outcome of two games on the same day.
"I'm still not sure if they had anyone else involved at the third match in the bet, but I suspect they did.
"It is an event in United's history which disgusts me because they should never have been allowed to tarnish such a great club.
"And what is all the more shameful is that Sir Matt found out."
Gregg has revealed that several United games were thrown during the 1963-64 season but he insists the corruption continued after he left the club in 1966. In his book, he declares: "I always considered it a privilege to be paid for playing football. But with that privilege comes a responsibility to the game. Call me an idealist but I believe that each and every player, coach and manager is duty bound to do their best. But sport, like most walks in life, is open to corruption. And the bigger the prize, the bigger the temptation. The biggest cheats are those who sell out their sport, those who let greed overcome integrity — and during my career I witnessed some despicable cheating. British football was shaken on the morning of April 12, 1963, when three Sheffield Wednesday players — Peter Swan, Tony Kay and David Layne — were exposed for match-fixing. They had all conspired to throw a game against Ipswich Town in December the previous year. They would have all made a big wad of dirty money out of the result but, thankfully, they were all eventually convicted, banned and sent to prison. But people should know that this was not an isolated event — the same was going on at Manchester United. The truth is that games had been thrown long before the Sheffield Wednesday three were exposed — and the biggest club in the country, if not the world, was involved."
Gregg says the cheats never approached him directly but others came to him for advice.
"What I wasn't prepared for, though, was they would be some of my team-mates. I first became aware of what was going on when young Dubliner Joe Carolan came to me for advice. I was totally surprised when Joe, who was NOT involved, wanted a quiet chat. He asked me: ‘Have they been to see you yet?' "I replied: ‘About what?' Then he told me how he had been offered the chance to earn some extra readies by fixing games and he didn't know what to do. I advised him: ‘Go deaf, son.' But then they approached me — and their recruitment drive wasn't too subtle, either.
"It took place in the treatment room at Old Trafford when two established players brought up the subject of match-fixing every time the physio popped out of the room. "They casually mentioned that there was a few bob to be made.
"I told them that it was the second time I'd heard this mentioned and that if I ever heard it again I would be going straight to tell the boss. "The two players then tried to pretend they had only been kidding. I later heard more details about what was going on and, if there had been any doubt in my mind, I was soon to be convinced.
"Eventually I felt I had no choice but to go and see Sir Matt about it. I knocked on his door — which was something we were never supposed to do because we were meant to ring first to see if it was all right to speak to him. When I went in he was sitting behind his desk. I told him I was never going to give him any names. He asked me what I was on about and I said: ‘I don't mind if I get lumps kicked out of me for telling you this, but I'm not sure who is playing for us or against us.' For a man who was never noted for his histrionics, his reaction was amazing and something I still remember clearly to this day. He started ranting and raving, saying over and over again: ‘I bloody knew.'
"Obviously I had confirmed what he already suspected. Can you imagine what was going through his head? Can you imagine how hurt his pride must have been? I felt so sorry for him.
"But there was nothing he could do. If he had blown the whistle, everything he had stood for, and the work he had put in to rebuild the club following the Munich air crash, would have been undone.
"His instinct would have been to expose them but he put the club first. Incontrovertible proof came in 1964 after a chat with one of those involved.
"He admitted he'd done it and named the others involved. I left United for Stoke in 1966 and I know that after my departure games were thrown."