The phrase ‘Busby’s babes’ was first used in print in 1951. Frank Nicklin, a sub-editor at the Manchester Evening News, coined the phrase in a report on a Liverpool – Manchester United game which saw the debuts of two young Manchester United players. Thereafter, the name attached itself to the talented young players of Manchester United, developed and managed by Matt Busby. Busby himself never thought much of the phrase.
In the late 1940s, Busby concluded that Manchester United needed a youth policy. Despite some early post-war success, Busby was sure that the long-term health of the club depended on finding and developing young players. He created a network of talent scouts that toured the country looking for young footballers, and also a team of Manchester landladies who looked after them once they signed for Manchester United. In 1952 the Football Association began ‘The FA Youth Cup’. Manchester United won the competition every year for its first five years. Under the guidance of Busby and his staff, young players developed until many were ready for first-team football. In one first-team game in 1953, seven of the eleven players were under twenty-two. Manchester United won the League Championship in 1955-1956 and 1956-1957. The average age of the 1955-1956 team was just twenty-two. These ‘Busby’s babes’ were hugely talented and promised much further success. Tragically, the further success never came. The 1958 Munich air disaster decimated the ‘babes’. Eight died, two more never played again and others never played again with the same success. Manchester United continued to attract and develop young footballers. In the 1960s such players would still be referred to as ‘Busby’s babes’. But, to many, it was the wonderful 1950s team to which the description classically belonged.
To some, a true ‘Busby’s babe’ had to have been born in Manchester and raised only at Old Trafford under the direction of Matt Busby. To others, a looser definition included any talented young Manchester United footballer inspired by Matt Busby to play stylish, attacking football. Using the looser definition, the 1950s ‘Busby’s babes’ included: Geoff Bent*, Johnny Berry, Jackie Blanchflower, Roger Byrne*, Bobby Charlton, Eddie Colman*, John Doherty, Duncan Edwards*, Bill Foulkes, Harry Gregg, Mark Jones*, Wilf McGuinness, Kenny Morgans, David Pegg*, Albert Scanlon, Tommy Taylor*, Dennis Viollet, Liam Whelan* and Ray Wood
Manchester United 