Beattie was born in Carlisle on December 18th 1953, Kevin Beattie was one of nine children, all of whom had a difficult childhood. With a drunken father, his family struggled to put food on the table and schooling was often missed sometimes because he had no shoes. A teacher bought him a pair of boots and at 15 he went to a trial at Liverpool but nobody met him at the station, so he went home. Shankly admitted later that it was a big miss!
Bobby Robson made Beattie welcome and he signed on at Portman Road making his debut against Manchester United, whom Ipswich beat in 1972. he was awarded the PFA Young Player of the Year in 1973-4.
I have to admit I was with Cambridge University AFC when we played against Beattie and a strong Ipswich XI, having a "run out" at Fenners on the outfield, a magnificent surface against us students.
Beattie's career was pitted with injuries, one of them in 1977 during the run in to what should have been the club's First Division title, when he set fire to himself by a garden bonfire, missing six vital games at the end of the season.
Knee injuries prevented him from playing for England, having been picked by Alf Ramsey in 1974, although he was capped nine times. In 1981 he broke an arm in the FA Cup Semi-Final against Manchester City and subsequently missed a UEFA Cup Final. He had by then played nearly 300 games for Ipswich but never played again for them. He was 27 by then.
Beattie tried to revive his career at Colchester, Middlesbrough, Harwich and Parkeston, Barnet and Clacton and in Scandinavia but his best known appearance in kit during this period was playing the body double for Michael Caine in "Escape to Victory".
His father was a goalkeeper and who chose to remain as a coalman rather than sign forms because he would earn more money. he played in a local pub side with a 14 year old Kevin.
Beattie later became dependent on alcohol, foolishly becoming a publican. He developed pancreatitis whilst he cared for his wife Maggie, who lived with m.s. and under the stress Beattie failed in a suicide attempt.
He became a radio pundit, but ran into trouble with the tax inspectors and wrote a book called "The Greatest footballer England Never Had". Robson and those successful Ipswich players would agree with that.
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