Sir Alex Ferguson and David Beckham were among those in attendance at the funeral of former Manchester United youth team boss Eric Harrison on Tuesday afternoon.
Harrison, who coached United’s famous ‘Class of 92’, died aged 81 on February 13. Beckham, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Gary and Phil Neville and Nicky Butt worked under Harrison before achieving great success with Ferguson’s United, including the treble in 1999.
Ferguson gave a eulogy at the service at Halifax Minster, in which he said: “He was a fantastic coach. There are so many things I could say about him, but the most important thing is he was tough.
“He was making them men. If you wanted to play for Manchester United in the first team in front of 75,000 you needed to be a man, and that is what he gave them.
“It was that toughness that allowed his players to play for Manchester United. When they got to me, I had no fear about their character, because he had formed it.”
The former United manager added: “Of course, he improved all his footballers. He did a great job in improving them as footballers. But that wasn’t his best job. The best job (is) he made them good human beings. That is what I always remember.
“Everyone who came through in his time at Manchester United were good human beings, and that is what they all should be very grateful for, and me in particular.”
Along with Ferguson, Beckham, Giggs, Scholes, Gary Neville and Butt, United caretaker boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and his assistant Mike Phelan – who worked as Ferguson’s number two – were also among around 700 attendees.
