The legendary Red Devils coach: The road to success

Chapter 13 The Boy from Gaowan

"Ferguson spent an unforgettable youth in the shipyard area of ​​Glasgow. He enjoyed the joy of playing football freely, and also showed his youthful spirit with other friends, competing with others. This boy who grew up in a difficult environment, went through the wilderness years watched by the devil, and was cared for by his parents to grow up independently and face his own nature with integrity."

--Inscription

As soon as the new Red Devils coach Ferguson showed up, the club was surrounded by reporters. The media was extremely active in digging out all the news about this coach, just like the paparazzi.

Ferguson's background was soon uncovered, and the media and fans were very interested in this "tyrant" who was said to be able to dry the Atlantic Ocean by turning on a hair dryer.

Alex Ferguson was born on December 1941, 12, in the family quarters of the High Bay Shipyard on the Clyde River in Glasgow, Scotland. His father, Alexander Ferguson, was an ordinary metal wrench in the High Bay Shipyard, and his mother, Elizabeth Hardy, was a woman who took care of the family. The Ferguson family lived in a rented house at 31 Gowen Road in the factory area, and their life was not rich. Due to the limitations of family conditions, Elizabeth Hardy gave birth to Ferguson at home, and did not even go to the hospital. Despite this, Alex Ferguson came to the world safely.

When Ferguson was born at the High Bay Shipyard, the shipbuilding industry in Glasgow, Scotland, was booming, and the entire region was experiencing a rare prosperity in history. The factory area where the Ferguson family lived was extremely huge, like a behemoth that housed the shipyard and various supporting factories. This was one of the shipbuilding and repair centers in the whole of Europe, and also one of the economic centers at the time.

"I remember that the High Bay area was full of huge shipyards, and the three docks were full of ships." Many years later, Ferguson and reporters returned to the old place to visit, and he could still clearly recall the details of his childhood. Ferguson said: "This was once the shipbuilding center of England and the whole of Europe. When High Bay was at its busiest, the population reached more than 14, which was more than the population of Manchester at that time. The economic activities here were very active. The shipyard received many orders for the manufacture of giant ships, as well as various repairs and maintenance. Countless wealth was created here, countless people flowed in and out here, and countless materials flowed here."

After the Second World War, the shipbuilding industry in Glasgow High Bay experienced a brief boom, but then quickly declined. The decline of the industry led to the closure of factories, a decrease in population, and the decline of the community.

Ferguson was filled with emotion. "The shipyard workshops suffered a devastating blow, which was more thorough than the flames of war. Not only the shipyard itself, but also the automation industry, light industry and various service industries were deeply affected. People came like a tide and left like a tide. This area was abandoned. No one knows what it was like here before, except those of us who grew up here."

Ferguson has always had a deep memory of his childhood life. His childhood happened to be in the process of the shipyard's rise and fall. Ferguson recalled: "I grew up in the factory area opposite the Harland and Wolff dock. When I can remember, everything here was very busy. I grew up in the noise of workers walking around, the whistle of ships testing the water, and the noise of fitters' hammers. I am used to the industrial atmosphere and living in such a huge community. My family conditions at that time were not particularly good. I didn't have everything I wanted, but I was not so poor that I couldn't survive. I had food to eat, I could eat my fill, I had clothes to wear, and I could ask my parents for help when I encountered problems. I was able to go to school smoothly since I was a child, and my parents took good care of me. I was always able to dress neatly and tidy, and I would never be ragged. Although there was no special bathroom at home, there was a large bathhouse in the factory area, and everyone could wash themselves cleanly. The factory area was large, and everyone was basically the same. Some families raised many children and might not be able to take care of them one by one. Just like the Law family had 18 children, so their home was sometimes like a battlefield."

Ferguson misses his childhood very much. "My life was carefree and free. I could go in and out of every family at will, and even play with a bunch of friends together. The neighbors on the whole street were one, and every family knew each other. There were uncles and aunts everywhere, and brothers and sisters of our generation everywhere."

Ferguson's life was not a paradise, and the factory area was filled with chaotic elements. Ferguson said, "To outsiders, the declining High Bay community looked like the slums in New York in the early Middle Ages in the movie "The Godfather". The first school I attended was the worst rated in Glasgow, with the highest proportion of boys with criminal records. The last murderer sentenced to death in Scotland was killed with a knife in a street near us. We also knew the victim, he was the uncle of my club teammate. Does it sound scary? Is High Bay full of violence and killing? No, that is only a low probability event. My childhood was not shrouded in the shadow of terror."

Ferguson said: "I actually didn't know about these terrible news at all. Children would not be exposed to them. Of course, I also know that life is not just about playing happily. My cousin Christopher has polio. He lives in Wanlock Street in Gaowan, which we boys think is a lawless place. Once he was deliberately bullied by several children, and my aunt asked me to help. I immediately called my friends to stand up for my cousin, and went to their houses one by one to fight and help my cousin vent his anger. Those guys who bullied my cousin fled."

Ferguson grew up with children of ship workers, and later went to different cities and lived different lives. Some went to jail, or became drunkards, but most found different jobs after growing up and worked hard for their goals. Ferguson said: "I certainly don't agree that the place where I grew up is a paradise for crime. Most of our families have a working-class moral standard. Parents themselves are good role models. They will pay more attention to the education and guidance of their children. Most of my friends have embarked on the right path with this encouragement. But inevitably some people do not have the courage to resist temptation. This situation is the same everywhere in the world."

What makes Ferguson special is his father. His father took him on the path of football when he was very young, which made him love football since he was a child and embark on the path of professional football.

Ferguson's father was a senior football fan who once joined the Belfast Greenland team. One of his proudest achievements in life was to lobby the Glasgow City Council to set up a football club in the High Bay area to train young people to participate in this sport. The Hamilton Hill Club later won the Scottish Junior Championship and trained left winger Keskey to become a star of the Rangers team and became very popular in Scotland.

His father not only made Ferguson love football since he was a child, but also gave him a good education and life. Ferguson was very grateful to his father and later named his first racehorse "Queensland Star" to commemorate the ship his father had built. After settling in Manchester, he also named his home "Fairfields", which was the name of the shipyard where his father worked.

Ferguson was a free-spirited boy who loved freedom and didn't like studying. His classmates thought he was very smart, brave enough to fight for what he liked, had a strong personality, and a hot temper. Although most of his classmates liked him, no one ever thought Ferguson was a good student. Ferguson loved sports since he was a child, especially football, liked adventure, liked to imitate the stars to do various difficult moves, and joined the school football team early.

Many years later, Ferguson's classmates recalled: "Alex was not very good at playing football. He was too small, not heavy enough, and not fast enough... But he really loved football and played very actively."

"Ferguson was short, skinny, and had no presence. I don't remember him ever being selected for the school football team."

His classmates thought it was difficult for Ferguson to stand out among the tall and strong classmates, but Ferguson insisted that he was the best player on the school football team.

After school, Ferguson and his friends could wander around the factory as they pleased, playing games and kicking a ball. In addition to playing ball themselves, they also often competed with other children in the factory. Along with the competition came a lot of disputes, quarrels and fights... Ferguson recalled, "In the community, I received a good 'education', that is, self-improvement. In addition to playing football, we also fought, especially fights caused by playing football, which happened almost every day, and there were many people involved every time. At that time, almost every foul on the field would cause a dispute, and no one could accept it. We often did not have a referee, and even if there was a temporary referee, he would not listen to him. We often started fighting after a foul. This kind of fighting among children was of course influenced by adults. For a long time, I thought it was our football tradition."

Ferguson has always maintained a sincere friendship with his friends. Ferguson said: "We all know each other. I often walk barefoot on the steel beams and iron plates of the dock with a group of children, just like patrolling our own territory. We fight with intruders from outside and unite to resist the gangsters from outside. In the community where I live, you will have a feeling of a big family. We all live so close and so close. Sometimes you will hear the story of 'leaving the door unlocked at night'. Sometimes you will see 'Leach (Ferguson's mother's nickname) after entering the house, 'Leach, I took a cup of sugar,' 'Leach, I borrowed some of your tea' or 'Leach, give you some muffins'... similar notes. People share each other's things and are happy to help each other. All neighbors know each other. They are all co-workers and are more closely connected than us little kids. Unlike today, I don't even know the neighbors across the street. I don't know who they are or what they do."

In this way, Ferguson grew up in a region with harsh conditions but full of masculine temperament. His parents worked hard to make a living, but they were also very united and close to each other like a family. Ferguson was taken care of by his elders and got along well with his friends. He learned to fight while learning to play football. He has a strong fighting and winning side in his character. "My childhood experience taught me that when facing those rock heads that cannot be persuaded, when fists can solve the problem, then be more direct."

Ferguson has always missed this period of life very much and has never felt ashamed of his origins. On the contrary, he is proud of it.

Ferguson grew up in the cold and hard times of Glasgow, Scotland, and spent his teenage years under the attention of the devil. His teenage life was not comfortable and he was not discovered early like some geniuses. The steep mountains and vast bays of Glasgow, Scotland gave birth to Ferguson, the harsh environment of the shipbuilding industry in the bay area forged Ferguson, and the hardship and unity of the grassroots community also tempered Ferguson. Ferguson was guided by his father, devoted to football without regrets, and always persisted.

Ferguson's competitive character, which was very obvious since his youth, has always influenced his professional football career.

Although Ferguson left the factory early and gave up his job as a fitter in order to pursue a career in professional football, he still maintained the character heritage of a Gaowan boatman and remained the true nature of a boatman's son.