A NEW free exhibition is being opened in Coleraine to celebrate the life and career of renowned Northern Ireland and Manchester United star Harry Gregg.
The ‘Harry Gregg: Dare to Dream’ exhibition will be housed at Coleraine Town Hall. It will feature never-before-seen photographs and artefacts from the local player’s highly successful career.
Opening on July 23, to coincide with start of the SuperCup NI, the exhibition will explore Gregg’s journey from a Coleraine schoolboy to one of the best goalkeepers in the world.
Gregg started his youth career playing for Windsor Park Swifts, before signing for his home club Coleraine FC.
At the age of 20, he made his name with Doncaster Rovers which led to him transferring to Manchester United for a fee of £23,500 - a world-record amount for a goalkeeper at the time.
Alongside this, Gregg experienced international success and won 25 caps for Northern Ireland.
Most notably, he was instrumental in Northern Ireland’s qualification for the 1958 FIFA World Cup. The team advanced to the quarter-finals and Gregg was named goalkeeper of the tournament in a vote carried out by the press.
Earlier that same year, Gregg was involved up in a tragic airplane crash along with 43 other Manchester United players, supporters and journalists.
Gregg was fortunate to survive the Munich Air Disaster and showed tremendous bravery at the scene by helping pull others from the wreckage.
More recently, in 2014, he was involved in the setting up of The Harry Gregg Foundation.
This charity, based in Coleraine, is built on Gregg’s belief that football is a sport for everybody. It works with young people, of all abilities, and enables them to meet their potential in football.
Gregg died, in Coleraine, in 2020. However, his legacy will live on in the town through this new exhibition.
It will be at the town hall until August 31. The public can visit from Tuesday to Saturday, 11.00am to 4.00pm (excluding public holidays).
