Editing Gordon Banks (section)

=== Stoke City ===
{{Quote box|quote="I've not come here to retire you know. I've come to here to win something."|source=— Banks speaking upon signing with the club after critics questioned Waddington's policy of signing veteran players.<ref name="101 greats">{{cite book|title=Stoke City 101 Golden Greats|year=2002|publisher=Desert Islands Books|pages=173–76|isbn=1-874287-55-4}}</ref>|width=35%|align=right}}
On leaving Filbert Street, Banks requested a loyalty bonus from Leicester and was told by Matt Gillies, "We've decided not to pay you a penny. There's to be no compensation payment and that's final."<ref name="page 147" /> Banks then refused the move until Stoke boss [[Tony Waddington]] seemingly negotiated a £2,000 payment out of Leicester.<ref name="page 148">{{harvnb|Banks|2002|p=148}}</ref> It was only some years later that Banks was informed that Stoke had made the payment, not Leicester.<ref name="page 148" /> Waddington valued good goalkeepers highly, and the two built up a close relationship.<ref name="page 148" /> During this time, Banks moved to [[Madeley, Staffordshire]].<ref name="page 149">{{harvnb|Banks|2002|p=149}}</ref> He replaced [[John Farmer (footballer)|John Farmer]] as the club's number one, and kept goal in the last four games of the [[1966–67 Stoke City F.C. season|1966–67]] season, making his home debut at the Victoria Ground in a 3–1 win over his former club Leicester.<ref name="page 149" />

Banks fitted in well at Stoke, as Waddington built a team of veteran players who were judged by some to be past their best.<ref>{{harvnb|Banks|2002|p=154}}</ref> The Potters struggled near the foot of the First Division table in the [[1967–68 Stoke City F.C. season|1967–68]] and [[1968–69 Stoke City F.C. season|1968–69]] campaigns, before rising to ninth place in the [[1969–70 Stoke City F.C. season|1969–70]] season. Banks remained a reliable stopper for the club. However, on 1 March 1969, he was knocked unconscious at [[Roker Park]] by [[Sunderland A.F.C.|Sunderland]]'s [[Malcolm Moore (footballer)|Malcolm Moore]], and his replacement [[David Herd (footballer)|David Herd]] conceded four goals in a 4–1 defeat.<ref>{{harvnb|Banks|2002|p=156}}</ref> Banks also played a season for the [[Cleveland Stokers]] of the American [[United Soccer Association]] in the summer of 1968: he played seven of the short-lived club's 12 games in [[Cleveland]], [[Ohio]].<ref name="nasl" />

Banks made what he believed to be three of the best saves of his career in a Stoke shirt. In the first instance, he saved and caught a powerful and well-placed header from Manchester City's [[Wyn Davies]] from {{convert|8|yd}} out; in the second case he saved a [[Francis Lee (footballer)|Francis Lee]] header at [[Maine Road]]; and he made his third great save for the club by catching a [[Volley (association football)|volley]] from Tottenham Hotspur's [[Alan Gilzean]] that had been hit from {{convert|6|yd}} out at White Hart Lane.<ref>{{harvnb|Banks|2002|p=177}}</ref>

Stoke began to compete for honours in the [[1970–71 Stoke City F.C. season|1970–71]] season, though despite impressive victories against the top two clubs—[[Arsenal F.C.|Arsenal]] and [[Leeds United F.C.|Leeds United]]—City ended the season in mid-table obscurity.<ref>{{harvnb|Banks|2002|p=189}}</ref> The club's great achievement was in reaching the semi-finals of the FA Cup, beating [[Millwall F.C.|Millwall]], [[Huddersfield Town A.F.C.|Huddersfield Town]], [[Ipswich Town F.C.|Ipswich Town]] and [[Hull City A.F.C.|Hull City]] ''en route''.<ref>{{harvnb|Banks|2002|p=192}}</ref> Facing Arsenal at Hillsborough in the semi-finals, they lost a two-goal lead to draw 2–2, and were then beaten 2–0 in the replay at [[Villa Park]].<ref>{{harvnb|Banks|2002|p=193}}</ref>

Despite another mid-table finish in [[1971–72 Stoke City F.C. season|1971–72]], Stoke beat Chesterfield, [[Tranmere Rovers F.C.|Tranmere Rovers]], Hull City and Manchester United to reach another FA Cup semi-final.<ref>{{harvnb|Banks|2002|p=194}}</ref> They again faced Arsenal, and once more, a draw at Villa Park meant a replay at Goodison Park.<ref>{{harvnb|Banks|2002|p=195}}</ref> The Gunners' goals in a 2–1 victory came from a disputed Frank McLintock penalty and a [[John Radford (footballer)|John Radford]] goal that television replays showed was clearly [[Offside (association football)|offside]].<ref>{{harvnb|Banks|2002|p=196}}</ref> In a May 2011 interview, Banks said that he still felt "cheated" out of a chance to play for the club in an FA Cup final.<ref name="hurt lingers">{{cite web|last=Bevan|first=Chris|title=FA Cup hurt lingers for Banks|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/chrisbevan/2011/05/banks.html|work=BBC|date=12 May 2011|access-date=4 February 2013}}</ref> Stoke and Banks found solace in the League Cup, though it took them 11 matches to reach the final after overcoming [[Southport F.C.|Southport]], then [[Oxford United F.C.|Oxford United]] in a replay, Manchester United in a second replay, [[Bristol Rovers F.C.|Bristol Rovers]], and then West Ham United in a second replay following an aggregate draw after two legs.<ref>{{harvnb|Banks|2002|p=197}}</ref> In [[Overtime (sports)|extra time]] of the second leg with West Ham, Banks [[Fouls and misconduct (association football)|fouled]] [[Harry Redknapp]], conceding a penalty, and then saved [[Geoff Hurst]]'s powerful spot-kick to keep City in the competition.<ref>{{harvnb|Banks|2002|p=199}}</ref> They then faced Chelsea in [[1972 Football League Cup final|the final]] at Wembley. [[Peter Osgood]] beat Banks with a hooked shot just before [[half-time]], but goals from [[Terry Conroy]] and [[George Eastham]] won Stoke the game 2–1.<ref>{{harvnb|Banks|2002|p=201}}</ref> At the end of the season, Banks was named the [[FWA Footballer of the Year]], becoming the first goalkeeper to receive the honour since [[Bert Trautmann]] in 1956.<ref name="page 202">{{harvnb|Banks|2002|p=202}}</ref>

On 22 October 1972, while driving home from a session of work on his injured [[shoulder]] with the Stoke [[Physical therapy|physiotherapist]], Banks lost control of his new [[Ford Consul]] (a re-badged [[Ford Granada (Europe)|Ford Granada Mk I]]) car, which ended up in a ditch.<ref>{{cite web|title=Gordon Banks|url=http://www.planetworldcup.com/LEGENDS/banks.html|work=planetworldcup.com|access-date=29 January 2013}}</ref> He had attempted to overtake a car on a sharp bend and collided with an oncoming [[Austin Cambridge|Austin A60 van]].<ref name="page 202" /> He was taken to the [[Royal Stoke University Hospital|North Staffordshire Hospital]] and, during an operation, received 200 stitches in his face and over 100 micro-stitches inside the socket of his right eye, and was told the chances of saving the sight in his eye were 50–50.<ref>{{harvnb|Banks|2002|p=203}}</ref> His sight never returned, and as the loss of [[binocular vision]] severely limited his abilities as a goalkeeper, he retired from professional football the following summer.<ref>{{harvnb|Banks|2002|p=207}}</ref>