Academy Director Tony Carr has paid tribute to former colleague and West Ham United Chief Scout Eddie Baily, who passed away last week at the age of 85 following a short illness.
"Eddie made his name as a player at Tottenham Hotspur, where he played for ten years. He also played for England at the 1950 World Cup. After retiring, he worked under Bill Nicholson and was Tottenham's assistant manager when they won the double in 1961.
"Eddie came into the youth department here when Wally St Pier retired and later became Chief Scout, bringing in people like Jimmy Hampson to the club. Before then, he did work with John Lyall with the youngsters and became the club's Head of Recruitment.
"Eddie was a hard-working man who told you exactly what he thought about everything. His greatest claim to fame was probably bringing Alan Devonshire to the club in 1976. I worked closely with him and got on with Eddie very well. He said it as it was and there were no grey areas with him, which I think John Lyall respected him for a lot."