Alan Ball:At 5ft 6in and never weighing above 11st, Alan Ball had the stature of a jockey rather than a footballer. He was rejected on that basis as a teenager by Bolton Wanderers and Wolverhampton Wanderers before Blackpool, then a thriving club, made a shrewder decision - they signed him and profited accordingly.
After his triumph with England in the 1966 World Cup, Blackpool were deeply reluctant to sell Ball, who has died after a heart attack aged 61, but on he went to Everton, having been arguably the most effective and decisive player in that Wembley final.
Born in Farnworth, Lancashire, he was the son of Alan Ball snr. His father was a well-known, tenacious inside-forward with Southport - and coached his son diligently.
Red-haired, combative, though less aggressive than his father, Alan jnr had all the tireless attributes of the classical "W" formation inside-forward, though it was as a virtual right winger that he would play so well for England in the 1966 World Cup.
Early criticism of him suggested he did not have the acceleration for a striker or sufficient creative flair for an inside-forward, but his sheer energy and determination would make up for that: in that 1966 final, he would eventually exhaust West Germany's formidable left-back, Karl-Heinz Schnellinger.
He made just five appearances for Blackpool in his first season, 1962 , but was a regular player in 1963-64, with 13 goals in 31 games. He was a consistent goal scorer: 17 for Blackpool in his World Cup season; and 20 in his first season with Everton.
He was taken by England manager Alf Ramsey to Europe in May 1965 and given his first cap in Belgrade against Yugoslavia three days before his 20th birthday. Altogether he would play 72 times for England, the last occasion being against Scotland at Wembley in 1975.
Ball was picked for England's opening game of the 1966 World Cup at Wembley, a frustrating 0-0 draw with Uruguay, but left out of the next two there against Mexico and France. Against Argentina, however, in a famously bruising quarter-final, Ball was back, and would stay. Their 1-0 win took England into the semifinal against Portugal and he, now operating on the right flank, ran like the Olympic medallist Emil Zatopek, or Mario Zagallo, the indefatigable Brazilian winger.
Ramsey's plan in the final was for Ball to exploit Schnellinger's lack of pace by drawing him into the middle. But in the event Ball tormented Schnellinger out on the right wing, though not before he had skilfully operated Ramsey's plan in the first half. After 67 minutes, Ball paved the way to England's second goal, giving them a 2-1 lead, when he bundled the shaky German goalkeeper Hans Tilkowski over the goal-line to force a left-wing corner. This he took himself, an inswinger, from which Martin Peters eventually scored. But Wolfgang Weber's very late equaliser forced extra time.
It was then that Ball came truly into his own, with his constant runs down the right. On 100 minutes, Nobby Stiles sent him a searching pass. Ball would later say that he had "already died twice" and that he told himself, "Oh, no, I can't get that one! I'm finished!" But get it he did, putting over the cross which Geoff Hurst struck furiously against the underside of the bar. Tofik Bakhramov, the Soviet linesman, flagged for a goal and, controversial though it was, it tipped the balance.
Ball went to Everton in 1966. The £110,000 deal was then the the most expensive transfer in English football and he occupied the central midfield position. He left Everton for Arsenal in 1971 for a fee of £225,000, and had further spells as a player at Southampton and Vancouver Whitecaps.
On retiring from playing he became a manager of a series of clubs with varying success, including Blackpool, Eastern Athletic in Hong Kong, Bristol Rovers, Portsmouth, Stoke and Exeter City.
Southampton took him on as their manager in 1994-95, after which he made an ill-fated move to Manchester City, where things went badly wrong and City were relegated to the Nationwide Division One. Portsmouth recalled him in the 1998-99 season but, much to his resentment, they then discarded him.
Ball's wife Lesley died of cancer. His daughters Keely and Mandy, and son Jimmy survive him.
Alan Ball: born May 12th, 1945; died April 25th, 2007.