The 100th anniversary of footballer Sir Stanley Matthews’s birth revived memories of an appearance he made in Oxford.

The Blackpool and England right winger lined up for an All Stars XI against Headington United (the forerunner of Oxford United) in a testimonial match at the Manor Road ground in 1956.

Despite being the grand age of 41, he still retained many of his footballing skills, to the delight of a 10,000 crowd.

Reader Geoff Axe, of Upper Road, Kennington, Oxford, recalls playing golf some years later with Bobby Craig, one of the Headington defenders who had to mark him that day.

Craig’s verdict? “I just couldn’t get near him – in a twist and a flash, he was gone.”

The Oxford Mail reported: “Stanley Matthews, still one of the best footballers in the world, ensured success for the match just by saying he would play.

“It was biggest gate since Headington met Bolton in the FA Cup fourth round in 1952.

“Only occasionally did the crowd see Matthews dribble, but he delighted spectators with his control and delicate touches.

“During the second half, the group of boys hoping for autographs near the players’ entrance grew steadily.

“As soon as referee Norman Matthews – no relation – blew his whistle, crowds of boys swarmed on to the pitch and made a dash for Matthews.

“But he was too quick for them. He was away, sprinting the 150 yards to the safety of the dressing room.”

The match report on the Mail sports pages was headlined ‘Matthews does his juggling’.

Sports reporter Syd Cox wrote: “The Peter Pan of football, 41-year-old Stanley Matthews, illuminated the scene at Manor Road, but even his wizardry could not prevent Headington United from beating the All Stars XI 4-2.

“Even when not at top speed, Matthews is still a great player and he showed the crowd of over 10,000 his whole box of tricks – immaculate ball control, deceptive swerve, almost casual approach to a defender as if to say ‘come and get it’, sudden bursts of speed and slide-rule centres. The crowd loved it – and him.”

The testimonial match was in honour of long-serving United favourite Jimmy Smith.

Matthews wasn’t the only player with Blackpool connections on the field that night.

Headington’s centre forward Lionel Phillips was a former Blackpool player and helped sink his hero’s team, by scoring one goal and laying on the pass for another.

Mr Axe wrote: “Blackpool, along with Preston, Bolton, Wolves, West Brom etc, were all top First Division clubs on their books.

“Those players on the fringes of playing regular football for them, or those who didn’t quite make the grade, were often off-loaded to non-league teams such as Headington United.”