Burnside passes away

David Burnside, a former professional footballer and England youth team manager, passed away at the weekend after suffering a heart attack at the age of 69.

He played League football for 15 years, starring as an attacking midfielder for West Bromwich Albion, Southampton, Crystal Palace, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Plymouth Argyle. He was capped for England at Under-23 level in 1961.

In 1979 he started working for The FA as a Regional Coach in the West Country. Four years later he was brought into the England set-up by new Manager Bobby Robson, a former team-mate at West Bromwich Albion.

Burnside was an England youth manager until 1997 and will particularly be remembered for taking the England Under-20 team through to the semi-finals of the FIFA World Youth Championship in Australia in 1993.

After leaving The FA he joined Bristol City as their Director of Youth Football.

Former England youth manager Dick Bate, who worked alongside Burnside at the The FA, described his former colleague as an 'inspirational coach'.

Bate said: "David Burnside will be long remembered at The Football Association as an outstanding coach and original thinker.

“He was exemplary in his coaching and managing of players and, at times, was inspirational and controversial with his technical ideas in the company of fellow coaches.

“He made an invaluable contribution to The FA Coaching Scheme both nationally and in his beloved West Country as FA Regional Coach.

“He was a stickler for ‘common sense’ coaching and loved being amongst football people.

“After successfully coaching the England youth teams for a number of years he became Academy Director of Bristol City where he devised and implemented a comprehensive development programme which is still in place.

“He also developed coaching programmes at the University of Bath to great effect, as Team Bath progressed through the leagues establishing themselves as a strong and competitive non-League team.

“He will be remembered as an outstanding coach and teacher of the game which for a man like David is a fitting tribute."