Statue celebrating Wolverhampton Wanderers' famous victory unveiled
Crowds gathered outside Molineux Stadium as a statue commemorating the Wolverhampton Wanderers' famous victory against Honved Budapest was unveiled.
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The new steel and gold leaf sculpture, which marks one of the most important matches in the club's history, was revealed on Friday (December 13).
Almost 60,000 fans watched Wolves take on the Hungarian champions in December 1954.
The match saw Wolves come from 2-0 down to win 3-2 against one of the greatest teams of the era and paved the way for the European Cup.
Rev. Andrew Cullis, son of former Wolves manager Stan Cullis, told the BBC that the "match was so special" and "really meant a lot" to his father.
"Interestingly, I think he did shed a tear after they won, which was most unusual," he added.
Stan Cullis, who died in 2001, aged 85, led Wolves to their first league titles in the 1950s.
Designed and created by West Midlands-based artist Luke Perry, the new sculpture celebrates the importance of the match and serves as a permanent reminder of the role Wolves played in the formation of Europe's premier club competition.
Perry worked in conjunction with Wolves and the club’s fan groups to bring an artistic interpretation to Wolves’ momentous win.
He said: “It is a real honour to be asked to create this sculpture for my local team and even more so considering the incredible importance that this match has in the hearts of the fans. Many of the people that I work with are Wolves fans and are watching the sculpture take shape with something like reverence.
“The historic match had some characters from football history that are particularly rich to capture such as Bert Williams who's outline as a goalkeeper with a flat cap makes for brilliant reference material.
“I'm hoping that this sculpture will be a beloved representation for the fans of what is for many of them an almost mythical moment in the club's rich history.”
Mr Perry also said that while he didn't really follow football himself, he had a lot of family members who were Wolves supporters and said it had been an honour to be involved in something so well revered by the club.
He said: "My great-grandfather played for Wolves and I've been to a few games because my daughter is really into the Wolves women's team, so I'd probably end up being a Wolves fan because of all that.
"Football has got such an aesthetic and it does have high standards, so I wanted to be able to create something that would meet all that and it did need to be iconic.
"The club are really happy with it and there were a lot of people who were over the moon to see it and almost a bit teary, so it seems to have gone down a storm and it's nice to know that people are enjoying your work."
