Denis Irwin in tribute to Dudley-born Busby Babe Duncan Edwards at new centre

The name of Duncan Edwards has been fondly remembered across Dudley Borough ever since his promising career as a footballer for Manchester United was cut tragically short.

Aged just 21, he was one of 23 people who died in the Munich air disaster in 1958. Today more than 40 items including photographs and letters belonging to Edwards sold for over £40,000 at auction.

WATCH an interview with Denis Irwin at the opening of the centre:

The opening of the new Duncan Edwards Leisure Centre in Dudley this week was the latest tribute to the Dudley-born Babe.

At a special ceremony at the centre on Wednesday, a selection of invited guests from across Dudley and Manchester heard speeches from Dudley Council Leader Patrick Harley, Manchester United legend Denis Irwin and Mayor of Dudley Councillor Anne Millward.

The dignitaries in attendance were also given a full tour of the new centre, taking in the enormous gym area, with a range of machines and a cross-fit area, and the immersive cycling area, the only one in the Black Country.

Denis Irwin was there as an ambassador for Manchester United, the club he played for from 1990 to 2002, and spoke of the honour of representing the club and what he described as a fitting tribute to an amazing player.

He said: "It's a great honour for me to represent Manchester United and be part of a fitting tribute for a fantastic player.

"I spoke to Bobby Charlton and Paddy Crerand about Duncan Edwards and they've told me what an amazing athlete and footballer he was and I think if you look at the number of appearances he made for Manchester United before he was 21, it's incredible.

"I'm delighted to be here and see the facilities and it looks like an amazing building, so in his home town, I really do think it's a fitting tribute."

The centre features a Duncan Edwards suite, with photos of the young man and a timeline of his short life.

For Denis, the area holds fond memories, having spent the last two years of his career at Wolves from 2002 to 2004 and winning promotion to the Premier League in 2003, and he said he was pleased to see the regeneration work going on in Dudley.

He said: "Just talking to the people from the council, you can see the amount of stuff that is happening in Dudley and I hope they will use this fantastic facility to its full use.

"I had the pleasure of playing for Wolves in my last two years, having been a fan back in Cork when I was growing up, and I have fantastic memories of being here, so it's just a huge honour to be here today."

Following her speech, the mayor unveiled a plaque declaring the centre open and said there was no other person the centre could be named after than Duncan Edwards.

She said: "It's absolutely brilliant to be here as mayor to open this wonderful facility for the people of our borough and I can't think of anything else we could have called the centre and Duncan's legacy will live on through the centre.

"His name is known all over the world and, to be quite frank, he is arguably one of the best football players that this country has produced."

Councillor Millward said it was also a massive honour to have Denis Irwin there, praising the link Manchester United still had with the borough, and said she would be signing up for a membership as soon as her period as mayor ended.

Councillor Patrick Harley said the new facility was a fantastic addition to the borough, with state-of-the-art equipment in the centre of Dudley, and spoke about how it honoured one of Dudley's most famous sons.

He said: "The fact that so many years after his untimely passing, we're still talking about him just shows how great he was and how outstanding his career could have been.

"They talk about George Best and Pele, but this is a lad who made more than 200 appearances for Manchester United before he was 21 and an unbelievable career lay ahead for him, only to be cut tragically short.

"The fact that we are still talking about him and naming a multi-million pound leisure centre after him in 2022, just speaks volumes for his ability and how much he is still set deep in the hearts of people from Dudley."

To find out more about the new centre, go to dudley.gov.uk/things-to-do/leisure-centres/duncan-edwards-leisure-centre/.