The forgotten story of Manchester United goalscoring great and Sir Alex Ferguson’s favourite player

After his retirement from the game that had given him so much, Jack Rowley was a private man, turning down invitations to football events and rejecting complimentary tickets at Old Trafford to avoid being fussed over.

Rowley is a certified Manchester United legend. Scorer of two of the most important goals in the history of the club and fourth on the list of all-time goalscorers, behind only Wayne Rooney, Sir Bobby Charlton and Denis Law.

He could be even higher on that list, with his 211 goals across 12 seasons including a six-year hiatus during the Second World War. Despite his heroics, on and off the pitch, there is a feeling he is something of a forgotten legend, alongside his even more prolific brother Arthur, who is the top scorer in the history of the Football League.

READ MORE: United have perfect Garnacho plan after Premier League rule change

But if Jack Rowley, who died in 1998 aged 79, is a footnote in the modern history of United, it hasn't always been that way. At the age of 72, he was finally tempted back to a gala dinner at Old Trafford, but only after grandson Christian convinced him to go.

"On the night of the event, a friend and I collected grandad in my car and we headed north. Sir Matt Busby was the quest speaker and was ecstatic to see my grandad, who greeted Sir Matt with "hello boss" and "how are you boss?"," recalls Christian.

"Even at the age of 72, my granddad still showed Busby huge amounts of respect. There were many footballing legends at the dinner and, one by one, they all came over to speak to granddad that evening. It was only then that it dawned on me how famous he actually was.

"During Busby's speech, I saw Sir Alex Ferguson enter the room. He headed straight over to grandad, shook his