Ron's at the head of the Flowers dynasty

And now Ron Flowers is hoping to watch his grandson follow in his illustrious footsteps after the 20-year-old signed a professional contract by Burnley.

A commanding centre-half, Harry Flowers had been turning out for Staffordshire side Brocton earlier this season.

But after being spotted by a Clarets scout, he was offered, and accepted, a pro deal at the Lancashire club – with the youngster knowing his grandfather is the perfect role model if he ever needs advice.

Born in Edlington, a mining village in South Yorkshire, Ron also had to move away to achieve his footballing ambitions.

He was initially spotted as a teenager by Doncaster Rovers before coming to the attention of Wolves scouts.

But his move to the West Midlands had to wait, with his father Jack insisting he had a to finish an apprenticeship with train firm LNER Locomotive before he left Yorkshire.

Fortunately, Wolves manager Stan Cullis came to the rescue.

He spoke to Jack and offered his son maximum wages for a 17-year-old, meaning that Ron would be earning more a week than his dad did. And reluctantly Jack gave in.

But more disruption was just around the corner.

The following year, Ron was called up for National Service.

Applying to the RAF, he completed his initial training at Hednesford followed by a posting to Cosford.

It was during the six weeks of training that Ron made his first-team debut for Wolves against Blackpool.

And while the Molineux men lost, Ron marked the occasion with a goal.

A terrific athlete and fine passer of the ball, Flowers went on to establish himself in the Wolves side for the next 15 years, playing at either wing-half or centre-half.

And it was his partnership with Peter Broadbent that formed the bedrock of the Wolves teams that won the League Championship in 1954, 1958 and 1959, as well as the FA Cup in 1960.

In total, Flowers made 512 appearances for the club between 1952 and 1967, scoring 37 goals – putting him sixth in the club's all-time list of appearance makers.

His form in gold and black also allowed him to shine on the international stage.

In 49 appearances for England, Flowers scored 10 goals and played in the 1962 World Cup.

He was also part of Sir Alf Ramsey's squad that famously won the competition in 1966.

Flowers didn't kick a ball in anger during that tournament. But there is no doubt he still played his part.

Flowers suspected then, as he still does now, that he was included in Alf Ramsey's 22-man squad for the finals for a specific reason.

The oldest member of the group, he was there to set an example.

"I was there to do a job," he said in an exclusive interview with The Express & Star.

"As far as I had been concerned, my England career was finished. I hadn't been expecting the call."

Flowers also came a whisker away from playing in the biggest game in English football.

Before the final in 1966, Jack Charlton had told Ramsey he was struggling with a cold.

And that prompted the boss to put Flowers on stand-by.

"The message was, be ready," explains Flowers. "It was not, as you might expect however, the cause of any nerves, or indeed a restless night.

"It didn't make any difference to my thinking.

"I knew whatever he might have come down with, he would play.

"Do you really think Jack Charlton was going to miss out on the World Cup final because of a cold?

"It would have needed to have been one heck of a cold."

After retiring from professional football Ron opened his shop Ron Flowers Sports in Queen Street, Wolverhampton.

Today it is run by his son, and Harry's dad, Glenn.