PaulC Posted October 29, 2023 Share Posted October 29, 2023 Sad to hear. Was our left back when I went to my first villa game. Think he was one of the Mercer minors. RIP legend. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xela Posted October 29, 2023 Share Posted October 29, 2023 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post John Posted October 30, 2023 Popular Post Share Posted October 30, 2023 Such sad news. I thought Charlie would always be there, he was ever present at left back when I was a young lad standing by the railings at the foot of the Holte End, all the way through to my late teens. He was with us through the lows of relegation from Division 1 to Division 3 and was with us until he had played his part in getting us right back up to where we belonged. He played in our shirt at Wembley, in Antwerp and at Bury. Charlie played alongside Johnny Dixon, Peter McParland and Gerry Hitchens, as well as Brian Little, Andy Gray, Dennis Mortimer and every Villa player in between. He played against Best, Greaves and Charlton, as well as with and against Pele. His first Villa boss was Joe Mercer and his last was Ron Saunders. He played for Scotland U23 and for us 660 times. My thoughts as with his family and with his Villa family as he takes his place in the Villa line up in the sky. RIP Charlie HEITS! 12 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveAV1 Posted October 30, 2023 Share Posted October 30, 2023 15 hours ago, Mark Albrighton said: Before my time. Clearly a club legend. HEITS I remember him during my early days at Villa Park and even named our little dog after him! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveAV1 Posted October 30, 2023 Share Posted October 30, 2023 4 hours ago, John said: Such sad news. I thought Charlie would always be there, he was ever present at left back when I was a young lad standing by the railings at the foot of the Holte End, all the way through to my late teens. He was with us through the lows of relegation from Division 1 to Division 3 and was with us until he had played his part in getting us right back up to where we belonged. He played in our shirt at Wembley, in Antwerp and at Bury. Charlie played alongside Johnny Dixon, Peter McParland and Gerry Hitchens, as well as Brian Little, Andy Gray, Dennis Mortimer and every Villa player in between. He played against Best, Greaves and Charlton, as well as with and against Pele. His first Villa boss was Joe Mercer and his last was Ron Saunders. He played for Scotland U23 and for us 660 times. My thoughts as with his family and with his Villa family as he takes his place in the Villa line up in the sky. RIP Charlie HEITS! Brilliant post John. RIP to him HEITS! 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Fun Factory Posted October 30, 2023 Share Posted October 30, 2023 RIP to a true club legend. I don't think his appearance record will ever be broken. Stayed with Villa during the wilderness years and was rewarded with a league cup. A bit disappointed it didn't even geta brief mention on MOTD2 yesterday and has had very little coverage outside of Birmingham. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveAV1 Posted October 30, 2023 Share Posted October 30, 2023 11 minutes ago, The Fun Factory said: RIP to a true club legend. I don't think his appearance record will ever be broken. Stayed with Villa during the wilderness years and was rewarded with a league cup. A bit disappointed it didn't even geta brief mention on MOTD2 yesterday and has had very little coverage outside of Birmingham. Disappointed yes surprised no. You know what the media and especially the BBC are like when it comes to anything in Birmingham especially us. Stuff ‘em all anyway. UTV!! RIP Charlie HEITS!! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Fun Factory Posted October 30, 2023 Share Posted October 30, 2023 There is an article on the BBC now, perhaps they were waiting for a confirmation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zhan_Zhuang Posted October 30, 2023 Share Posted October 30, 2023 I know of him (obviously) but well before my time... His appearance record averages 38 games per season over 17 years which is incredible. R.I.P H.E.I.T.S 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newhavenhibby Posted October 30, 2023 Visiting Supporter Share Posted October 30, 2023 Was the regular left back when I first started going down Villa Park in the early 70's. He was already a legend then and even more so now. RIP Charlie , thanks for the memories. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post TRO Posted October 30, 2023 Popular Post Share Posted October 30, 2023 Charlie was a great servant to our club and his loyalty, will never be surpassed....He is a Legend. if ever there was a "Mr Aston Villa" it was Charlie. Heart felt condolences to his Family and Friends. You will never be forgotten at Villa Park, Charlie....join the Holtenders in the Sky, you Warrior. RIP Charlie and God Bless. 5 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fruitvilla Posted October 30, 2023 Share Posted October 30, 2023 Saw him play twice ... a 4-0 defeat to the Blose (1968) and a 1-4 win over Naarrech (1975) I can't say I remember much from way back then. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRO Posted October 30, 2023 Share Posted October 30, 2023 11 hours ago, John said: Such sad news. I thought Charlie would always be there, he was ever present at left back when I was a young lad standing by the railings at the foot of the Holte End, all the way through to my late teens. He was with us through the lows of relegation from Division 1 to Division 3 and was with us until he had played his part in getting us right back up to where we belonged. He played in our shirt at Wembley, in Antwerp and at Bury. Charlie played alongside Johnny Dixon, Peter McParland and Gerry Hitchens, as well as Brian Little, Andy Gray, Dennis Mortimer and every Villa player in between. He played against Best, Greaves and Charlton, as well as with and against Pele. His first Villa boss was Joe Mercer and his last was Ron Saunders. He played for Scotland U23 and for us 660 times. My thoughts as with his family and with his Villa family as he takes his place in the Villa line up in the sky. RIP Charlie HEITS! Well put John as always. I too was in the ground watching him in my youth....I remember him well...as you say, always seemed to be there as a player or Ambassador. His love of Aston Villa was endearing, its sad news. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kingman Posted October 30, 2023 Share Posted October 30, 2023 2 hours ago, Zhan_Zhuang said: I know of him (obviously) but well before my time... His appearance record averages 38 games per season over 17 years which is incredible. R.I.P H.E.I.T.S Yeah sure is, For context McGinn is likely to make his 200th appearance on Sunday against Forest. Charlie went on to make 660! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidcow Posted October 30, 2023 VT Supporter Share Posted October 30, 2023 4 hours ago, The Fun Factory said: There is an article on the BBC now, perhaps they were waiting for a confirmation. Yeah, they at least seem to have finally caught up. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Fun Factory Posted October 31, 2023 Share Posted October 31, 2023 (edited) In my ancient BBC History of Villa video, he was interviewed for the program. He really went through an evolution of football as when he started playing it was in the old W M formation, before the now traditional 4-4-2, or 4-5-1, etc. Aitken went through a lot at Villa with the decay of the old Villa board with the sell-off of the old training ground, the takeover, the division three years and recovery, and the move to Bodymoor. It very much straddled different eras at Villa. Edited October 31, 2023 by The Fun Factory 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pongo Waring Posted October 31, 2023 Share Posted October 31, 2023 RIP legend 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FLVillan Posted October 31, 2023 Share Posted October 31, 2023 Growing up I always wanted to wear number 3 when I played, no matter what position I was playing. It was because of Charlie Aitken. His name is and was synonymous with pure class and Aston Villa. May he Rest In Peace. The ultimate Holte Ender in the Sky. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beachboys1 Posted October 31, 2023 Share Posted October 31, 2023 21 hours ago, The Fun Factory said: There is an article on the BBC now, perhaps they were waiting for a confirmation. sky never mentioned it they seem to mention everyboy else 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dubliner Posted October 31, 2023 Share Posted October 31, 2023 21 minutes ago, beachboys1 said: sky never mentioned it they seem to mention everyboy else Yea not a whisper of it. Might be just me but I also thought the club's twitter admin didn't put enough emphasis on his importance to the club. His death was mentioned and then a few minutes later back to tweets celebrating the game. Tweet should have been pinned at the very least and in my opinion we could have gone with the black and white crest for a day as many clubs do to mark the passing of a former legend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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