It's almost the case that however far back into Peter's superb goalkeeping career one delves for perspective, one could have safely predicted the heights it would reach. A schoolboy prodigy, his dedication to working on the practice and psychology of his destined profession (and even on building the correct physique for it) was evident while he was helping Leicester Boys to their 1965 Trophy win, and picking up his first international recognition with England Schools.

At Filbert Street there was immediate acknowledgement of Peter's precocious talent, and he became City's youngest-ever First Division debutant at 16 when characteristically keeping a clean sheet against Cup-winners-to-be Everton.

Barely another year had elapsed before a queue of top clubs was forming, ready to snatch Peter (now an automatic choice for England youth) from the Filbert Street shadow of Gordon Banks, and an unenviable choice soon faced Matt Gillies over which of his top-rank keepers to part with. He elected to invest in the younger man's ability and ambition, and it was not too long before his judgement was substantiated by Peter's assumption of Banks's place in the international arena.

In the interim, City experienced a Cup Final, a relegation and a promotion (with Peter's shot-stopping solidity, aerial agility, uncanny sense of positioning and absolute command of his area in large part responsible for the club creating its best-ever defensive record during 1970/71, when he kept a record 23 clean sheets).

Rarely out of the public eye - his adoption of an all white playing kit and his long-distance scoring success at Southampton at various times assuring that - Peter was inevitably now adding full international mementos to his thirteen England Under-23 caps, but also becoming less than enchanted with City's trophy-winning prospects, Jimmy Bloomfield accepted a £325,000 cheque from Stoke for the unsettled star, and the move ironically threatened to rebound on Peter as the Potters themselves struggled, and he found himself only sharing the yellow jersey of England with Ray Clemence. But when Stoke dropped into Division Two, Peter was the subject of a typically shrewd bit of Brian Clough business, and in five years of almost uninterrupted success in domestic and European competitions with Forest, he once more re-established himself as the country's undisputed No. 1.

Peter became the most-capped England keeper of all time, skippering the national side on occasion, and earning the civil honour of the MBE in 1986. In July 1990, he finally retired from the international scene with a world record 125 caps to his name, bowing out at the very top of his profession. He was up-graded to an OBE in 1991.

Peter Shilton is statistically the safest keeper the club have ever had. Of those goalies who make sufficient (100+) appearances in League and Cups to render the figures meaningful, Shilton conceded an average of only 1.118 goals per game for City. Higher averages accrue to George Hebden (1.135), Mark Wallington (1.319), Herbert Bown (1.370), Jimmy Thraves (1.453), Gordon Banks (1.486), Kevin Poole (1.500 to date), Sandy McLaren (1.750), Johnny Anderson (1.762) and Jim McLaren (1.805).