The following players all named Neil Franklin in their ‘All Time’, ‘Greatest’, or ‘Dream’ XI’s:
Tom Finney
Gordon Banks
Don Revie
Jimmy Armfield
Billy Wright
Cliff Bastin
Wilf Mannion
Johnny Carey
Peter Doherty
Nat Lofthouse
Tommy Lawton
Stan Mortensen
Len Shackleton
Billy Liddell
Franklin also made David Lacey’s all time England XI in the Guardian, David Miller’s all time England XI in the Telegraph and Peter Young’s all time England squad for England Football Online.
Neil featured in the Football League’s ‘100 Legends‘ list selected in 1998 and came fourth in the Telegraph’s 2007 list of England’s 20 best defenders. He also made the authors own lists of the 7 greatest footballers of the 1940’s, the 7 greatest centre-backs of all time and England’s all time squad for HITC Sevens and HITC Sport.