Son’s tribute to his darts star dad
A SONG written about a former Moorlands engineer has received rave reviews.
The song, Great Man has been written by Marc Cotterill and has reached number 62 in the itunes pop chart and number two in the Amazon Movers and Shakers chart.
Marc said: “This was my first song that has been released. I recorded and presented it to my dad at the Inspire Music Recording Studio in Fulford as a gift on his 79th birthday last December.
“At the beginning of lockdown while separated, my friends and I set about individually recording our performances for the song, and while it was not my intention to put so many videos out all at once, it felt like the perfect time to share it.
“Alzheimer’s started to get the better of dad, Rod Cotterill, and we lost him on April, 12, much sooner than expected and unable to be by his side as he passed due to this horrible virus.
“My mum Tiss and sister, Lisa and I are so thankful for all the love we’ve received from all who have supported us since. It made carrying on that little bit easier. It was heartbreaking that we could not go and see him.
“I did manage to take my dad out for a meal on his birthday and then we stopped at the studio so I could let him hear the song, so he did hear it before he died.
“He was so fit and healthy and then Alzheimer’s came out of nowhere. He had it for less than two years.”
Rod worked at Thomas Bolton’s, where he started as an apprentice, for almost 55 years, officially retiring at 70, but went back to help out during factory holidays. According to his family, Rod wished he’d worked even longer.
Rod had three children, Dawn, Sharon and Donna, from a previous marriage. Rod and Tiss married in 1980 and had two more children, Lisa and Marc.
Tiss said: “Rod was very well known for playing darts (pictured above right). He played for The Crown, The Isaac Walton and The Royal Oak in Dilhorne to name a few.
“He was a very competitive player and played in the Ipstones, Stone, Cheadle and other leagues - where, from an old newspaper cutting, it says that he won the Cheadle singles competition for nine years running.
“Rod played for the Super League and was proud to be chosen as a county player for Staffordshire and he has trophies from The British Knock Out Cup, British Champions Cup and the British Inter-county Darts Championship, amongst many others.
“Rod played against some high profile players including Bill Lennard, Cliff Lazerenko, Bobby George, Eric Bristow and Phil Taylor, to name a few. He beat Bill, Cliff and Eric. He would have liked to have beaten Phil.”
Together with family and friends, Rod helped to raise thousands of pounds for the Cystic Fibrosis Trust doing house to house collections and annual spring fairs at Kingsley Village Hall.
The song is available to stream or buy across all the major music platforms now and at song.link/i/1520160984.