Show of love for fans’ ‘son of god’

Ihave worked in the media - radio, television and print - for over 25 years and every now and again, if you are lucky, your story is worthy of provoking a public response.

My TV interview with David Beckham in Greece, regarding the wearing of PoshSpice’s knickers, went around the world, long before the days of Twitter or Facebook and resulted in phone calls from the likes of Brazil, Russia and Milton Keynes!

The Bigger Breakfast campaign to make safe the roads around Whittlesey, following the tragic death of Hannah Yates and our efforts to rescue Christmas, for the couple robbed in Orton Malborne, both prompted a huge reaction.

But I have never, ever, in all my years, encountered the amazing public outpouring, of love, sadness and shock, regarding the tragic plight of Posh legend, Chris Turner, as reported in this column for the first time last week.

Hundreds of people have contacted me by email, through social media sites and in person at Wembley; to express their affection for the man they still call the “son of god.” So many had golfing or cricket stories to tell, some just wanted to pay their respects and others to appeal for a fitting tribute to the man to be established at London road - his true home.

Hi s wi f e Ly n n e wa s s o moved by the public response that she has chosen to break her silence on Chris’s illness for the f i r s t t i me and tal k to me. She admits that the last few years have been incredibly tough, dealing with Chris’s illness: “It all started in 2006/2007, he didn’t want to go out, he didn’t want to talk, not even to me and he started to forget things.

“Chrissy was always fun to be with and full of life but he changed and I know thousands go through this, but it has been very, very hard.

“The violence got bad. He would be violent and then two minutes later he wouldn’t know what he had done. He used to say ‘I wouldn’t do that to you’ and I know he wouldn’t, but that’s the disease.”

Lynne says they took him to see doctors and specialists and they diagnosed frontal lobe dementia, caused by heading too many footballs. She is absolutely convinced that if he hadn’t played he game he would still be the same old Chris Turner today:

“There is nothing like this in his family so I am certain that heading footballs is to blame for his condition.” The authorities need to acknowledge the problem and do something about it, not so much for Chris, but for the kids playing the sport today.”

Chris Turner, the rampaging centre half, with a character and personality to match, started his career at Posh in 1969 and spent nine years at London road, scoring 37 goals, many of them with his head. He then went on to play for Luton, Cambridge United, Southend, Swindon a nd a couple of teams in the North American football league.

He managed Cambridge United before guiding Posh into the old First Division (the Championship) for the very first time, with that famous win at Wembley in 1992.

He then moved upstairs to become Chairman and coowner until 1996.

Sadly, according to Lynne, he now has no idea of his place in Posh history or in the fans’ hearts:

“He will watch football on the telly but I don’t think he knows now that he ever played or managed. There has not been any of that for a long, long while. We told him that Posh won the match at Wembley on Sunday but it didn’t go in.

“He doesn’t walk now, he can’t feed himself and eve- rything has to be puréed because he can’t swallow his food and that’s what it does – in the end the brain dies, from the front to the back.

“I miss him so much, he used to mess about and do silly things, I miss his companionship, I miss him so, so much - he was lovely, people always say that, but he was. He treated everybody the same and everyone you talk to has their own story to tell about Chris.

“I go and see him every day and I get a lot of comfort from just being with him because he was my best friend. Sometimes I think it would be lovely to hear him talk just one more time, but we haven’t had a chat in five years.”

Lynne has been absolutely overwhelmed by the response to Chris’s predicament and by the call from many fans for the club and the council to honour his achievements in some way. Some have even demanded that the new Moy’s End stand be named after their hero.

“I just hope that he is always r e me mb e r e d ”, s a y s Lynne, “because Posh was his heart and I think he did a lot for the club, well I know he did.”

He was c erta i nl y at the forefront of many people`s minds as the first goal went in for Posh at the home of football last Sunday.

As soon as the ball hit the back of the net in the John- stone’s Paint Trophy final, the cry of “Chris Turner’s Blue and White army” rose all around me and sent shivers down my spine.

“Tu r n s ” l i k e d t o w i n . Whether it was golf, cricket, football or tiddly winks, he wouldn’t give an inch, but sadly this is one battle which he is ultimately destined to lose.

But he won’t ever be forgotten, well not by the fans anyway.

He would have liked that.