Farewell Graham, football’s nice guy

ONE summer long ago during his early days as Wales coach, Ron Waldron asked me if I could get him an entrée to one of the big football clubs. He wanted to meet the manager, watch the players train and learn from the experience of watching a professional club prepare for the season.

I knew just the manager and, as luck would have it, he ran the club which happened to be the nearest to South Wales. Aston Villa, then taking stock as the second best team in England after chasing Liverpool all the way to the title in 1990, were managed by Graham Taylor.

His sudden death at the age of 72 evoked fond memories of a football manager unusual in his profession in that he would try and help reporters, not least because his father, Tom, had been one on the Scunthorpe Telegraph.

Ever affable and receptive to helping others, Graham responded to the idea by offering a couple of dates on just one condition. “I’m happy to be of any help but this sort of meeting works best with a small group,” he said. “Tell them to keep it down to three and I’ll look forward to seeing them.”

For reasons long lost in the mists of time, Waldron never quite got round to making the trip. He resigned as Wales coach the following year citing ill-health and not long after that, Taylor left Villa for England.