Saints lead thetributes togiantof thepressbox
Tributes to Graham came flooding in after news of his passing
A spokesman for St Johnstone FC said: “Over many, many years, Graham was a well-known face in the press boxes of both Muirton Park and McDiarmid Park, as well as at a multitude of away grounds as he followed Saints around Scotland for the PA.
“We are sad to learn of his passing and it is fitting that Graham will long be remembered by way of the hundreds of match reports and his other coverage of the club through good times and bad.
“That will be Graham’s footballing legacy amongst all his other work as a reporter.”
Alex Totten, former Saints manager, said: “Graham was the first journalist to interview me when I got the job at St Johnstone. I remember we met at the Huntingtower Hotel.
“In the days when we were parttime, he would call every Monday and Thursday morning for the latest news from the club.
“We got along very well in my time at Saints and remained good friends.
“I have been looking out old PA reports that I have kept from some of the big games that Graham covered, like our 1988 promotion at Muirton and one from 1990 when we were crowned champions down at Ayr.
“Graham covered many of the games when I was manager, including the win over Airdrie that fans still talk about as the best game ever seen at McDiarmid Park.
“He was a Saints supporter of course and it must have been nice to report on good times for the club after all it had been through.
“I found Graham to be a lovely man, a gentleman really, and a very good journalist.”
Saints historian Alastair Blair described Graham as “scrupulous in his attention to detail”.
He said: “Graham’s match reports could be relied upon to be, well, reliable. And when you called him, his knowledge, insights and willingness to share his information with the strange breed of anoraks who record the history of their local club was second to none.”
Jean McCormack, former Perth and Kinross provost and councillor, said: “I have nothing but happy memories of Graham, both as a journalist and as a friend.
“Graham was always a gentleman and he was the most immaculately dressed journalist ever.
“His kindness extended to his reporting, as he never intentionally hurt or disrespected anyone.”
David Bonnar, former Perth Theatre general manager, said he would remember Graham’s “cheerful disposition and sheer dedication to his work”.
He added: “Graham reviewed virtually every production in my 10-year period at Perth Theatre in the 1980/90s. By that stage, he had been reviewing shows for 15 years.
“That adds up to an impressive tally of sheer dedication and thoughtful criticism, always fair and balanced, and valued by the many who looked forward to reading his views in the PA.”
And Ken Alexander, a Perth-based theatre director, said: “He always reviewed productions with insight and thoughtfulness, not afraid to challenge what he saw on stage but never one to be unkind, making sure that everyone was given credit for the work they had contributed to a production.”