Graham Taylor RIP

[Fugazi]

[Wullie]

Sounds like a really lovely guy. He was a bit before my time but I remember I enjoyed listening to him doing co-commentary on 5Live, he always sounded really happy to be there.

[Paully]

What a great bloke!

 

Graham Taylor's letters: Fans share correspondences from former boss

 

http://dailym.ai/2jf94Cp

[Tooj]

5 live tribute to him last night was excellent.

[TheGuv]

Absolutely gutted.

 

Came into our club when it was a f***ing shambles, stood up to Ellis, turned it around, and so very nearly won the league.

 

Just saw this, elsewhere. Says it all.

 

My Dad just rang me to see if I'd heard the news and he reminded me of this story of great kindness and humility from SGT.

 

Ian, a friend had cystic fibrosis which meant although he was an avid Villa fan his condition wouldn't allow him to get to a game.  My Dad wrote to Villa, Steve Stride if he remembers rightly, to see if Ian could get along to Bodymoor Heath one day for a bit of a behind the scenes visit. Ian had several complications with his CF and wasn't expected to live into his 30s.

 

Graham Taylor replied personally to my old man (I'm now hoping somewhere at their home he's kept that letter, I did ask him!) promising to fulfil Ian's dream of meeting some players and watching them play & train.  Well, I can't even begin to describe what SGT ended up doing with Ian.  I know he spent the day at BH and was put up at The Belfry by Villa for a couple of nights with his family.  They were picked up on the Saturday and travelled with the team on a Flights coach to an away game, memory is failing, can't remember which one but we think it was Middlesborough.  Ian sat next to SGT all the way there and back, I've seen some old Polaroids of him playing cards with some of the players.  This meant Ian was away from his family for about 24 hours, CF sufferers need to be massaged and helped with dealing with the mucus build up in the respiratory tract & lungs.  Ian's Mum usually helped with this but SGT said if she showed him how to do it he'd make sure him and the physios dealt with it, she can have the day off.

 

Ian died about 6 months after that amazing experience.

 

SGT came to Ian's funeral, no mean feat considering it was in Surrey.  On Ian's coffin was a picture of him laughing and smiling with SGT.

 

Great story. Thanks for sharing. When people in football really get what a football club should be for the community and area they can do so much good. Well done Graham Taylor .

 

Having worked with CF patients that is a tremendous story. Brings a tear to the eye.