Bill Nicholson - part 6

"Bill Nicholson was totally dedicated to this club. He was the first person to arrive in the morning and the last person to leave at night. He's a fantastic man and it was an honour to serve under him.
It was the lure of playing for Nicholson that made me decide to join Spurs.” 
                                                                                                                            - Martin Peters

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Each day this week we have started with a tribute from someone who worked with him. Today a few thoughts from the man himself but first what did his contemporaries think.

“I have always had the deepest respect for Bill Nicholson as a person and as a manager. The Spurs boss is an honest Yorkshireman and you will go a long way before finding a straighter character than that. Bill has never wavered in his determination to give White Hart Lane fans the best." - Bill Shankly

"I was lucky enough to work with him in 1958 when we went to the World Cup.
He was Walter Winterbottom's assistant and I found him to be an absolutely brilliant man.

Bill had a terrific knowledge of the game and his Tottenham sides were so attractive to watch."
- Don Howe

1. Pitch inspection with Bill Shankley in 1974.

"You had to play with him or against him to appreciate what a great defender he was, and when the opposing manager was looking for a weakness in the Tottenham defence, the name Nicholson never came up." - Joe Mercer

"Bill eventually became Mr. Tottenham Hotspur, and produced such a dazzling team at White Hart Lane that they won the double and played the game in a way that was an object lesson to everybody." - Brian Clough

Now Bill in his own words. In an interview shortly before his second testimonial When he was asked what did he prefer, playing or managing?  He replied “I’ve never really thought of it like that,” (laughing).“I had a long time at the club as a player and that was always very special for me.” before adding “My whole career at Tottenham has been good.

2. Aug 1962

Even after I finished as manager, I still continued to do scouting to help out after that. This club has always been a good attraction for me.” Then looking forward to the Florentina game he said “It is, I hope, going to be a good day for everyone and a good game,” he said. “I feel we’ll see a decent game because Florentina are a very good Italian team.”

3, Cheshunt 2nd Aug 1960. Something specials coming.

For the programme for that game he wrote “I want to thank the Spurs supporters not only for showing their support this evening, but over many years. I am always overwhelmed by the response and kind gestures I continue to receive from so many fans”.

Did you know that prior to that testimonial in 2001 a set of ten first day postage covers were issued. Only 65 were produced. One for each year sine his arrival at Tottenham.

The line up for image 3 above - back row, John Hills, Bobby Smith, John Ryden, Maurice Norman, Mel Hopkins, Peter Baker and David Mackay. Middle row -Cliff Jones, Tony Marchi, Bill Brown, Jonathan Hollowbread, Ron Henry and Les Allen. Front row, Tommy Harmer, Cecil Poynton (trainer), Danny Blanchflower, Bill Nicholson and Terry Dyson.

Bill Nicholson said during the Double celebrations, “I’m the luckiest manager, I’m the proudest manager.”  I’m reminded of the old sporting adage the harder I work and the more I train the luckier I get.

In 2001, Spurs fan Clare Tomlinson interviewed Bill, then 82, for Sky Sports.

When he passed away. Chairman Daniel levy paid this tribute. "Bill's death is a tragedy for the whole of football but particularly so for his family and all of us at Spurs. He was loved by everyone at White Hart Lane and there is no doubt that he in turn loved this club. He will never be forgotten."

 Bill Nicholson devoted his whole life to Tottenham Hotspur and to our fans and will never be surpassed as the greatest individual in our history. He lifted Spurs from mediocrity to the sublime as we became the first British club to win a European trophy and to so many wonderful achievements such as that special Double of 1961." - Daniel Levy

To end this series tomorrow a few personal memories of when I met the great man.

4. 1951

5.

6. At The PFA Awards

Acknowledgements will be at end of series but special thanks today to THFC,
Images - Top - Lilywhite Magazine,THFC, 1950, 2- Topfoto, 3- Getty images, 4- the Independent, 6- the Daily Telegraph.

About the author:
Keith Harrison, Nilgiris, TN
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