Football’s tragic loss

Sunday, 27/11/2011

The loss of Gary Speed is more than the loss of a great footballer. The world has lost a great guy.

Speed was one of those rare people in football who you never heard a bad word about.

Tributes always 'pour' in after someone famous passes away. In this instance the tributes were immediate, heartfelt and really did pour in.

My phone buzzed into action just seconds after I heard the sad news. Many of the texts were from people who had never met him but were stunned because they quite simply knew of his great reputation.

Other emails and messages were from players who were totally stunned. It was a mixture of sadness, shock and disbelief. But all had one thing in common: they had lost a great friend, colleague or ex-team mate.

Speed was a nice guy. A great player. A major asset to every side he played for. And in recent months he was proving to be the catalyst moving Wales into a new era.

One story that springs to mind is when my son - then aged about ten - went to St. James' Park for a young supporters' signing session. The Newcastle players were under orders not do delay the queue of autograph hunters by posing for pictures.

Speed stopped my lad, signed his autograph book and then posed deliberately for a picture with him. That's the sign of a guy who cared for fans. We also cared for him!

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