Gary Mabbutt - a Legend

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Don't know whether this is of any interest but I was lucky enough to meet Mabbsy today on a Legends tour at WHL, so thought I'd chuck down some of the things he talked about.

There were only about 12 of us so it was a nice intimate session - highly recommended if there is anyone leading a tour that you'd like the chance to chat to in person. Covid is a pain in the arse so everyone had to wear masks but we could remove them for a few socially-distanced photographs.

Anyhows, the conversation started from looking at what the club is building now and how that compared to Irving Scholar's vision for Tottenham, which all went horribly wrong in the 1980s. GM was full of praise for IS - said he was the best chairman he'd ever had... but that the economic crashes of the 1980s screwed up our plan. He thinks ENIC is a step up on that and is balancing the investment in the club and the broader business very well. Said that Joe Lewis has virtually no interest in the club at all other than the astronomical growth in ENIC's investment. GM said that IS still a huge Tottenham fan and they stay in touch, but he doesn't seem to be welcome at WHL under the current regime.

He said that Venables was the best and worst manager that he's worked under, that T's strength was on the training pitch and that he abandoned the team straight after the Cup Final in 1991, not coming into the changing room once, despite GM's attempts to get him more involved in the First Team. GM was politely scathing really about Venables getting lost in some dream of becoming a Board Director - certainly an interesting perspective.

GM said that the period between 1991 and into the Scholar/Sugar/Venables saga was really tough as a captain. It's very clear how much of a leader GM was within the club - really, he was the boss of the whole First Team operation in some ways - and that holding the dressing room together was hard. Interestingly, he said that the dressing room back in 1991 was pretty bad, with cliques and factions who simply didn't get on... but somehow they got it together to win the FA Cup, although Gazza played a huge part in getting us there (by GM's own admission).

There were a few anecdotes about Gazza but GM said that him and Glenn Hoddle were the two best players he every played with, just ahead of Ardiles and Jurgen. Said that him and JK are still good friends, were close at Tottenham and even discussed a potential managerial partnership at one point.

GM has always felt that we are his club and he felt a very strong bond from his debut (he scored) onwards. He had a chance to leave in 1987, with Liverpool offering him double wages and a large signing-on bonus (Arse, Man Utd and Lyon were also trying to sign him then as he was out of contract) but he wanted to stay with us and felt we could do some really big things as a club.

His best defensive partner was Richard Gough but sadly the 1-year move to us was all agreed by RG and Rangers as Dundee United wouldn't sell directly to them. RG apparently regrets that now hugely but was committed to the 'hidden' agreement.

He's very positive about our current team, the quality in the side, the counter-attacking football and the harder mentality that Mou has brought in. He spent some time with Mou when they were respectively managing the Spurs vs Inter legends match. Said that Mou was really positive and excited about what we were building in the club. Was full of praise for Poch and the fundamental repositioning of us as a club that Poch achieved, especially through the Wembley years. That was what made us a name in European football and has enabled us to commercially capitalise on.

GM would still clearly love a more technical role in the club, and has been offered DoF roles in other clubs. He was keen on management until he nearly lost his leg and now he can't run or do much exercise at all. He says that managers have to be on the pitch, have to know players, and said that man management outweighs all of the supposed technical genius of certain types. He's close friends with Wenger (!) and there was a clear allusion to general disbelief about how that lot down the road are being run, how Ozil can be left out in the cold etc. I just hope it continues.

He did, however, want time out of the game after playing (his last game was "one of the the worst days of my life") to be with his family. He recounted talking to Bill Nich, who said to him about his daughter's wedding : "My biggest regret is that... at my daughter's wedding... I looked down at my daughter and I didn't recognise her... I'd just not been a part of her life" - that clearly struck a chord with him and he didn't start looking at coaching until later on.

What GM does today for the Tottenham Hotspur community is incredible. On top of his ambassadorial role, and alongside various community work he does, he still phones around 14 people every day who are vulnerable members of the community, spending 15-20 minutes talking to each one. He had his list for this evening which he'll no doubt be doing still as I'm typing. He's phoned over 1,700 people to date.

The guy is just an absolutely brilliant, humble, astute, kind and inspirational man. He still takes his position as a leader and captain of our club very seriously. He looks after Gazza as best as he can, he's in touch with former players and he represents the club very well. Frankly, I think he deserves something more than being a mere 'ambassador' and e.g. Life President would not be inappropriate.

TLDR etc but I'm pretty happy with my signed photo and signed copy of 'The Lane' that I got him to do. I decided not to make him feel too awkward by saying that his poster was on my bedroom wall as a kid... or that it was his fault that I became a Tottenham fan in the first place. But both of those things are true and now I've properly met one of my heroes. He didn't disappoint.

Yids. UTS.

P.S. oh and there was some nice big stadium thing but frankly everyone there - and we were of a certain age - just wanted to spend time in GM's company.
 
Don't know whether this is of any interest but I was lucky enough to meet Mabbsy today on a Legends tour at WHL, so thought I'd chuck down some of the things he talked about.

There were only about 12 of us so it was a nice intimate session - highly recommended if there is anyone leading a tour that you'd like the chance to chat to in person. Covid is a pain in the arse so everyone had to wear masks but we could remove them for a few socially-distanced photographs.

Anyhows, the conversation started from looking at what the club is building now and how that compared to Irving Scholar's vision for Tottenham, which all went horribly wrong in the 1980s. GM was full of praise for IS - said he was the best chairman he'd ever had... but that the economic crashes of the 1980s screwed up our plan. He thinks ENIC is a step up on that and is balancing the investment in the club and the broader business very well. Said that Joe Lewis has virtually no interest in the club at all other than the astronomical growth in ENIC's investment. GM said that IS still a huge Tottenham fan and they stay in touch, but he doesn't seem to be welcome at WHL under the current regime.

He said that Venables was the best and worst manager that he's worked under, that T's strength was on the training pitch and that he abandoned the team straight after the Cup Final in 1991, not coming into the changing room once, despite GM's attempts to get him more involved in the First Team. GM was politely scathing really about Venables getting lost in some dream of becoming a Board Director - certainly an interesting perspective.

GM said that the period between 1991 and into the Scholar/Sugar/Venables saga was really tough as a captain. It's very clear how much of a leader GM was within the club - really, he was the boss of the whole First Team operation in some ways - and that holding the dressing room together was hard. Interestingly, he said that the dressing room back in 1991 was pretty bad, with cliques and factions who simply didn't get on... but somehow they got it together to win the FA Cup, although Gazza played a huge part in getting us there (by GM's own admission).

There were a few anecdotes about Gazza but GM said that him and Glenn Hoddle were the two best players he every played with, just ahead of Ardiles and Jurgen. Said that him and JK are still good friends, were close at Tottenham and even discussed a potential managerial partnership at one point.

GM has always felt that we are his club and he felt a very strong bond from his debut (he scored) onwards. He had a chance to leave in 1987, with Liverpool offering him double wages and a large signing-on bonus (Arse, Man Utd and Lyon were also trying to sign him then as he was out of contract) but he wanted to stay with us and felt we could do some really big things as a club.

His best defensive partner was Richard Gough but sadly the 1-year move to us was all agreed by RG and Rangers as Dundee United wouldn't sell directly to them. RG apparently regrets that now hugely but was committed to the 'hidden' agreement.

He's very positive about our current team, the quality in the side, the counter-attacking football and the harder mentality that Mou has brought in. He spent some time with Mou when they were respectively managing the Spurs vs Inter legends match. Said that Mou was really positive and excited about what we were building in the club. Was full of praise for Poch and the fundamental repositioning of us as a club that Poch achieved, especially through the Wembley years. That was what made us a name in European football and has enabled us to commercially capitalise on.

GM would still clearly love a more technical role in the club, and has been offered DoF roles in other clubs. He was keen on management until he nearly lost his leg and now he can't run or do much exercise at all. He says that managers have to be on the pitch, have to know players, and said that man management outweighs all of the supposed technical genius of certain types. He's close friends with Wenger (!) and there was a clear allusion to general disbelief about how that lot down the road are being run, how Ozil can be left out in the cold etc. I just hope it continues.

He did, however, want time out of the game after playing (his last game was "one of the the worst days of my life") to be with his family. He recounted talking to Bill Nich, who said to him about his daughter's wedding : "My biggest regret is that... at my daughter's wedding... I looked down at my daughter and I didn't recognise her... I'd just not been a part of her life" - that clearly struck a chord with him and he didn't start looking at coaching until later on.

What GM does today for the Tottenham Hotspur community is incredible. On top of his ambassadorial role, and alongside various community work he does, he still phones around 14 people every day who are vulnerable members of the community, spending 15-20 minutes talking to each one. He had his list for this evening which he'll no doubt be doing still as I'm typing. He's phoned over 1,700 people to date.

The guy is just an absolutely brilliant, humble, astute, kind and inspirational man. He still takes his position as a leader and captain of our club very seriously. He looks after Gazza as best as he can, he's in touch with former players and he represents the club very well. Frankly, I think he deserves something more than being a mere 'ambassador' and e.g. Life President would not be inappropriate.

TLDR etc but I'm pretty happy with my signed photo and signed copy of 'The Lane' that I got him to do. I decided not to make him feel too awkward by saying that his poster was on my bedroom wall as a kid... or that it was his fault that I became a Tottenham fan in the first place. But both of those things are true and now I've properly met one of my heroes. He didn't disappoint.

Yids. UTS.

P.S. oh and there was some nice big stadium thing but frankly everyone there - and we were of a certain age - just wanted to spend time in GM's company.
great read ! Thanks for posting

Can't say a bad word about Mabbutt , proper Spurs
 
Don't know whether this is of any interest but I was lucky enough to meet Mabbsy today on a Legends tour at WHL, so thought I'd chuck down some of the things he talked about.

There were only about 12 of us so it was a nice intimate session - highly recommended if there is anyone leading a tour that you'd like the chance to chat to in person. Covid is a pain in the arse so everyone had to wear masks but we could remove them for a few socially-distanced photographs.

Anyhows, the conversation started from looking at what the club is building now and how that compared to Irving Scholar's vision for Tottenham, which all went horribly wrong in the 1980s. GM was full of praise for IS - said he was the best chairman he'd ever had... but that the economic crashes of the 1980s screwed up our plan. He thinks ENIC is a step up on that and is balancing the investment in the club and the broader business very well. Said that Joe Lewis has virtually no interest in the club at all other than the astronomical growth in ENIC's investment. GM said that IS still a huge Tottenham fan and they stay in touch, but he doesn't seem to be welcome at WHL under the current regime.

He said that Venables was the best and worst manager that he's worked under, that T's strength was on the training pitch and that he abandoned the team straight after the Cup Final in 1991, not coming into the changing room once, despite GM's attempts to get him more involved in the First Team. GM was politely scathing really about Venables getting lost in some dream of becoming a Board Director - certainly an interesting perspective.

GM said that the period between 1991 and into the Scholar/Sugar/Venables saga was really tough as a captain. It's very clear how much of a leader GM was within the club - really, he was the boss of the whole First Team operation in some ways - and that holding the dressing room together was hard. Interestingly, he said that the dressing room back in 1991 was pretty bad, with cliques and factions who simply didn't get on... but somehow they got it together to win the FA Cup, although Gazza played a huge part in getting us there (by GM's own admission).

There were a few anecdotes about Gazza but GM said that him and Glenn Hoddle were the two best players he every played with, just ahead of Ardiles and Jurgen. Said that him and JK are still good friends, were close at Tottenham and even discussed a potential managerial partnership at one point.

GM has always felt that we are his club and he felt a very strong bond from his debut (he scored) onwards. He had a chance to leave in 1987, with Liverpool offering him double wages and a large signing-on bonus (Arse, Man Utd and Lyon were also trying to sign him then as he was out of contract) but he wanted to stay with us and felt we could do some really big things as a club.

His best defensive partner was Richard Gough but sadly the 1-year move to us was all agreed by RG and Rangers as Dundee United wouldn't sell directly to them. RG apparently regrets that now hugely but was committed to the 'hidden' agreement.

He's very positive about our current team, the quality in the side, the counter-attacking football and the harder mentality that Mou has brought in. He spent some time with Mou when they were respectively managing the Spurs vs Inter legends match. Said that Mou was really positive and excited about what we were building in the club. Was full of praise for Poch and the fundamental repositioning of us as a club that Poch achieved, especially through the Wembley years. That was what made us a name in European football and has enabled us to commercially capitalise on.

GM would still clearly love a more technical role in the club, and has been offered DoF roles in other clubs. He was keen on management until he nearly lost his leg and now he can't run or do much exercise at all. He says that managers have to be on the pitch, have to know players, and said that man management outweighs all of the supposed technical genius of certain types. He's close friends with Wenger (!) and there was a clear allusion to general disbelief about how that lot down the road are being run, how Ozil can be left out in the cold etc. I just hope it continues.

He did, however, want time out of the game after playing (his last game was "one of the the worst days of my life") to be with his family. He recounted talking to Bill Nich, who said to him about his daughter's wedding : "My biggest regret is that... at my daughter's wedding... I looked down at my daughter and I didn't recognise her... I'd just not been a part of her life" - that clearly struck a chord with him and he didn't start looking at coaching until later on.

What GM does today for the Tottenham Hotspur community is incredible. On top of his ambassadorial role, and alongside various community work he does, he still phones around 14 people every day who are vulnerable members of the community, spending 15-20 minutes talking to each one. He had his list for this evening which he'll no doubt be doing still as I'm typing. He's phoned over 1,700 people to date.

The guy is just an absolutely brilliant, humble, astute, kind and inspirational man. He still takes his position as a leader and captain of our club very seriously. He looks after Gazza as best as he can, he's in touch with former players and he represents the club very well. Frankly, I think he deserves something more than being a mere 'ambassador' and e.g. Life President would not be inappropriate.

TLDR etc but I'm pretty happy with my signed photo and signed copy of 'The Lane' that I got him to do. I decided not to make him feel too awkward by saying that his poster was on my bedroom wall as a kid... or that it was his fault that I became a Tottenham fan in the first place. But both of those things are true and now I've properly met one of my heroes. He didn't disappoint.

Yids. UTS.

P.S. oh and there was some nice big stadium thing but frankly everyone there - and we were of a certain age - just wanted to spend time in GM's company.
Awesome post.
 
Last time I was speaking with him, he said he couldn't really be fucked with it.
He did his badges. Was looking at opportunities. Then had health issues which meant he felt he couldn’t do it justice. And almost lost a leg. He’d love to manage and thinks he’d be pretty good as he’s been a good man manager throughout his career.
 
Don't know whether this is of any interest but I was lucky enough to meet Mabbsy today on a Legends tour at WHL, so thought I'd chuck down some of the things he talked about.

There were only about 12 of us so it was a nice intimate session - highly recommended if there is anyone leading a tour that you'd like the chance to chat to in person. Covid is a pain in the arse so everyone had to wear masks but we could remove them for a few socially-distanced photographs.

Anyhows, the conversation started from looking at what the club is building now and how that compared to Irving Scholar's vision for Tottenham, which all went horribly wrong in the 1980s. GM was full of praise for IS - said he was the best chairman he'd ever had... but that the economic crashes of the 1980s screwed up our plan. He thinks ENIC is a step up on that and is balancing the investment in the club and the broader business very well. Said that Joe Lewis has virtually no interest in the club at all other than the astronomical growth in ENIC's investment. GM said that IS still a huge Tottenham fan and they stay in touch, but he doesn't seem to be welcome at WHL under the current regime.

He said that Venables was the best and worst manager that he's worked under, that T's strength was on the training pitch and that he abandoned the team straight after the Cup Final in 1991, not coming into the changing room once, despite GM's attempts to get him more involved in the First Team. GM was politely scathing really about Venables getting lost in some dream of becoming a Board Director - certainly an interesting perspective.

GM said that the period between 1991 and into the Scholar/Sugar/Venables saga was really tough as a captain. It's very clear how much of a leader GM was within the club - really, he was the boss of the whole First Team operation in some ways - and that holding the dressing room together was hard. Interestingly, he said that the dressing room back in 1991 was pretty bad, with cliques and factions who simply didn't get on... but somehow they got it together to win the FA Cup, although Gazza played a huge part in getting us there (by GM's own admission).

There were a few anecdotes about Gazza but GM said that him and Glenn Hoddle were the two best players he every played with, just ahead of Ardiles and Jurgen. Said that him and JK are still good friends, were close at Tottenham and even discussed a potential managerial partnership at one point.

GM has always felt that we are his club and he felt a very strong bond from his debut (he scored) onwards. He had a chance to leave in 1987, with Liverpool offering him double wages and a large signing-on bonus (Arse, Man Utd and Lyon were also trying to sign him then as he was out of contract) but he wanted to stay with us and felt we could do some really big things as a club.

His best defensive partner was Richard Gough but sadly the 1-year move to us was all agreed by RG and Rangers as Dundee United wouldn't sell directly to them. RG apparently regrets that now hugely but was committed to the 'hidden' agreement.

He's very positive about our current team, the quality in the side, the counter-attacking football and the harder mentality that Mou has brought in. He spent some time with Mou when they were respectively managing the Spurs vs Inter legends match. Said that Mou was really positive and excited about what we were building in the club. Was full of praise for Poch and the fundamental repositioning of us as a club that Poch achieved, especially through the Wembley years. That was what made us a name in European football and has enabled us to commercially capitalise on.

GM would still clearly love a more technical role in the club, and has been offered DoF roles in other clubs. He was keen on management until he nearly lost his leg and now he can't run or do much exercise at all. He says that managers have to be on the pitch, have to know players, and said that man management outweighs all of the supposed technical genius of certain types. He's close friends with Wenger (!) and there was a clear allusion to general disbelief about how that lot down the road are being run, how Ozil can be left out in the cold etc. I just hope it continues.

He did, however, want time out of the game after playing (his last game was "one of the the worst days of my life") to be with his family. He recounted talking to Bill Nich, who said to him about his daughter's wedding : "My biggest regret is that... at my daughter's wedding... I looked down at my daughter and I didn't recognise her... I'd just not been a part of her life" - that clearly struck a chord with him and he didn't start looking at coaching until later on.

What GM does today for the Tottenham Hotspur community is incredible. On top of his ambassadorial role, and alongside various community work he does, he still phones around 14 people every day who are vulnerable members of the community, spending 15-20 minutes talking to each one. He had his list for this evening which he'll no doubt be doing still as I'm typing. He's phoned over 1,700 people to date.

The guy is just an absolutely brilliant, humble, astute, kind and inspirational man. He still takes his position as a leader and captain of our club very seriously. He looks after Gazza as best as he can, he's in touch with former players and he represents the club very well. Frankly, I think he deserves something more than being a mere 'ambassador' and e.g. Life President would not be inappropriate.

TLDR etc but I'm pretty happy with my signed photo and signed copy of 'The Lane' that I got him to do. I decided not to make him feel too awkward by saying that his poster was on my bedroom wall as a kid... or that it was his fault that I became a Tottenham fan in the first place. But both of those things are true and now I've properly met one of my heroes. He didn't disappoint.

Yids. UTS.

P.S. oh and there was some nice big stadium thing but frankly everyone there - and we were of a certain age - just wanted to spend time in GM's company.
Thanks for that. It was longer than Fantastic Mr. Fox
You forget how different the game is from that era. I cant imagine many current players spending time calling fans every night
 
Don't know whether this is of any interest but I was lucky enough to meet Mabbsy today on a Legends tour at WHL, so thought I'd chuck down some of the things he talked about.

There were only about 12 of us so it was a nice intimate session - highly recommended if there is anyone leading a tour that you'd like the chance to chat to in person. Covid is a pain in the arse so everyone had to wear masks but we could remove them for a few socially-distanced photographs.

Anyhows, the conversation started from looking at what the club is building now and how that compared to Irving Scholar's vision for Tottenham, which all went horribly wrong in the 1980s. GM was full of praise for IS - said he was the best chairman he'd ever had... but that the economic crashes of the 1980s screwed up our plan. He thinks ENIC is a step up on that and is balancing the investment in the club and the broader business very well. Said that Joe Lewis has virtually no interest in the club at all other than the astronomical growth in ENIC's investment. GM said that IS still a huge Tottenham fan and they stay in touch, but he doesn't seem to be welcome at WHL under the current regime.

He said that Venables was the best and worst manager that he's worked under, that T's strength was on the training pitch and that he abandoned the team straight after the Cup Final in 1991, not coming into the changing room once, despite GM's attempts to get him more involved in the First Team. GM was politely scathing really about Venables getting lost in some dream of becoming a Board Director - certainly an interesting perspective.

GM said that the period between 1991 and into the Scholar/Sugar/Venables saga was really tough as a captain. It's very clear how much of a leader GM was within the club - really, he was the boss of the whole First Team operation in some ways - and that holding the dressing room together was hard. Interestingly, he said that the dressing room back in 1991 was pretty bad, with cliques and factions who simply didn't get on... but somehow they got it together to win the FA Cup, although Gazza played a huge part in getting us there (by GM's own admission).

There were a few anecdotes about Gazza but GM said that him and Glenn Hoddle were the two best players he every played with, just ahead of Ardiles and Jurgen. Said that him and JK are still good friends, were close at Tottenham and even discussed a potential managerial partnership at one point.

GM has always felt that we are his club and he felt a very strong bond from his debut (he scored) onwards. He had a chance to leave in 1987, with Liverpool offering him double wages and a large signing-on bonus (Arse, Man Utd and Lyon were also trying to sign him then as he was out of contract) but he wanted to stay with us and felt we could do some really big things as a club.

His best defensive partner was Richard Gough but sadly the 1-year move to us was all agreed by RG and Rangers as Dundee United wouldn't sell directly to them. RG apparently regrets that now hugely but was committed to the 'hidden' agreement.

He's very positive about our current team, the quality in the side, the counter-attacking football and the harder mentality that Mou has brought in. He spent some time with Mou when they were respectively managing the Spurs vs Inter legends match. Said that Mou was really positive and excited about what we were building in the club. Was full of praise for Poch and the fundamental repositioning of us as a club that Poch achieved, especially through the Wembley years. That was what made us a name in European football and has enabled us to commercially capitalise on.

GM would still clearly love a more technical role in the club, and has been offered DoF roles in other clubs. He was keen on management until he nearly lost his leg and now he can't run or do much exercise at all. He says that managers have to be on the pitch, have to know players, and said that man management outweighs all of the supposed technical genius of certain types. He's close friends with Wenger (!) and there was a clear allusion to general disbelief about how that lot down the road are being run, how Ozil can be left out in the cold etc. I just hope it continues.

He did, however, want time out of the game after playing (his last game was "one of the the worst days of my life") to be with his family. He recounted talking to Bill Nich, who said to him about his daughter's wedding : "My biggest regret is that... at my daughter's wedding... I looked down at my daughter and I didn't recognise her... I'd just not been a part of her life" - that clearly struck a chord with him and he didn't start looking at coaching until later on.

What GM does today for the Tottenham Hotspur community is incredible. On top of his ambassadorial role, and alongside various community work he does, he still phones around 14 people every day who are vulnerable members of the community, spending 15-20 minutes talking to each one. He had his list for this evening which he'll no doubt be doing still as I'm typing. He's phoned over 1,700 people to date.

The guy is just an absolutely brilliant, humble, astute, kind and inspirational man. He still takes his position as a leader and captain of our club very seriously. He looks after Gazza as best as he can, he's in touch with former players and he represents the club very well. Frankly, I think he deserves something more than being a mere 'ambassador' and e.g. Life President would not be inappropriate.

TLDR etc but I'm pretty happy with my signed photo and signed copy of 'The Lane' that I got him to do. I decided not to make him feel too awkward by saying that his poster was on my bedroom wall as a kid... or that it was his fault that I became a Tottenham fan in the first place. But both of those things are true and now I've properly met one of my heroes. He didn't disappoint.

Yids. UTS.

P.S. oh and there was some nice big stadium thing but frankly everyone there - and we were of a certain age - just wanted to spend time in GM's company.

Wow! Thanks for spending the time to type this out to share with us. Enjoyed reading that.
 

Honestly, when I met him last Autumn on a Legends tour, it was quite incredible and very humbling to see what he still does for the club and our fans. He deserves a higher form of recognition IMHO and Life President with a permanent seat on the Board would be a good starting point.
 
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