IT was sad to learn that Malcolm Allison had passed away. For Big Mal was a colourful character at Ayresome Park in the 1980s.
Allison was a larger-thanlife personality who regularly hit the headlines on the front pages as well as the sports sections of newspapers.
There was tremendous speculation over a new manager for Ayresome Park before Allison arrived on the scene. Director Peter Cook rang me on the eve of a home match to announce the club would introduce their new appointment.
His name would be revealed four hours before kick-off. There were no clues, no off-the-record briefing.
The club wanted his identity kept secret.
With his journalistic experience, Peter knew there would be a mad scramble by the North-East press boys to find out the identity of the new manager before the official launch.
A local radio station was ready to announce Tommy Docherty as the new man.
Don Revie, who I believe was in the Middle East, was mentioned. So was local hero Brian Clough.
I was confident I had cracked the story late at night but I was still relieved when Allison breezed into Ayresome Park.
His appointment was a bold gamble. A desperate gamble. Middlesbrough had hit hard times. The team were struggling, gates were down and the club was losing £10,000 a week.
Middlesbrough needed the lift of a big personality, and who better to provide it than a famous hell-raising character
Life was never dull with Big Mal around and there were plenty of headlines to keep the Boro in the spotlight. Some of the boasts were tongue in cheek Middlesbrough for Wembley for example. The Boro were a struggling Second Division side!
Allison was a complex character in one respect. For all his reputation, he did not like one-to-one interviews.
He had a staring-out-of-thewindow technique that left you wondering whether he was upset over criticism or bored with your questions.
On reflection, it could have been the latter!
Big Mal was far happier when he strode into a crowded press room. His eyes would light up in front of television cameras and he enjoyed meeting his Fleet Street friends.
Middlesbrough showed remarkable tolerance when Allison's private life hit the front pages. Chairman Mike McCullagh defended him on one occasion with the comment: When we signed Allison, we knew we were not appointing a Sunday School teacher.
The club faced a financial crisis and Allison upset the board by ignoring an order to sell players.
He virtually wrote his own resignation speech with an explosive interview that followed a midweek match.
The journalists who gathered in his cramped office expected some injury news and perhaps a line or two on transfers.
They were stunned when Allison revealed the financial problems.
Headlines such as Middlesbrough have six weeks to live and It is better to die than face a lingering death stunned the players and the fans. The comments incensed the directors and there was no way Allison could survive.
Football is such a big business now that I don't think you will ever see such a free spirit in the game again.
Paying tribute BOBBY MOORE:
I'd been a professional for two-and-a-half months and Malcolm had taught me everything I know.
When Malcolm was coaching schoolboys he took a liking to me when I don't think anyone else at West Ham saw anything special in me. I looked up to the man. It's not too strong to say I loved him.
TERRY VENABLES:
(Talking about the News of the World photograph that showed Allison in the Crystal Palace team bath with adult actress Fiona Richmond): I was in the bath with all the players and we heard the whisper that she was coming down the corridor. So far, so good.
We all leapt out and hid, because we knew there'd be photos and that wouldn't go down too well. Malcolm and Fiona dropped everything and got in the bath.
KEITH LAMB: Boro chief executive:
Malcolm Allison was a remarkably knowledgeable football man, who was way ahead of his time in terms of football coaching and thinking.
Long before the age of superstar footballers, he was one of the game's most charismatic figures.
ROGER SPRY: Boro's conditioning coach:
I have worked with some of the best managers in the business including Jose Mourinho and Arsene Wenger, and I would put Malcolm in that category. He really was that good. He was a luminary and a visionary.
Mourinho worked with Malcolm and I at Vitoria Setubal and I can see Malcolm's influences on Jose.
He is the best coach in the world and I can see Malcolm in 90 per cent of the things that he does.
But Malcolm was a fraud in the sense that he was a flamboyant character to the media and the public, but in private he was quiet and dedicated, certainly one of the most knowledgeable coaches I have worked with.
GARY GILL: Ex- Boro midfielder and now BBC Tees commentator:
Malcolm was a fantastic guy with an amazing personality. He'll have lived quite a few lives.
When he came to Middlesbrough, there was a bit of a split between some of the older pros and a group of lads coming through that included the likes of myself, Alan Roberts and Tony Mowbray.
Malcolm didn't have a lot of time for the older lads, but he took a real interest in us kids and moved heaven and earth in an attempt to help develop us.
He took us under his wing and gradually introduced us to the first team. I'm not sure my career would have been the same without him.
He was a larger-than-life character who captivated everyone he met.
I know it's a bit of clich?but Malcolm Allison will never be repeated. I just don't think society would allow it any more.
MIKE SUMMERBEE: Played under Allison at Man City:
It is sad to lose not only a great character, but one of the greatest coaches there has ever been in this country. He was a great coach, a very special person and a nice man as well.
He turned that (Man City) side into a championship and cupwinning side because of the confidence he gave them and the belief he had in himself.
He couldn't get into training early enough, and we trained in match situations. We worked so hard during the week that when we played on a Saturday, it was our day off. He was that good.
Source: Northern Echo
Source: Northern Echo