Sometime between 1982 and 1984, I wrote to Kevin Keegan who was then playing for Newcastle United and asked him for a signed photograph. By return of post – a phrase young people will never have heard of – it arrived, a photograph of him sitting in the cab of a Newcastle Brown Ale lorry. I was astonished and very, very happy. I still have the photo today and it’s even more poignant now that his death has been announced.
Keegan was a Liverpool legend, although never a prolific goalscorer until he left Anfield. His replacement at Anfield, Kenny Dalglish, was a far better footballer, certainly in terms of technique, but Keegan was that typical plucky Englishman who like David Beckham in later years made up for the things lacking in his game by sheer hard work and determination. I loved him for that.
He was surprisingly successful as a manager, too, despite possessing no coaching qualifications, winning titles in both the second and third tiers of English football at Newcastle United, Fulham and Manchester City. At the top level, while his teams were always thrilling to watch but medals and titles eluded him.
On 24th January 1981, I travelled to support my team Bristol Rovers at The Dell, the home of Southampton. Away fans were crushed, into a tiny cage which was very close to the pitch, from where we could observe our team beaten 3-1 by a team that didn’t just include Kevin Keegan, but also Saints legend Mike Channon and (I don’t remember this at all) Arsenal legend Charlie George. All I remember about the day, apart from the cage, was seeing Kevin Keegan playing a few yards away from me. I have no recollection of what he played like. I was starstruck.
I used to go to England games in the 1970s and Keegan played in most of them, too, most memorably, and not for the right reasons, when a rampant Netherlands featuring Johan Cruyff, Johan Neeskens, Ruud Krol and Willy van de Kerkhof humiliated the home team 2-0, a scoreline that was hugely flattering to England. Keegan, as ever, ran all day, never giving in. That, above all, is what I most remember about him.
And now Kevin Keegan is dead, from the evil illness that is cancer.
It’s a very sad day for his family, friends and football supporters all over the world. For all his limitations, I regarded him as a great player for all the reasons given before. A player who gave it absolutely everything for club and country. As a football fan, you can’t ask for more than that.
