Thank you, Sir Bobby Robson

It’s always hard to honour those legends who have left this world. How large a tribute is fitting? Are we even worthy deigning of how much is enough?

Truth be told, the answer to that last question is both yes and no. Yes, we are worthy of deciding how large a tribute is fitting, but no, however large a tribute may be, we cannot quantify its largesse because whomsoever our tribute is dedicated has done something few have been able to replicate since.

George Best stands alongside Denis Law and Sir Bobby Charlton atop a plinth outside Old Trafford, Sir Brian Clough has a national highway named after him, a pedestrian bridge at the Emirates Stadium has been christened the Herbert Chapman bridge for the legendary Englishman’s services to the Arsenal and Joe Mercer has a mosaic on a road named after him just off the Etihad Stadium.

But these tributes are accorded to the greats of yesteryear not just because of who they were, but because of who they became and what they did.

Yesterday was the death anniversary of one such legend, whose statue adorns Portman Road, the home of English club Ipswich Town.

On the 31st of July, 2009, Sir Bobby Robson passed away after a long, valiant but ultimately futile struggle with lung cancer. And a day after the third year of his death anniversary, the least we can do, as ardent lovers of the beautiful game, is say ‘thank you’ for his unforgettable contributions to the sport.

Thank you, Bobby Robson, for bringing glory to clubs your managerial presence graced on English soil. Thank you for bringing glory to Ipswich Town, one of the long-forgotten heroes of the English game.

You, Sir Bobby, gave Ipswich some of their finest days in football. Few will forget the Tractor Boys’ UEFA Cup triumph in 1981 or their FA Cup triumph in 1978, success which few have since delivered at the club.

And, Sir Bobby, while people are quick to scrutinise Jack Wilshere and the rest of the graduates from Colney or analyse the performances of Adnan Januzaj, the latest from Carrington’s production line, how many of them know that it was you who set the foundations (along with Sir Matt Busby at Manchester United) for youth academies in England?

“First of all he was beyond football a great man, one of the kindest people I ever met. He helped me a great deal when I was a young coach and I visited him in Ipswich. He took me, an unknown coach from Sweden, down into the dug-out and explained the tactics.

“The year after Ipswich won the UEFA Cup, my team Gothenburg won it and he came and presented the trophy to me. When I became coach of England I called him many times and he was always generous with his advice and helpful. It seems he was as friendly to everybody as he was to me. In fact for me, he was the special one.”

- Sven-Goran Eriksson

In the 13 seasons that Sir Bobby spent at Ipswich, he brought in only 14 (yes, fourteen) players from outside the club. He chose to rely on the stables that constantly churned players that at that time were considered to have the potential to be some of England’s finest.

Indeed, it was you, Sir, Robson, who blooded so many players who would go on to play for their country. Terry Butcher, who came face to face with Diego Maradona in that infamous Hand of God incident at the World Cup. George Burley, who later managed Ipswich Town and won them promotion to the Premier League in 2000. John Wark, so often Player of the Year at Portman Road. Mick Mills, who was Robson’s captain on the pitch.

Colin Viljoen, who played more than 300 games for the club. Alan Brazil, the youngest member of the Scotland squad at the 1986 World Cup in Spain. Brian Talbot, a veritable workhorse of a midfielder who missed little more than a dozen games during his entire career and Kevin Beattie, who was once described by you, Sir Bobby as the best player you’d ever seen.

All of them products of Ipswich’s youth programme. All of them made great because of the dedication and hard work that Sir Bobby put into them.