Les Sealey's 10 Year Anniversary

Today marks the 10 year anniversary of Les Sealeys passing.


I for one am proud that a person like Les Sealey is associated with my club, he was a selfless gent, a great man.  Today's professional footballers could learn a thing or two from his passion, his love for the game and his attitude.

I didn't get to see him play too often, and my fondest memory of him is not even of him playing, but even as a kid this memory made a lasting impression on me.

Back when I was a boy I was taken to OT to watch the players train (for some reason they didn't use the cliff on this occasion). I stood outside the stadium with hundreds of other kids waiting to get autographs. You had players like Ince and Giggs who ran to their cars so they didn't have to sign autographs, some players that would sign a couple as they were climbing into their cars....and then there was Les Sealey, who gladly stayed behind to sign every single last autograph book, and pose for pictures with anybody that wanted one. He didn't leave until everybody was happy.

This is a man who voluntarily gave his FA Cup winners medal to Jim Leighton, who was dropped for Sealey but had played in the every game running up to the final replay, which goes to show my experience of Sealey was not a fluke, I didn't happen catch him on a good day. This was a good man, a cult hero, who appreciated the gift he was given, and always gave back to the fans who loved him. The world could use a few more Les Sealeys, RIP.

What are your favourite memories of the big man? Do you have any personal experiences with him? I'd love to hear them

Boovy