From TOTT

The interview appeared in the Daily Mail and for those who did not see it, this is well worth reading....

The interviewer, Lynda Lee Potter, opens up by asking Bobby what life is like for a 69-year-old at St James' Park.

Bobby says: "Every game 52,000 fans pack into this place and I'm very much part of it all. From the dug-out I see the poetry of the game. I can smell the liniment, hear the tackles, and I'm close to the players. So close I can shout the odd instruction. It's what I call football at stocking-top level.

He went to explain that the job inolves being a 'psychiatrist, psychologist, father, confessor, priest and even dictator sometimes. Players need guidance and they'll tell you that.' Which is somewhat different to the 'I'm a manager not a social worker' comment John Gregory made is relation to dealing with Stan Collymore.

She then asks him about Langley Park, where Bobby grew up.

Robson explains that he is one regret was that he dad never lived to see him become Newcastle manager. "If he'd cut himself he'd have bled black and white," says Robson

Robson's father says us beat Arsenal in the 1932 FA Cup Final and by wonderfulk freak of chance, Bobby "was born nine months later, in February 1933. I was a product of Newcastle winning that wonderful day."

"Every Saturday my dad brought me to the match on the bus. We'd get a ham sandwich and a cup of tea and head for the ground. We were always first in the queue."

She asks, whether football has changed him

Robson concedes that his wife tells his whereas he was once a nice man the job has changed him but that he is a product of the environment in which he has a grown up working in. "I work in a jungle. There's a fight for survival. Footballers now are millionaires and they're driving BMW's at 19 years of age. The money destroys some of them. It comes too easy."

He then goes on to speak very candidly about discovering he had cancer.

He was manager of PSV at the time and had a malignant melanoma inside his face but it wasac only when his wife spotted it and asked him to go to the doctor did it ever get sorted. Robson explains he was reluctant to go but did it to keep the wife happy.

"The consultant sent a sample for a biopsy and he sent me home and said I would be all right." Fasr from it. Robson received a call telling him the worst. "He said it was a tumour and without an operation I wouldn't see out the football season. It was August 1995 and he said if nothing was done I would be dead by January! I was speechless but I had to be tough."

The rest is not for the faint-hearted. The following day he had a 10-hour operation in which surgeon had to cut around the nostril, severed the lip and took his teeth out. They found the melanoma inside the face, under the eye and they had to take off the roof of his mouth.

"I don't know how I got it because I have never smoked, I never drank," he says.

Now he has an obturator which fits into his face. It keeps his face in shape and his teeth are attached to it. "My only problem was mastering the obturator. I have to push it into a hole in my mouth and it was not easy at the start. I have a spare one because without it my whole face would collapse and I wouldn't be able to talk."

Not entirely surprisingly he was told to put his feet up and retire. "I went back to work after two months, but I was crazy. I didn't feel terribly strong but I worked in the mornings because I was coach and then I went home and rested. By Christmas I was fine."

-- Anonymous, February 28, 2002

Answers

Give that man a Knighthood

-- Anonymous, February 28, 2002

I never knew about his cancer. Words fail me when I think about this guy and how wonderful he is.

And to think that some in our midst literally gobbed at him when he turned up at SJP after retiring KK from the England team. I hope they've each since contacted him personally to offer their sincere apologies.

-- Anonymous, February 28, 2002

What an incredible man! (:o)

-- Anonymous, March 01, 2002

I get fked off when I think that Fergie got knighted by being a self serving b@stard who pissed off every other manager and brought the position of manager into disrepute. The man is a disgrace and hated across europe. And he get a knighthood. It is an absolute travesty that our Bobby hasn't being given one. What is the one that's higher than knighthood?

-- Anonymous, March 01, 2002

Depends how much you donate to the Labour Party.

-- Anonymous, March 01, 2002

Greatest Living Englishman

-- Anonymous, March 01, 2002

Salt of the Earth.

-- Anonymous, March 01, 2002

Cliches to cliches, dust to dust

-- Anonymous, March 01, 2002

I had no idea his op was so serious. This obturator sounds like a real hassle. He copes well.

What is the one that's higher than knighthood?

A knighthood, a peerage (Lord Robson of St James'?), - Bobby doesn't need to be a peer - he walks on water already - St Bobby, or maybe just a plain, simple - The Messiah. Marvellous man - highly respected everywhere.

Sir Bobby Robson would be very fitting.

-- Anonymous, March 01, 2002

No less probable than Lord Archer of Weston Supermare.

BTW, did anyone see Jonathan Pearce's Soccer Night last night? George Burley was almost w*****g over what a good manager YBR is.

-- Anonymous, March 01, 2002

Why do you think Robson is deserving of a Knighthood, when Cloughie achieved more and got nothing? Gongs are supposed to be for services to the nation or commonwealth, not the Kingdom of Toon.

A lot of my respect for yer man went out the window with his "brainless" comments.

ML³

-- Anonymous, March 01, 2002

He was an England international player and managed the national team for 8 years. How much service do you want him to give the country? Fergie got one having managed his country for a summer, and for managing clubs. Who's the more deserving by that criteria? Not to mention the fact that most weeks he gives a lesson in sportsmanship that most of his premiership counterparts would do well to follow. What were his "brainless" comments about?

-- Anonymous, March 01, 2002

When I don't think I could possibly be in more awe of the man, I read an interview like this. He is truly inspiring.

-- Anonymous, March 01, 2002

You can almost hear those smug, cockney wankers on football365 squirming after all those oh-so-funny remarks about Robson's deflating head now they know the reason why. After all, looking unusual on the outside must be a serious worry to supporters of a team whose manager actually believes that hanicapped people were evil in a previous life. Incidentally, I went to a great training conference on managing diversity last week where a terrific bloke with cerebral palsy told us how he wished he could remember what he had been up to before as he clearly must have had a great time. Disability campaigners have delightedly labelled all small-minded, ill-informed and ignorant reactions to disability as the "Hoddle Model". Glad to see that he will always be remembered for the right reasons. C*nt :-)

SBR's smallminded comment was his description of the abuse monkeyheed is getting from the SAFC fans. I'd bite if it was the other way round, but it might be worth bearing in mind than he will have had plenty of frank discussions with Peytar behind the scenes and maybe he feels that the vitriol is misplaced based on the off-the-record knowledge he has. Maybe.

-- Anonymous, March 01, 2002

ML, I think he was referring to the twats who were chucking their season tickets at Reid. Surely you think they are twats, too?

He called a bloke who said we should sell Rob Lee and Warren Barton a jerk last summer. It's just Bobby.

-- Anonymous, March 01, 2002

.... I could have sworn we'd just sold Warren Barton and Rob Lee! ;o{)

-- Anonymous, March 01, 2002

but he got the message !

-- Anonymous, March 01, 2002

I don't have a problem with Alex Ferguson getting the knighthood, his football management achievements are brilliant, from Aberdeen all the way through the multiple championships and CL victory. He may not be a likeable person but he HAS achieved more than any other club manager.

Robosn was a good international, 20 caps in the late 50s early 60s is a reasonable haul.

As a manager to get Ipswich to finish top 4 for 9 years in a row is pretty awesome, and to take them to a European trophy is even more amazing.

As England manager he managed a good run in 86 before Maradona got to them, and in 90 to lose on pens in the semis with a poor Argenina waiting in the final was very close.

The Porto, PSV, Barca achievements were all very good, and good for the British standing in European football, looks particularly good against all the other British managers who have gone abroad.

He has not acheived anything yet at Newcastle, but has carried himself well, and sets a good standard for others to aspire to.

Clough was magical, managing two teams to two championships and Forest to European glory too. Brilliant. Had wonderful playing career but cut short before he had chance to prove himself internationally. Lived in an era where those that would be expected to suggest him for honour wouldn't do so because of his personality, also the reason he didn't get the England job when the whole country wanted him to get it. As his life moved on his alcohol intake became too much, but I would have thought this would have got him in with the royal family rather than excluding him. His time was 20 years ago, if he hasn't been awared anything by now his lack of footballing activity for ten years means it aint going to happen.

-- Anonymous, March 01, 2002

it COULD be that he has been offered one but turned it down...

however unlikely...

-- Anonymous, March 01, 2002

Strictly personal view, but I don't believe managerial achievements at club level should be rewarded by a knighthood - after all Taggart's only a professional doing a very highly paid job very well. There are hundreds of thousands who could qualify on that score.

Imho, international achievements should be the principal qualification for honours in the field of professional sports. I find even contemplating the title 'Sir Alex Ferguson' to be deeply offensive.

-- Anonymous, March 01, 2002

Robson has been nothing but a credit to football. He has been perhaps the number one ambassador of the English game over the last 15 or so years.

Cloughie, bless him, is too anti-establishment to be recognised by the powers that be. I don't necessarily agree with that but that's how it is. Now that he seems to have sucumbed (sp?) to the booze even more it'll never happen. I'd give him a gong myself coz I like the man but he's not exactly a walking advertisement for the English game.

YBR has NO black marks against him and should be rewarded for his efforts.

Mind you, I'd rather see ¨Bobby Robson, Manager, Premiership winners 2002 Newcastle¨ than ¨Sir Robert Robson¨.

Of course we should see both :-) ...

-- Anonymous, March 01, 2002