The Anonymous Widower

Remembering Sir Bobby at Ipswich

Last night I went to Portman Road to see Ipswich play Real Valladolid.  I’d always intended to go, but because of the death of Sir Bobby Robson, I went a little earlier.  There’s also the advantage that if you get the timing right you can park for free in places near to the ground.  I parked in Berners Street which goes up the old Ipswich Hospital in Anglesey Road.  It’s a lovely old building and I wonder how many of the new hospitals we recently built will look so good when they are a hundred years old.

I also went past the pub and the offices where I spent time as I designed and wrote the software system that made my reputation and most of my money in the 1970s and 1980s.

The Queen's Head

Like many other pubs it is now closed.  They changed the name to The Victoria, but that didn’t seem to help.  I still remember Ron Topple’s pies, which we used to eat every day for lunch.  All that gluten!  Would my life have been better, if I’d been diagnosed as a coeliac early.  Nobby and I spent a lot of time in the bar there discussing software and the finer things of life.

Pearl Assurance House

The offices were actually quite nice and I think I worked there for perhaps about three years before we moved most of the development to the other side of the town.

I was surprised how quiet the town was with just a few people drinking outside cafes in the sun.  Even the pub I had a drink in was virtually empty.  Sky was playing a news feed about Sir Bobby.

There was a crowd around Sir Bobby’s statue in Portman Road.

Crowds in Portman Road

Stuart White of the BBC was interviewing a very interesting lady, Pat Godbold.  She was secretary not only to Sir Bobby R9obson and also to Sir Alf Ramsey.  They always say that behind every great man is a great woman.  But can any secretary lay claim to be behind two such legends? She actually served every manager from Sir Alf to George Burley.

Stuart White and Pat Godbold

She has an amazing tale to tell.  This sad story in The Independent shows the true side of Sir Bobby’s character.  It also shows how we can forget our heroes.

Sir Bobby’s statue was bedecked in scarves and flowers.

Sir Bobby's Statue

Tributes Under the Statue

I do have a video of Pat and Stuart White and I may put it up.  But I suspect there’ll be a much better version on the BBC tonight.

The football was a bit of an anticlimax and I thought the crowd would have been larger.  But Ipswich won 3-1, with a couple of good goals from Pim Balkestein and Connor Wickham.  The third was one of the best own goals I’d seen in years.

Flags at Half Mast for Sir Bobby

August 1, 2009 - Posted by AnonW | Sport | Alf Ramsey, Bobby Robson, Coeliac/Gluten-Free, Football, Ipswich Town