Passed away yesterday...went round to his flat with my niece and the poor feller had gone....it looked a peacefull end though it was a shock to me of course and indeed my poor niece...her Grandad.
I only knew my dad the last twenty years of his life...he was 79 and the first few years of getting to know him were tough...a lot of anger and bitterness on my part at first.
He came from Hampshire and was a mad Saints fan all his life...he was on there books for two years in the late 50,s and played for Eastleigh for many years later as a keeper....indeed i have a Brockenhurst program with him getting star billing for helping Scholing(now Eastleigh)grab a point....now a treasured momento.
Me and my sister tracked him down after leaving care and his family in Hampshire were incredibly welcoming to us even after all those years....they still are and i got to meet his mum ...my nan who was 97 then and the oldest of 12!
She was a lovely lady though it caused me great sadness that i hadn't had her love as a nipper
Dad had a brother Maurice who was six years older and a Tank commander at the age of 19 in WW2....a brave man whos actions caused him great regret in later years...war left a nasty scar on his being.
Eunice was the sister who was gentle and sweet...and even through dads bad times always stood by him....it was her who opened the door twenty years back to see my ugly mug am my sisters shaking body looking back at her.....i believe my dad lives here i said.....suffice to say she went white with shock before a smile met me.....come in she said....i have been waiting for this day.
Not suprisingly dads reaction was tinged with some Anglo Saxon when an hour later he opened the same door and saw us sitting there
When sadly both Maurice and Eunice passed away dad moved to Swindon...where he spent his last 18 odd years
As the years rolled on we began to get on.....he became a Town fan to a degree though his heart was always with the Saints.....he loved Fotheringham and was adamant a decent keeper would have got us promotion under Wilson....his words not mine!
The last few years of his life were tough for him...and us as we saw him deteriate....emphysemia clawed at him like a wasp to a jam pot.....he fought his illness with a bravery i thought Alien to him....never whinging and accepting his lot.
I will always have a lot of questions not answered but you know what.......i dont care anymore.
His life i reckon was unfullfilled ....to him at least,he made many mistakes that caused anger and resentment to people including myself.
This caused him great heartache in later years and made him very introvert.
I will miss him.......and all i can say today is i am numb with sadness that i wont see him again....i got to love my dad though it took a real long time.
When the Saints go marching in was his favourite....it will be his last song.....though no doubt the word Saints will be Reds under my breath for his last song.....he would have smiled at that.
