Sporting deaths in 2010: 'The greatest coach this country ever had'
Malcolm Allison
Mike Summerbee, played for Manchester City when Allison was manager
Malcolm changed football by making us train like athletes. He was way ahead of his time. He had us on running machines with massage-based fitness at Salford University in 1965. He was a great character and a very sociable man. We worked hard for him and we were exceptionally fit, but we could enjoy ourselves and he went along with that. He was a great psychologist; he knew how to crack the whip and we respected him, but he could also handle players as individuals and get more out of them.
Under Joe Mercer and Malcolm the club came from nothing to be very successful in a short time. Manchester was buzzing then, it was a special era, we all had a great time and Malcolm was there with us. I wouldn't change it for anything. He was a lovely person, just an amazing man. He was possibly the greatest coach this country ever had."
Malcolm Allison, football manager, died 15 October, aged 83
Sir Alec Bedser
Micky Stewart, Surrey cricketer
I knew Alec Bedser as a fellow Surrey player and a great friend for over 50 years. Without a doubt, he was the finest fast-medium pace bowler I have known in the game. He delivered his inswingers and legcutters with incredible accuracy so that when perched close in at short-leg – in the bat pad position – I never felt in the slightest danger. He was a big man with a big heart and as strong as a lion. This strength and stamina helped him capture his 1,924 first-class wickets in 15 years including 236 wickets in 51 Tests. Over the years many times Ken Barrington and I were asked the same question: "Who was the best bowler you played against?" Our reply was exactly the same, Alec Bedser in the nets.
These days, Alec would have been described as "awesome", "a legend" and "an icon" and that certainly wouldn't have gone down well with Big Al. He could never understand unnecessary fuss and could never accept the way the game is played and covered by the media today.
On his retirement, when serving as an England selector for seven years and then another 13 years as chairman, he put in just as much dedicated work as he did into his bowling. Alec loved the game of cricket and gave it great service. He was indeed a legend and an icon – but I wouldn't tell him that.
Sir Alec Bedser, cricketer, died 4 April, aged 91
Alex Higgins
Ken Doherty, snooker player
Alex Higgins was my hero and the reason I wanted to be a snooker player. I got to know the man first when I was an usher at the Benson and Hedges Championship [at Wembley] in 1987. Alex Higgins said to me: "If I ask you for an orange juice that means I want a vodka and orange. If I ask you for a vodka that means a double. And so on." By the end of the night, it was trebles and quadruples. He was great company, and my lasting impression of him was in the week before last Christmas when we shared a train journey from Killarney to Dublin for about three and a half hours.
We played cards and shared a little bottle of rum and some coke – he had taken the glass from his hotel and had this in his pocket. The funny thing was, he won the money off me, he won about £30, but he didn't take it off me. I knew he needed it and I tried to give it to him but he just wouldn't take it from me. I was trying to force it into him but he got off the train. That was the last time I saw him.
Alex Higgins, two-times snooker world champion, found dead 24 July, aged 61
Andy Holmes
Martin Cross, part of the gold-medal winning coxed fours in 1984 Olympics
The decision of the British team to wear black ribbons as a mark of respect to Andy Holmes during the finals of the world championships in New Zealand last month speaks volumes about his impact on the sport. Most of the 2010 British team never knew this tough yet unassuming man, yet they understood that his achievements, in winning back-to-back Olympic Golds in 1984 and 1988, were the rock upon which GB Rowing's current success was built.
More than that they knew that Holmes's self-belief in submitting himself to a tougher training regime than anyone thought possible brought the best out of Steve Redgrave, so making it possible for other British rowers, like Matthew Pinsent, to follow in Holmes's footsteps. Until I rowed and trained with Andy, I had thought I was "hard" – he made me look at myself and think again. Without him, I would not be an Olympic champion: thanks and goodbye Andy.
Andy Holmes, rower, died 24 October, aged 51
Andy Ripley
Clive Rees, former London Welsh, Wales and British Lions wing
What a player, what a giant of a man. Andy had spirit in abundance, driven from a fire within, piercing intellect that questioned everything around and beyond him and was oft-times a bit of a philosopher, pondering and contemplating complex issues with a compassionate soul and a heart full of humanity. He was also the softest, nicest person I ever shared a room with. At our training village in Stilfontein he took time out to adopt an abandoned, blind kitten. His room was chaos. Saucers of milk and cat scat were everywhere and he had a special compartment made in his kit bag for transporting the tiny creature. After a few days Willie John McBride discovered that Andy was intending to increase the touring party to 31. He fixed Andy with his legendary Ballymena glare and told him the cat would not be a member of the party. This was a Lions tour! Reluctantly Andy advertised the forlorn little animal in the local paper and interviewed dozens of people to secure the best home for the kitten. What a lovely man.
Adapted from Voices From The Back Of The Bus (Mainstream Publishing)
Also lost this year
Keith Alexander 53, Macclesfield Town manager
Enzo Bearzot 83, Italian football coach, led Italy to victory in 1982 World Cup
Harry Carpenter 84, commentator
Avi Cohen 54, footballer
Laurent Fignon 50, cyclist and twice winner of the Tour de France
Dick Francis 89, jockey and author
Moss Keane 62, Rugby union player, winner of 51 Ireland caps
Nodar Kumaritashvili 21, Georgian bobsledder
Bill McLaren 86, rugby union commentator
Paddy Mullins 91, racehorse trainer
Terry Newton 31, rugby league player
Andy Ripley 62, rugby player
Tom Walkinshaw 64, motor racing entrepreneur and Gloucester rugby club chairman
Peter Warr 72, racing driver and Lotus F1 team principal