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General Category => Altrincham FC First Team => Topic started by: wayno on July 08, 2020, 08:03:06 AM
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Sad news this morning that George passed away yesterday .
Another Alty legend leaves us
A legend for so many reasons in and outside of Moss lane
He will be missed
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Oh no,such a nice bloke.such sad news. rip george.Condolences to georges family
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Terrible news. A Wonderful man, and a true champion of Altrincham FC. Let’s hope we can go and win promotion so he can smile down on it. You’ll be missed George
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Really sad to read of the passing of George Heslop.
This guy really is a legend of Altrincham FC.
I used to enjoy chatting to George whenever I bumped into him.
His work with the youth team was second to none ..
George , you will be sadly missed by all at Altrincham FC and in the wider community
Condolences to your family and friends
RIP fella.
Ray & Jan...
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This is such such sad news....loved talking to george...his race night compering was brilliant...as Alty as they come..a fixture at the club since I was 5 and started watching in 1972...very very upset...lovely lovely guy RIP X
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One of life's true gentlemen who had one wicked sense of humour, I bet he's giving Steve Murray and Skipper hell already
RIP Condolences to Jenny and all his family and friends.
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Very sad news indeed. Despite the health problems that were starting to slow George down, I was shocked and saddened to hear this. Shocked because if anyone could be called indomitable, it was George, and saddened because, like so many others, I will miss our lengthy chats, often as not about Alty in general and Radio Robins, which, in later life, he relied on for following away games. Match days at Moss Lane won't be the same without him around.
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A true Alty legend. A genuinely lovely guy. Condolences to Jenny and his family. RIP George.
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A very sad day.
Hopefully the new academy set up can help to cement his legacy of youth talent promotion.
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call it the george heslop academy
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So saddened to hear the news about George.
Another stalwart of the club in every sense and a true gent.
His (too few) contributions on Radio Robins were always entertaining as were his Race Night presentations and comparing.
Having commentated on a number of Youth Cup games whilst he was coach, I was always impressed by the quality of the football his teams produced.
My condolences to Jenny and his family and friends.
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This is desperately sad news. George was one of the true greats of Altrincham FC.
I was lucky enough to commentate with him on a few occasions and he was always witty, trenchant, insightful and concise. His reading of the game was immaculate.
Moss Lane will be a lesser place without him.
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I am so very, very sorry to hear of George's death yesterday. I have known him since I started supporting the club in October 1974. I have had numerous chats with George over the years. This ranges from when my lads joined Unicorn Athletic Junior Football Club. I initially sounded out George for his advice, and he said they teach players to play the game properly. I followed his advice and both my lads played for many years. We also liased when I introduced Wes Wilkinson to the youth team, and brought him to his first training session. We have always spoken to each other with mutual fondness over all my years following Altrincham FC and had many memorable chats. I also remember his early caustic humour during my early years at the Golf Road end. He kept his sense of humour throughout his life, including his later years and I as well as others will miss him terribly.
My love and condolences to all his family, stay strong and remember all the fondness we all have for George and his beloved club.
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A bright shining light for the club has been extinguished. He has been a magnificent servant to the club over many many years. I first came across him in the seventies and really got to know him sat at the front of the coach on the way to away matches in the early 70s. At that time he worked with my grandfather and uncle at Shell Carrington - thus he could get away with calling me "Billy" which only he and my granddad did! I played in front of him in the Alty Supporters team and it is fair to say I'd get 90 minutes of intensive coaching through the game. Certainly he gave that coaching wisdom to many many better players than me over the years. Its going to be hard to imagine the club without him.
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Simply put George was Mr Altrincham FC - the club and all of us fans will be the poorer for his passing.
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Rip George you will be missed by so many people. Loved playing for you when you started up the first supporters team then playing in the Sunday league for you even now still laugh at the time when we were playing cards on the back of the coach at barrow you were just about to fold and Andy shouted make Phil show his hand you did and I lost all my money you looked at me and said don't worry I will pay for you to get in magic again rip mate.
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RIP George, really sad day, George is a true Alty FC legend in every possible way.
Lovely man, lovely family, he will be very sadly missed by us all :(
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In my near 50 years of supporting Alty, the venerable Thomas George Boyd Heslop Esq. has been a constant presence.
My father knew George during their time as fellow employees at Shell Carrington and who can forget seeing the reassuring presence of George (and his legendary bobble hat) on those supporters' coach trips to countless away games during the 1970s, in particular?
He devoted an incalculable volume of hours to his beloved Altrincham FC, from his debut as a supporter circa the late 1940s/early 1950s to his work as a member of the old Supporters Association (followed by SAFE in the 1990s) and then in more recent times his respective roles as matchday secretary and manager of a successful youth team.
During his subsequent time in the accounts department at MMU, many a morning commuting into Manchester from Altrincham on the tram involved him suddenly appearing in the seat next to you (carrying that enormous black briefcase) after the Timperley stop and then taking great delight in disrupting your attempts to complete the newspaper's cryptic crossword.
I readily confess that I have teased him mercilessly over the years, whether it be in person, via this forum or even in several of the articles that I penned for the Robins Review. George loved it and he would invariably respond with a typically dry and witty riposte when you next encountered him in the old Noel White Suite or the CSH. He had marvellous anecdotes galore, too.
Let's hope that when some semblance of 'normality' returns, a memorial service can be held in his honour.
What a character. He is part of this club's DNA.
Sincere condolences to Jenny and all the other members of George's family.
Here he is with his old sparring partner John King in August 2014:
(http://www.lusoweb.co.uk/georgekingy.jpg)
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Another legendary name will look down upon Altrincham FC and smile.
Condolences to all.
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very very sad, condolences to Jenny and family, it was people like George who made Altrincham the club it is today and, like 2 years ago with Kenny, I hope they can "do it for him" in the play offs. Like Kenny, you could fill a book with stories about him, and like Kenny, he would be worthy of his own flag.
I too remember him at the race night with his dead pan replies to people's gentle teasing, and on other occasions claiming to have a "broad Timperley accent", or walking through Navvy Road rec with his little dog to see the excellent Packet House team of the time (unless my memory is playing tricks on me), and he and Jenny helping to pick up the pieces after Maunders left ( a time I will always remember with fondness despite the trials). rip, George
ps I remember the meeting to save the club, I don't remember anything that was said but do remember it was a big turnout and a very emotional night, for me the key moment in our history since I started watching in 1990 (Bangor City to be precise, those were the days) after moving down from Scotland.
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A few months ago i picked him up on altrincham taxi rank and took him home, what should have been a routine 5 minute journey ended up 20 minutes of impassioned talk from George about his ALTY, i was gutted that he had to leave due to looking after a family member, he will be sadly missed. On a side note i will always remember his passionate speech at the meeting to save alty in the 90's and if any of you remeber it(the broomwood i think) !!!his grandchildren will see football at moss lane. RIP
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RIP to a true club stalwart and one of those people who has always been there in my time supporting our club.
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Very sad news, I think every Alty fan knew George, he was always there from when I started going in the early 1970s. He'll certainly be missed by a huge number of people, RIP George.
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Ah, you know, how sad. This time comes to us all I guess but this one leaves me (us all) with a very heavy heart. I obviously have fond memories of George but I think from what Hugh and Cult have said it just shows you that whatever age you are as an Alty fan from any time in the past 60/70 years you’ll have come across George and been enriched by his presence.
I’ll remember him as a true gentleman, Alty to the core and an absolute football man in the very best sense. In my time coaching with him he was honest, decent, organised and more than that, caring. He managed a lot of lads from widely different races/classes/areas/backgrounds /circumstances - I don’t know how that comes across, I mean a spectrum I guess - and he treated them all unscrutably fairly and with understanding.
In that sense, he was always able to treat every young player on their own basis. He never, ever said that x was like y who he had managed the year before and bracketed them together if you see what I mean. I learnt a lot from that and I bet there’s hundreds of young footballers out there who would attest to that.
Moreover, the planet is less one good guy tonight and that’s sad and I wish Jenny and the rest of the Heslop family my very best of wishes and respect tonight, and what a marvellous couple they are and alway will be.
Rest easy George, we all owe you a great debt in this Alty family and it has been a pleasure x
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Very sad news. The end of an era. An absolute stalwart of the club, and a wonderful friendly character always happy to chat about football whenever our paths crossed.
Condolences to Jenny, family and friends.
RIP George
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Sad news...R I P
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OMG such an amazing person. I remembering some years ago when Nantwich Town youth beat an Alty youth team 8 1 . George came over and said "well that was close" ha x I always had time for a chat with Mr GH and I know he always held Josh H my son in high regard. RIP GH. Promotion to the Conference will be for you my friend SBL xx
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One of those chaps for whom you can't quantify what they have done for their club; part of the club's culture and so eloquent and knowledgeable when on RR.
R.I.P George
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A reminder from John Laidlar's website:
Amidst the euphoria of Altrincham's promotion, it is a sad duty to remind everyone that tomorrow (Monday) is the day of long-time club servant George Heslop’s funeral. Former Youth team manager, Match-day Secretary and occupant of a host of other job titles at Moss Lane, George has sadly missed this year's promotion finale.
Altrincham FC has announced that "The funeral will pass The J Davidson Stadium at 12.45pm on Monday 3rd August and it would be really appreciated if as many people as possible, maintaining social distancing, could be there to pay their respects.
The funeral service itself can be followed by a webcast at 1.30pm for anyone who would like to follow the service. The login order ID is 41005 and password is snmequjz".