Garry Birtles

Very sad news about his wife, but a really interesting story about his career. Loved the bit about him signing a petition in a night club calling for Clough to be appointed Forest manager, only to be signed by him from non-league to win the European Cup four years later.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sp.....gjyF9C24o6K8h_A0KUBc

Will always be a Town legend for me despite his brief career with us. UTFM

One of my favourite Town players of all time. Absolute class.

Always remember coming home from school one day and getting off the number 4 bus at fiveways, to see the the headlines on the  telegraph kiosk box ....Town sign ex England international.

The miserable seller wouldn’t let me have a quick read unless I was buying! so I remember sprinting home as fast as possible to find out through the old Ceefax it was Gary Birtles! Soon to also become one of my all time favourite players.

Class act on and off the pitch
As comfortable in back four as he was up top

We were spoilt, not forgetting Futcher and Wymark

Quoted from Garth

We were spoilt, not forgetting Futcher and Wymark

And Chris Nicholl.

An absolute icon to me when I was a kid, never thought I’d see class like him playing for Town. Lovely fella, very humble possibly because he came up the hard way. I’m very sorry to hear of his troubles and hope him and his wife have some good peaceful days left together.

Brian Clough watched Birtles playing for Retford (think it was them).  He said the Oxo at half-time was better than Birtles.  Whether he believed this or not, he still bought him.

In his book, Birtles tells of Cloughy going to watch him. Nerves got the better of him and he had an absolute stinker. Clough left before the end, so he thought that's the end of that dream then. Clough signed him, and when the ink had dried, Gary asked Clough why he signed him after that game. Clough told him the there was one moment in the game that persuaded him to sign him. Birtles can not remember any such moment in that game, that was the genius of Clough.

I doubt anyone there on the day will forget his hat-trick against Wrexham on the last day of the 89/90 season.

We were very lucky that we managed to get 2 full seasons from him.

Best wishes to Garry and his wife.

Loved GB, his switches of play from one side to the other and the applause they always generated is what I remember - his class just shone through.

I want to echo what others have said about best wishes to him and his wife.

Oh go on then

Would love to have seen highlights of his freekick against Coventry in the rumblelows cup.  I was stood on the bar right behind the goal and he curled it right in the top corner. I think we won the first leg 1-0 but lost 3-0 away (Drinkall was iinjured for the first leg).

Quoted from Meza

Oh go on then

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I was fortunate enough to be a 7 year old in the Main Stand that day. The first two goals were superb. Minimal
backlift. Maximum goalgasm.  

Quoted from Knut Anders Fosters Voles

I was fortunate enough to be a 7 year old in the Main Stand that day. The first two goals were superb. Minimal
backlift. Maximum goalgasm.  

I always use to sit on the beam in lower findus on the half way line, always remembered a deep speaking guy shout every 5 mins lol.  I'll be honest i'm struggling to pick out 1 from that era, i loved them all, i can definately say i was spoilt as a 16/17 yo.  I cant find any footage unfortunately of his freekick vs Coventry as it was sublime.

That Coventry game, was it the one where we won 3-1 at home, but lost 3-0 at Highfield Road. Kevin Drinkall hat trick after Rees had been sent off.

Quoted from mimma

That Coventry game, was it the one where we won 3-1 at home, but lost 3-0 at Highfield Road. Kevin Drinkall hat trick after Rees had been sent off.

yeah, maybe i got the results the wrong way round, i think David Speedie played as well.

Quoted from Meza

yeah, maybe i got the results the wrong way round, i think David Speedie played as well.

Pontoon singing "David Speedie shits his underpants" was funny as fook

Agree with all the above. I wondered why Garry was not commentating anymore on televised matches. He was as good at commentating as he was a player. Top class.

Saddened to hear of his wife's diagnosis and wish her and Garry all the best.

Quoted from Meza

yeah, maybe i got the results the wrong way round, i think David Speedie played as well.

It was Speedie who got Rees sent off at Highfield Road. Remember it like it was yesterday, we took several thousand and outsang Coventry all night - I remember a huge chorus of “can you hear the City sing” and you really couldn’t.

Quoted from mimma

That Coventry game, was it the one where we won 3-1 at home, but lost 3-0 at Highfield Road. Kevin Drinkall hat trick after Rees had been sent off.

Drinkell got 1. It was his debut.

https://www.11v11.com/matches/coventry-city-v-grimsby-town-04-october-1989-32065/

Hell of a forward line they had and Dave Smith was playing for them.

Quoted from ginnywings

Drinkell got 1. It was his debut.

https://www.11v11.com/matches/coventry-city-v-grimsby-town-04-october-1989-32065/

Hell of a forward line they had and Dave Smith was playing for them.

So was Steve Livingstone

https://www.11v11.com/matches/grimsby-town-v-coventry-city-19-september-1989-32029/

Was in the away end that night, sure it was an overhead kick from Drinkell in the first few minutes of his debut.
Great memories of Birtles. We were in Preston for the first game of the season and arrived early at the Tickled Trout pub with a big car park outside already rammed with lads and Birtles pulled out in his Merc, think his plate was GB1 , everyone went mad as it was like the arrival of the Messiah and he was grinning from ear to ear.