The death has been reported of former Arsenal player and manager Terry Neill.
As a player he joined Arsenal from Bangor City in 1959, making 272 appearances for the club between then and 1970.
He was appointed player-manager of Hull City, before retiring from the game in 1973.
He crossed the North London divide to continue his managerial career at Sp*rs, spending two seasons there before replacing Bertie Mee at Arsenal in 1976.
He spent seven years in charge, leading the club to three successive FA Cup finals in 1978, 1979 and 1980 – but unfortunately winning just one, the classic showdown against Man Utd in ’79.
He also took the Gunners to the European Cup Winners Cup final in 1980, but saw his side beaten on penalties by Valencia at the Heysel Stadium.
He was sacked in 1983 and never managed again. Subsequently, he owned a sports bar in London, and maintained a connection with the club throughout the years.
Condolences to all his family and friends, and may he rest in peace.
❤️
RiP
Too young to remember him properly but a memorable night in his bar in the days when that was pretty much the only place to watch Sky RIP
RIP Terry Neill cup maestro – who can forget the united final 🙂
I bought that on VHS despite it being 4 years before I was born. It was a great FA Cup final. Nail biting but brilliant, even when knowing the result!
RIP Terry.
Rest in peace Boss. You were there during my first time at Highbury in charge & gave me so many wonderful memories from then on.
Rest in Peace, Terry.
R.I.P Boss
Sad news. My first Arsenal manager who brought us so much joy in 79. RIP Terry
That’s terrible news ! He can’t have been very old.
I remember his great triumph in 1979 over Utd., very well. And I remember his demise, with that awful League Cup defeat – Walsall ? – and the subsequent fans demo’ on Avenell Road.
Another part of my Arsenal past, leaves.
Correction – he was 80. Tempus fugit and all that. I had him in his early 70s.
Sad to hear all the same.
Terry Neill s red and white ame white army.
RIP
I think he was our youngest ever captain too. RIP Terry, an Arsenal legend forever.
RIP Terry. One of our own on the pitch, off the pitch.
I actually met him once. Way back in 1980 I was a star-struck schoolboy who got the chance to meet Terry and some of the junior Arsenal players who happened to turn up at a leisure centre near where I lived. I queued up and got his autograph and had a quick chat with him. He was very friendly and warm. He epitomised the classy, Bank-of-England Arsenal of the Hill-Wood family: he was well-dressed, well-spoken and totally professional. We had huge up and downs under his management, but I’ll never, ever forget that 1979 FA Cup Final: Alan Sunderland’s winning… Read more »
Respect, Fats.
👏👏👏👏
Met him myself a few times when we went to his pub after trips to Highbury. 100% agree – an absolute gentleman.
RIP Terry. I hope the club pay tribute this weekend.
Well said fats. I was 15 and at the United final. I was there against Ipswich the year before too. The good old days when you collected token from every home game program and it got you a ticket for final if you got there.
Ha!! I remember those tokens too.
But when it came to the FA Cup Final there was never enough tickets for the fans, especially if the the two teams were massively supported. I was desperate for a ticket for that game but couldn’t get one. I watched the match on tv at home.
I would have loved to be there.
You’ll get there Fats ( positivity wise), when we win a big one soon🙌.
You have it in you , deep down!!
RIP Terry
The first manager I remember. Marched us out at Wembley three times in a row and led us to the most exciting, and heart stopping, FA Cup victory of all time in 1979 – my formative football memory and the event that cemented my position as an Arsenal fan. Rest In Peace boss.
One of the Arsenal legends. Thanks for the memories Terry. RIP
Aaaah – they’re dropping like flies today. First, the comedic genius actor that was Bernard Cribbins. And now, Terry. I was too young to see Terry play, but I remember my late Father telling me all about him and the Arsenal team he played in during the 60’s and 1970. He played in the early rounds of the 1970 Fairs Cup, but took no part in that incredible two-legged final that saw us win our first trophy since the 50’s. He had a brief spell managing that lot up the road in the early to mid 70’s, setting them up… Read more »
That’s a great post. Thank you
Great summery.
Thanks for this wonderful post!
I’m sending this post to my mate who, like you, endured with me the highs and lows of Terry’s time as manager at Highbury. A true Arsenal legend and a lovely tribute from you, Qwaliteee!
Who the fuck down voted this post? And why?
What a truly brilliant post Q. You summed him (R I P Terry) perfectly. That was my era. Was at the final v Utd ( in those days you had to buy every home programme to cut out the coupons which formed a pic and if you collected them all you could purchase a ticket for the final) I was behind the goal we were attacking when utd got it back to 2 2 Brady ( my hero who along with alot of the players would pop into a pub in Southgate after a home game then off to pink… Read more »
Great summary thank you. He was my first Arsenal manager too. One more memory – one of my favourites – first time we played Sp@r/s after they came back up we destroyed them at WHL 0-5. Alan Sunderland hat trick and the goal of the season curler from Brady (Motson: oh look at that). RIP Terry and thanks for the memories.
1980 was hard. I was 14 years old. As I remember, it was a first team squad of 13 players, and 69 matches. We beat Spuds 2-0 on Boxing day with some academy players thrown in because of the fixture congestion – Paul Davis was one. All those semi final replays with extra time that I listened to on the radio Again, in my mind, Arsenal scored in the first minute of one of them and Liverpool equalised in the 90th. And in another one vice versa. Eventually there was a winner, but so late that the final match day… Read more »
Guys. Thanks for your lovely replies and also for your wonderful recollections. Alan, I remember those torturous replays with Liverpool in the FA Cup Semi Final of 1980, like they were yesterday. I would listen with my Dad to the radio commentary of Peter Jones and Bryon Butler – my Dad chain smoking restlessly and unable to sit or stand for any length of time, whilst I would be frozen to an armchair, silently praying to my heroes to put these monsters from Anfield to the sword once and for all. That second replay nearly finished us all off I… Read more »
Love these memories, my formative Arsenal years. As I recall, Sunderland’s goal in that second replay was 15 seconds in, and their equaliser was 15 seconds from the end. I know third replays were exhausting and ridiculous, but there’s absolutely no doubt in my mind that the Cup lost a lot by abolishing replays. In 1979, the FA Cup was as important as the league, if not more so. The final was the greatest day in the sporting calendar, bar none. It felt like it was always on a scorching hot summer’s day (I’m sure that can’t be true, but… Read more »
Great stuff!
I always loved the midweek ‘Sports Night’ theme. That was usually on about 10 pm and introduced by Harry Carpenter. (“You know what I mean ‘Arry?!” 😂)
If Arsenal had played a midweek game and won it (no point in watching defeats) then I used to be allowed to stay up and watch it, as a Primary school kid.
An important Arsenal victory under the floodlights held a glamour all of it’s own! 😊
Sportsnight.
For those 70’s and 80’s midweek floodlit game highlights.
https://youtu.be/Dxv6bDc7LQ4
Sorry to hear this sad news. Was manager when I started going to Highbury and as a boy in a London Irish family I loved that we had an Irishman in charge with so many Irish players at the time. Only Irish manager to win the FA Cup?
He was my first Arsenal manager, of real memory from the age of 6, and the only choice for our Subbuteo team manager… always struck me as a good bloke, and the whole Brady-Sunderland combo in 79, as tears were welling up in this 8 year olds eyes, not being able to handle losing the cup again (when it meant so, so much)… he was an early hero. When Don Howe took over, just as I started to go to more matches, I just remember thinking that he didn’t “feel” like Arsenal the way it did under Terry. We rarely… Read more »
Beautifully put. ‘79 was the quintessential Arsenal ram-it-down-the-media’s-throat victory. Much the same as Wembley ‘71 had been and Anfield ‘89 and Highbury ‘91 would be. If you watch the BBC footage of Alan Sunderland’s goal, as he wheels away with Steve Walford trying to keep up with him, he (Sunderland) is shouting “Take that, you fucking bastards.” He meant Utd, of course, but he also probably meant all those who had taken so much joy from our defeat to Ipswich the previous year. That old Arsenal siege mentality is a thing of beauty. And I think we could all be… Read more »
Rip big fella
Blogs: He was our era, bless him, what a time to be a gooner. Hair-bear sliding in at the death to place a boot on that Rixy cross. The first gaffer x
RIP Terry Neill He managed some great home grown talent (Brady, O’Leary, Stapleton, Rix) and brought in a few grizzled veterans (Talbot, Young) and youth (Sansom, Charlie Nicholas). The ’79 Final is the reason I am an Arsenal fan. Anyone else remember Vladimir Petrovich or the time Tony Woodcock scored 5 against Villa? Thanks for the memories Mr. Neill.
Oh my days. Petrovic? We were after him for 6 months. Beauutiful PLAYER but TN didn’t fancy him after a while and bought Alan Hudson I believe to replace.
I think Petrovic was after Hudson left. He looked a great player but wasn’t there a problem with his visa?
My first Arsenal manager.
Rest in peace Terry.
And thanks for ‘79 ❤️
Brings back memories of those four FACup semi-finals vs Liverpool, I got to see three of them, a transport strike scuppered my chances of the third game but I saw us beat the Scousers at Coventry 1-0 thanks to a Talbot goal, in between Paul Vaessen knocked Juventus out of the Cup Winners Cup after they kicked us to pieces at Highbury in the 1st leg, heady days, what a great team we had, losing and being at those two cup finals in a few days was heartbreaking especially losing to Valencia, stuffing them a few seasons ago in the… Read more »
Rest in peace, Terry.
RIP, Terry.
Jennings, Rice, Nelson, Devine, O’Leary, Brady, Stapleton and manager Neill. How could any Irish boy be born in 1972 and not be smitten by The Arsenal forever? Thanks for the great memories – cup replays that never seemed to end, Paul Vaessen (God rest him), the fear and dread that meant you could only watch the 78 Cup final from behind the couch, the giddiness that led your father to bolt to the pub minutes after the 79 Cup Final to gloat to his Utd-supporting friends, the emptiness of May 1980, the resignation at losing your hero, the one you… Read more »
Condolences to the Neill family 😔🙏🏾
I managed to get to all of those Finals at the turn of the 70s to 80s under Terry’s management including the Valencia game at the Heysel, there was some kind of strike that meant we had to travel early and stay overnight in Ostend, 15 a side matches on the beach before hitting the bars. But best memory of that era was beating that lot down the road 5 nil at their place, for some reason the only area I could get into was the Shelf that day, had to stay a bit quiet but the thrashing seemed like… Read more »
I remember W J T Neill well. From “the boys” I watched him many a time. As a player he was a no-nonsense, get-in-there centre half. But, frankly (with Ian Ure) not quite good enough, McLintock and Simpson were a serious upgrade. As a manager, with O’Leary, Brady and Stapleton we had exciting cup football. A great Arsenal man. I subsequently visited his Holborn Pub very often. Incidentally, did David O’Leary have his best ever game v Valencia, Mario Kempes???
Top player Dave O, very loyal as well so great to see him play at Anfield and pick up a League medal in 89, quite possibly yes against Kempes who was still dining out on the 78 World Cup win, but not enough unfortunately with not only Rixy but Liam missing pens in the shoot out (Kempes missed his as well I think), shame for Terry really because as you say he had put together a really good cup team, but he still had the ManU FA Cup win of course..
Yes! Marked him out of the game.
Top post FF. I too was at the boxing day massacre (23rd Dec I think) in the shelf. We had 6 attempts Frankie hit the crossbar 5 scored. By the end shelf had no speerz fans so me and my mates were running up and down singing our nuts off. Happy and simpler times (sigh)