David Pleat on prostate cancer, Elton John, VAR and THAT jig celebrating Luton's great escape

David Pleat accepts helium whitethorn beryllium remembered for that freestyle shambling jig crossed the Maine Road transportation successful his beige suit.

But the champion manager ne'er to triumph a large trophy oregon instrumentality complaint of England inactive smiles astatine the representation of that traumatic day erstwhile Raddy Antic’s last-gasp extremity saved Luton Town from relegation and sent Manchester City down. In the footsteps of each prancing solemnisation determination are heartaches of which we cognize thing and, much than 40 years later, Pleat’s relationship of the play is compelling.

“I anticipation my teams brought a batch of pleasance to a batch of supporters playing what I telephone Danny Blanchflower football. He said the crippled is astir glory, and helium was right,” helium said.

“Sadly, the main representation for a batch of radical volition beryllium of maine galloping astir similar a silly fool erstwhile my emotions got the amended of me. One of the astir fantastic things successful shot is to people a last-minute winner, and erstwhile it saves you from relegation it’s precise special.

“My wife’s begetter had passed distant the erstwhile day, which was devastating for the full family, and successful a shot consciousness it would person been a calamity if we had gone down that afternoon. But it was besides a spot scary due to the fact that immoderate Manchester City supporters came connected the pitch, our players were getting shoved astir and intimidated, and we needed a constabulary escort with 2 vans to get retired of Moss Side and connected to the motorway.

“We had 5 oregon six constabulary officers sitting connected the backmost enactment of our coach. Every clip our autobus was pelted with missiles, it was their occupation to leap retired of the exigency exit and scatter the radical throwing rocks, oregon coins oregon whatever. By the clip we dropped them off, they were successful precocious spirits aft sharing our celebratory bottles of brew due to the fact that immoderate of them were Manchester United supporters and they loved it.

“But we were blessed to person them connected committee due to the fact that astatine times we were surrounded by hordes of aggravated young men."

Antic, who died successful 2020 aged 71, went connected to negociate Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and Barcelona. Pleat recalled: “He was 1 of the champion passers of the shot I ever saw, and erstwhile helium wasn’t successful the squad helium utilized to sound connected my doorway and ask, ‘Why is it not me? I ever walk a extremity oregon marque a goal.’

And I would archer him, ‘That’s true, and I’m grateful for that, but I can’t alteration a winning broadside astatine the moment.’ He would spell out, unopen the doorway and past travel backmost successful to add, ‘But I privation the squad each the precise champion tomorrow.’ He was a man and a star.”

After a beingness successful football, astir precocious arsenic Tottenham ’s manager of football, caretaker manager, elder scout and consultant, with president Daniel Levy’s spot warmly appreciated successful each 4 roles, Pleat has yet published his memoirs. Half of immoderate proceeds volition spell to Motor Neurone Disease charities successful representation of his precocious wife, Maureen, who was taken by the illness.

“It’s a unspeakable thing. Those affected can’t eat, they can’t speak, they can’t pass and to spot idiosyncratic I had relied connected for truthful long, successful truthful galore ways, gaffe distant similar that was awful,” said Pleat, present 79. “When I saw each the publicity astir Rob Burrow’s combat with MND, and the mode Kevin Sinfield stood up for him, it was precise powerful.”

Never 1 to marque a opus and creation astir his ain misfortunes, Pleat has been warring a agelong conflict against an insidious force of his own. In his book*, Pleat simply says helium has been “under surveillance” for prostate crab - but successful reality, since 2012 it has been much than a watching brief.

“I lone recovered retired determination mightiness beryllium a occupation aft a aesculapian screening done the League Managers Association, who person a batch of unsung initiatives to assistance managers past and present. For 7 years I was having tests each 3 months until, 1 day, the advisor looked astatine maine and said, ‘You person to marque a decision.’

“That led to maine having radiotherapy. It made maine a spot bushed but it wasn’t brutal, it wasn’t painful. The surgeon warned me, ‘You’re ne'er clear, you’ll person a trial each six months,’ and successful 2025 it volition beryllium 5 years since my attraction started. Touch wood, if my results stay connected an adjacent keel, I volition person a 90 per cent accidental of surviving it.

“I would accidental to everyone who is diagnosed: Don’t fearfulness it, you’re not alone.”

Bravely, Pleat tackles different arduous occurrence successful his beingness - superficial allegations of kerb-crawling, which undermined his reign arsenic Spurs manager - conscionable 5 months aft helium led his stylish squad to the FA Cup final.

“It was a hard period, and it was hard to collate each good item astir it, but I cognize I felt helpless astatine the clip and it affected my self-esteem,” helium said.

“At times similar that you find retired who your friends are. Elton John sent maine flowers and a enactment saying, ‘Don’t fto the b******s grind you down.’ It was a marvellous motion from the president of a nine Luton respect arsenic the ‘enemy’. The archetypal clip I met Elton was astatine a reserve crippled astatine Kenilworth Road, backmost successful the mid-1970s erstwhile helium had conscionable taken implicit astatine Watford. He was wearing those immense level shoes and helium sat successful the basal eating food and chips.”

Pleat inactive reveres football, contempt immoderate of the modern game’s pitfalls, though the jobsworths who bent their hats connected the profanity that is VAR would bash good to sorb an elder statesman’s wisdom.

He said: “I person to say, erstwhile Coventry City scored that extremity against Manchester United astatine Wembley successful the semi-final past season, and it was yet disallowed aft an exhaustive VAR check, my bosom sank.

“We were denied 1 of the top Cup stories of each by an offside determination which was intolerable to call. The crippled is astir glory, the crippled is astir scoring goals, and yet we person a strategy which seems geared towards uncovering reasons to forestall them alternatively of reasons to let them. Where is the joyousness successful that?”

*Just One More Goal, by David Pleat with Tim Rich, published by Biteback, 50 per cent of proceeds to Motor Neurone Disease charities