MEETING AND EATING WITH GEORGE BEST

Show me a football fan that wouldn’t give his eyeteeth to spend time with George Best, and I’ll show you a fan that is a bit unsound in the brain department.
I met George twice. It was a privilege and a thrill. Players with the skill and talent of George Best are as rare as pink zebras. I mean look what Maradona said about him — “He was the best player I’ve ever seen. When I used to see him on the TV back home, the next thing I wanted to do was go outside and play on the street with a ball. He just had that kind of impact on me.”
Or Alex Ferguson: “Out of the blue he wins you the match, and you know you are in the presence of someone special.”
Well, I was in his presence twice. The first time was at a celebratory lunch marking the 25th anniversary of Manchester United winning the European Cup. I remember looking at him and thinking of something that Eric Cantona said: “He was the best footballer I’ve ever seen. I’ve never seen anyone with the ability to beat people, to dribble, an amazing footballer, the greatest.”
The second time I met George was in Athlone. It was at an Ideal Homes Exhibition, and George had his lovely wife Alex with him. I sat with her on a balcony looking down on he main floor where the exhibitors and the large attendance were assembled.
George was on the stage signing autographs, a big queue snaking away from him. The queue never seemed to get shorter. Then I saw why — once people got an autograph, they then doubled back around and joined the queue again! George cottoned on to this, and wasn’t well pleased.
When he eventually came back up to where we were sitting, it was clear that he was irate. He said to Alex, “Be ready to leave in a hurry, we’re going out the back entrance.”
Before he had a chance to go, I hurriedly explained to him that
I wanted him to sign a North of Ireland international shirt I’d been given by his former Manchester United teammate Willie Morgan. Willie had got it from George when they’d swapped shirts after a Scotland/Northern Ireland match.
George said, “We’ll do it back at our hotel, the Shannon Shamrock Inn. You can have a bite of food with us.”
I tucked in behind their car and it wasn’t long before we arrived.
At the hotel I chatted with him and Alex for the best part of an hour. George spoke about how much the game had changed since his playing days. He worked for Sky Football, giving his views and opinions, and they paid him a small fortune for 30 minutes on air.
Finally, he signed the shirt, as can be seen in the accompanying picture, and it was time to say goodbye. A handshake, and a kiss on the cheek for Alex, and the visit ended. It had been magical, cloud nine stuff.