Whilst visiting the boys’ room in a pub in Malta called `The Londoner` my attention was drawn to a large tube map on the wall. It had been produced to commemorate the 150th anniversary of The Football Association and each station had been renamed eg Leytonstone, birthplace of Mr P.Spice was David Beckham, the Graham Taylor connection led to Watford and Bobby Moore at Upton Park.
Lines also have themes, Bakerloo for full backs, Circle for `Giants of the World Cup` and our Metropolitan is for managers with Chorleywood named after Arthur Rowe. Though I am familiar with Rickmansworth`s Bill Nicolson and Arsene Wenger of Little Chalfont our Arthur needed a little research.
He was Tottenham born and bred, left school in 1921, and signed amateur forms for Spurs in 1924 but had to wait until 1931-32 to make the first of his 182 League appearances ‘I never scored a goal they didn’t like the centre-half to go too far over the halfway line in those days’
Rowe captained Spurs to third place in the old First Division in 1933-34 and won his only England cap against France, injury ended his career in 1939. In 1949 he rejoined Spurs as manager and transformed them with a team which included only a solitary newcomer, Alf Ramsey, winning the Second Division then the First in successive seasons.
Push and run, they called it. `It’s just a case of doing the obvious. Football’s a simple game, it’s the players who make it difficult,’ he said. His ideas were simple `make the ball do the work`, he is credited with introducing the `One-Two`
He left Spurs a legacy of style and one of his last signings, Danny Blanchflower led the club to a historic double in 1961.
Chorleywood should be proud to have him.
Michael Duffy