The passing of Gary Shaw has affected me deeply. I never met him. However, his death has resonated so much over the last few hours as I process the news. Listening to podcasts talking about him. Reading reactions from people who knew him. So many stories of his playing days. And, of course, the Champions League game just hours away.
I think that it what Gary represents to me that is driving my emotions. The zeitgeist of the early 1980s when Gary was in his prime. At such a young age, he had it all: League winner, European Cup winner, European Super Cup winner, alongside Young Player of the year awards from the PFA and from Europe. Well, almost all - an overly deserved England cap was not forthcoming in his career. Partly thwarted by a knee injury, Gary would never grace the full international stage. For me, he was one of the first footballers I wanted to emulate.
It's 1983 and I am playing football in the back garden. My then blonde hair flowing while wearing a replica Villa shirt which was a little too snug, looking like Gary Shaw if he'd been purchased on Temu, tearing up the League like my idol. And now he's gone. Memories of watching the final on TV are fleeting at best, but I would have wanted my hero to score. I never did get to watch him play live; I suspect that he was injured when I made my first trip to Villa Park in 1984.
With the home game against Wolves just a few days away, I suspect that Villa Park will be an emotional place before kick off. There will be plenty of songs about him, and quite a few tears too. He was one of our own. One of our own, yet much more besides. He was living his own dream and ours too. I hope that Aston Villa will mark Gary’s passing in a suitable way. In the 150th year of the club, there aren’t many that bettered his contribution.
I wanted to get a few words down, for me, and to say thank you Gary Shaw for the memories.
HEITS.