Sir Bobby Robson 1933-2009

Below is a transcript from a speech made by Sir Bobby Robson upon accepting the Lifetime Achievement award at the 2007 BBC Sports Personality of the Year ceremony. May he rest in peace, a true and dedicated servant of the great game of football.

"Ladies and gentlemen,

I’m absolutely delighted to be here to receive this prestigious award. It’s a terrific honour - I’m totally flattered. It’s a privilege, it’s an honour that I respect. I’m grateful to you and thank you very much. I was completely unaware that Sir Alex (Ferguson) was here tonight to present this to me so it makes the evening ever more thrilling and staggering and I’m grateful to Sir Alex for coming like he did (applause).

You know, nobody wins everything on his own. Even Tiger Woods has a caddy. And this award really is an extension and an opportunity for me to say thank you very much to everybody that has supported me, everybody that I’ve played with, everybody that I managed. I’ve had a fabulous career, I’ve played with and managed some of the greatest players in the world - of that there is no doubt.

I remember my Fulham days, my West Bromwich days, my England days. I remember particularly Ipswich Town where I went first as a manager - some of the players are here tonight. I think Roger is here, tell me Roger, are you here? Well Mickey Mills is here, the captain, so I had a great time at Ipswich (laughter)… and I went to Barcelona and so forth but without the players, without the people I worked for and that I inherited, I wouldn’t be here tonight. I worked with some fantastic chairmen. I always had around me a great coaching and technical staff, a great medical staff, a great scouting staff. I didn’t suffer fools, this is for them of course.

I’d like to thank my mother and father. My mother brought me into this world, my father brought me to football - I think my father brought me into the world as well (laughter). But he would have loved this tonight. If he would have been alive, he would have been there in the front row. He wouldn’t have come by car, he wouldn’t have come by train. He would have somersaulted all the way from Durham to here. And I tell you this it would have taken him about 16 and a half minutes.

I’d like to thank my wife Elsie who has stuck with me for about 52 years. I thank her for her loyalty, her support, her patience, her understanding - without her I wouldn’t be what I am (applause).

And so it’s been an absolute joy for me to have worked in association football all these years, more than fifty years, and to have met and to have played with and to have worked with all these fantastic international footballers. I’d like to mention them all by name but it would take me 17 and a half years to do it. I’ve got that time but you haven’t (laughter).

So it remains for me to say thank you Gary (Lineker), than you Sir Alex, thank you to the BBC for this magnificent presentation and for giving me one of the greatest evenings of my life. Thank you very much indeed (standing applause)."

To watch a video of the speech, click here.