Dear Mick,

Before the Swindon game, you asked me for a copy of Tom Leech's tribute to St. John.
I append it below.

I asked him for permission to publish it on your website in case that is your intention.
I know nothing that gets as much to the heart of football and of Atyeo than this.
 

Best wishes

Gareth

To John, with love

John Atyeo died today,
Heart attack, aged sixty one.
As if yesterday
I watched him attack defences,
A man with a lion's heart,
Hungry, a predator for goals.
As if yesterday
I was a boy with dreams
Ready to die for my hero
Alive with him every moment
Scoring for Bristol City and England:
His goals were mine, wondrous and sublime
As when the crowd roared
I hammered shot after shot crashing
Into an unsympathetic neighbour's fence;
I did it for Bristol City
But I was misunderstood
And constantly sent off for bad conduct.
This never happened to John Atyeo,
Exemplary behaviour on and off the field.
I loved this man and what he stood for;
Who made me stand in the line
Before receiving his impressive autograph.
So a dream ends?
For me
It really was a beautiful game
And he was a player with surprising skill
Having a heart that beat loyally for Bristol,
Not cynically sponsored and measured for loot
But wholesome and blessed with a magical boot.
For the boy who never quite became a man
John Atyeo scored golden goals
That always stirred the heart,
But more importantly, he fired the imagination;
In soaring skywards I came to believe
All dreams are possible.

Copyright Tom Leech 8.6.1993.