sport news George Graham reminisces about Terry Venables as Tottenham and Arsenal meet for ... trends now
Unusually, George Graham won't be glued to Sunday's latest instalment of the great Tottenham versus Arsenal rivalry. Playing golf is his way of coping with the first north London derby since the passing of his closest friend and rival, Terry Venables.
They first met at Chelsea when Venables played big brother to the teenage Scot thrust into the excitement of Swinging London, and for the next 60 years were pretty much inseparable.
George was best man at Terry's wedding and had him to thank for a career in management. He repaid his mate by helping him get the England job in time for Euro 96.
Above all, the pair illuminated the rich history between Arsenal and Tottenham over different generations.
As a player, Venables lifted the FA Cup with his boyhood team Spurs in 1967 before Graham lifted the league and FA Cup Double for Arsenal.
George Graham (pictured) won't be glued to the latest North London derby on Sunday afternoon
He will instead play golf to deal with the first derby since the passing of his long-term friend Terry Venables (right)
Graham tells Mail Sport of his friendship with Venables, as he looks through his friend's autobiography
Before derby matches, newspapers would arrange for the pair to meet up and have pictures taken together as part of the big build-up.
They were also opposition managers in 1991 for the most famous north London derby of all, the FA Cup first semi-final to be held at Wembley because demand for tickets was too high for any other venue to host.
Graham's Arsenal were the best team in England and on the way to becoming league champions whilst Venables' Tottenham boasted the two most popular players in the country, Italia '90 heroes and national treasures Paul Gascoigne and Gary Lineker.
Despite the high stakes, there are shots of Terry and George enjoying themselves and cracking huge smiles with each other on the Wembley turf. They certainly had enough material to share a few anecdotes, from Elton John being their tea-boy at Chelsea to the lunch in which George tried to dissuade his friend taking over at Barcelona.
Terry's death last November was marked privately by his family in Spain and now George feels it is the right time to pay his his own detailed tribute.
Inviting Mail Sport into his beautiful north London home, a copy of Venables' autobiography stands proudly in the centre of the office bookcase.
Inside the cover, it's signed with a personal and poignant inscription from the author himself. 'To my very good friend, George' it reads, followed by a wistful line asking where all the time had gone.
There is an envelope of pictures from George's career perched close by. He flicks through them. One that stands out was taken on Manly Beach in Sydney in 1965 during a Chelsea tour of Australia. A young George and Terry, the sun shining down on them, not a care in the world..
The football world came to a standstill and paid tribute to Venables following his passing last year
Despite their club rivalries, the pair remained the best of friends throughout their lives
They first met when Graham was 19 and joined Chelsea, with Venables a couple of years older
'I was 19 when I signed for Chelsea from Aston Villa and first met Terry,' recalls Graham.
'To show how green I was, I'd signed up for digs in Stamford Hill because I thought it must be next to Stamford Bridge, when it was actually miles away!
'Terry was only a couple of years older but seemed a lot more advanced.
'He'd walk around with this little case. I couldn't figure out why he had such a small overnight bag. When he explained it was for his typewriter, I considered him really clever and educated.
'He was our leader on and off the pitch even though he was only early twenties himself. The boys would go to him for advice on anything. He had this big personality. He could sing, play the piano, confident enough to talk to anybody.
'He even knew tactics and was almost like our coach, unofficially. The boys used to heed Terry's opinion, let's put it that way. I don't think our manager Tommy Docherty liked that very much.'
It was the era of The Beatles and Twiggy. For someone like Graham, the youngest of seven from a tough working-class upbringing in Glasgow, having someone like Venables to guide him was invaluable.
'Four of us — Terry, myself, Ron Harris and John Hollins — would head into the west End after training and hang out with people in the music business who often seemed to be Chelsea fans,' said Graham.
'We were all equal, all mates, but Terry was the most extrovert, assured in any company.
'We'd visit these publishing companies and record shops. There was a young guy called Reg who would make us tea and coffee. You'd regularly hear the shout: 'Reg, get the pot on.' He later became Elton John!
'We'd joke about that when he became a huge star and was chairman at Watford. That time of your life, when you're in young adulthood, going through new things together, it's special. I think that's why Terry and I stayed lifelong friends.'
Elton John, before he was famous, used to serve the friends tea, going by the name of 'Reg'
Graham, who went onto enjoy vast success as both a player and coach, pictured at the unveiling of new artwork at the Emirates last year
Venables offered Graham a job as youth coach at Crystal Palace in 1978 when he took over
On one occasion, the social aspect went too far. Fighting for the league championship in 1965, Chelsea's decision to stay in Blackpool before a game at Burnley backfired.
'We went out and never came back. Well, we came back eventually, but too late,' reflects Graham.
'Tommy went berserk and sent eight of us back to London, myself and Terry included.' Chelsea's shadow side lost at Turf Moor and finished the season five points behind champions Manchester United.
That team began to split up. Terry left Chelsea to join his boyhood idols Spurs and George later signed for Arsenal. The two friends would face off in midfield.
'Terry was a good passer and liked to control games. He'd have thrived in today's game because he had that football brain,' recalls Graham.
'He could see things on the pitch before they happened. He'd also give instructions to team-mates and you everyone knew from a long way out he'd end up becoming a manager.'
Graham didn't see his own future like that. When Venables took over at Crystal Palace, he offered Graham a job as youth-team coach in 1978 — much to his friend's surprise.
'I never saw myself as going down that route,' he admits. I just didn't have the confidence to think I'd be good at it.
'But Terry did. It was the start of a new career that wouldn't have happened without him.'
Graham would spend two hours a day in his car to make the daily round
