Irving Scholar

[DeanoAustin]

No, he’s not dead.

Just finished reading his book from the early 90s. He was chairman when I started supporting the club but left when I was about 12 so I didn’t really understand his job at the time and how good or otherwise he was.

While the book seems self serving in many places, I do think he was genuine and really wanted the best for Spurs. It is striking that he seemed to really want world class players at the club and was loathe to sell the likes of Waddle, Gazza and Lineker. He was also fairly innovative even if some of the vision he helped create did almost bankrupt us.

It was also quite insightful about the insecurities of managers like Venables and Burkinshaw and how they saw lads like Hoddle, Waddle, Gazza, Lineker and Mabbutt as surplus to requirements at the right price. I also thought a bit less of Venables and his motives/commitment having read it.

Anyway, on Scholar…for those of a certain vintage…what say ye?

 

[parklane1]

He did a lot of good things for us, he managed to get a deal from the TV companys that meant they had to pay more fpr coverage on games when at the time it was a pittence for clubs. Our club was in debt when he first took over and he manged to bring us out of that debt by floating us as the first club on the London Stock exchange.

He was also the first chairman to get a club into things like HUMMEL and computing companys. Sadly after a few years he run into trouble with the building of a new stand and a couple of the companys he was involved with run into money problems. things started to get worse and it was then that he tried to get Maxwell involved with the club and we went through finacial problems. Enter EL tel and Sugar and the rest is history.

 

[DeanoAustin]

He did a lot of good things for us, he managed to get a deal from the TV companys that meant they had to pay more fpr coverage on games when at the time it was a pittence for clubs. Our club was in debt when he first took over and he manged to bring us out of that debt by floating us as the first club on the London Stock exchange.

He was also the first chairman to get a club into things like HUMMEL and computing companys. Sadly after a few years he run into trouble with the building of a new stand and a couple of the companys he was involved with run into money problems. things started to get worse and it was then that he tried to get Maxwell involved with the club and we went through finacial problems. Enter EL tel and Sugar and the rest is history.

What’s your opinion on Venables? I always thought him an excellent coach but I was young when he managed us and we were very flaky from memory. Could beat anyone and could be beaten by anyone.

Both Paul Walsh and Irving Scholar have questioned his commitment to the job.

On Scholar, I guess the bit the book doesn’t mention that came out subsequently was the off the books payments and loans to players that could have relegated us in 1994.

 

[Roland Beurre]

I think Venables was bored by coaching at this point. He seemed more interested in the DoF role, although that might be because that was where the money was (you can read what you like into that).
I don't recall them being more flaky than any other Spurs side. Pat van den Hauwe, Neil Ruddock (?) and Terry Fenwick are not your typical "lads, it's Spurs" players.

 

[parklane1]

What’s your opinion on Venables? I always thought him an excellent coach but I was young when he managed us and we were very flaky from memory. Could beat anyone and could be beaten by anyone.

Both Paul Walsh and Irving Scholar have questioned his commitment to the job.

On Scholar, I guess the bit the book doesn’t mention that came out subsequently was the off the books payments and loans to players that could have relegated us in 1994.

EL Tel was a great coach but during time at Spurs he was opening and running his own night club Scribes and spending a lot of time singing there. He also had interests in other things and seemed to have lost focus on the game.

 

[Lilbaz]

There is a reason spitting image portrayed el tel as a gangster.

 

[Grays_1890]

What’s your opinion on Venables? I always thought him an excellent coach but I was young when he managed us and we were very flaky from memory. Could beat anyone and could be beaten by anyone.

Both Paul Walsh and Irving Scholar have questioned his commitment to the job.

On Scholar, I guess the bit the book doesn’t mention that came out subsequently was the off the books payments and loans to players that could have relegated us in 1994.

Venables was a great coach but clearly also very self serving money wise. I read loads on it over the years and the likes of him Graham, Clough and no doubt alot of others were using clubs to make alot of money when the game was not properly regulated although two of them got into hot water eventually.

What was mentioned in alot of what I read was how they found bags of money all over the club which was being used to fund bungs and backhanders, they were finding them everywhere, was literally Tels slush funds for bungs and backhanders. I am not totally all Alan Sugar but you can see why they clashed TBH.

 

[Bedfordspurs]

EL Tel was a great coach but during time at Spurs he was opening and running his own night club Scribes and spending a lot of time singing there. He also had interests in other things and seemed to have lost focus on the game.

I met him in the toilets at Langhams… he was with Piers Morgan

And tel was holding his old fella whilst balancing a phone on one shoulder and another was at his ear…

He was negotiating to take over the Ireland managers job

Was shorter in real life than I expected

 

[Lilbaz]

I met him in the toilets at Langhams… he was with Piers Morgan

And tel was holding his old fella whilst balancing a phone on one shoulder and another was at his ear…

He was negotiating to take over the Ireland managers job

Was shorter in real life than I expected

Whose old fella were you holding? Was it a sort of reach around thing or more like the okey kokey?

 

[Bedfordspurs]

Whose old fella were you holding? Was it a sort of reach around thing or more like the okey kokey?

My own

 

[Lilbaz]

My own

Ah you like to watch.

 

[Bedfordspurs]

Ah you like to watch.

I was actually asking for his autograph
But he signalled he had his hands full
He had small hands