Queen Elizabeth II, 1926-2022 - tributes to Her Majesty

Following the sad passing of Queen Elizabeth II on Thursday evening, we spoke to a number of players who had the pleasure of meeting Her Majesty during her 70-year reign.

From double-winner Cliff Jones’ memories of climbing the famous steps at Wembley Stadium to collect his FA Cup winner’s medal in 1962 through to Jermain Defoe twice meeting Her Majesty, the second time fully 56 years after that day at Wembley, these legends of Tottenham Hotspur speak in glowing terms about their experiences of time spent with a Queen whose reign was personified by her dedication to public life, including sport.

Here's what they had to say...

Cliff Jones

378 appearances/159 goals - 1958-68
Member of the team that received FA Cup winner’s medals from the Queen in 1962

“To win the FA Cup against Burnley in 1962 was fantastic, and what an incredible honour to then receive a winner’s medal from the Queen. It doesn’t get much better than that, does it? We were told to address the Queen as ‘ma’am’ and greet her with a firm handshake. If you watch back some of the footage, you will see a few of the lads wiping their hands as we went up the stairs! It’s a sad time. The Queen has represented the country with such dignity for so long, loved by everyone. What a marvellous job she did. It was certainly a huge honour to meet her that day at Wembley.”

Alan Mullery

373 appearances/30 goals - 1964-72
Received MBE from the Queen in 1976

“I remember going to the Palace to receive my MBE in 1976. You go through in alphabetical order. One of my cousins married John Murray, who played cricket for Middlesex and England, and Joe Mercer, the former City manager. we were all receiving honours that day, the three ‘M’s together. The Queen came out to me, and said, ‘I understand, Mr Mullery, that you’re a footballer’, and I said, ‘yes ma’am, but I’m thinking of retiring’. She then said, ‘you’re much too young to do that’. I always remember that. Then she pinned the MBE on my suit. It was a wonderful day, my family were there, just wonderful. After that, the Palace send you a piece written by the Queen about the MBE, and that’s up at home, and I read it every day, just reflecting how that snotty-nosed little kid from Notting Hill got to meet the Queen. It’s such a sad loss. What a marvellous job she did representing us over all those years.”

Steve Perryman

Club record 854 appearances/39 goals - 1969-86
Received MBE from the Queen in 1986

“I actually met the Queen on the Royal Yacht Britannia before I received my MBE. She was charming, positive, had a wit about her, someone to really look up to. I’m a great one for respect, and respect shone out of her. She was right to expect to receive that respect, but I think she passed it on, as well. What an incredible leader. I would sometimes pose the question, ‘what do you want people to say about you?’ to players under my wing. They’d say, ‘that I was a good professional, I did my job, I tried’ and, yes, they are all good things to live by. Well, the Queen’s service was untouchable, and the lead she gave to people was wonderful. She was that good, did that much... what a lady.”

Gary Mabbutt

611 appearances/38 goals - 1982-98
Received MBE from the Queen in 1994

“I remember at about the age of eight, Stoke Mandeville Stadium was being opened by the Queen (in 1969) and my grandmother lived in a road that the procession was passing. The night before, I got a big A4 sheet of paper and made a paper flag, drew the Union Jack on it, coloured it all in and then stood on the road waiting for the Queen to come along, and I can remember her looking over to me alongside all the people who had lined the road. She later awarded me an MBE, so I went to Buckingham Palace and met her, we chatted, she was very well briefed, and we spoke about being captain of Spurs and playing for England. I was one of the first ambassadors for the Prince’s Trust, so I got to know Prince Charles very well, sorry, King Charles III. I’d been an ambassador for the Prince’s Trust, I wrote to him asking if he would sign a photograph of me lifting the FA Cup in 1991 for my personal collection, and he did that for me, and it’s there in my office to this day. I’ve been lucky enough to go to Buckingham Palace a number of times representing Diabetes UK and various other charities and representing football. The Queen has always been there, all my life, an incredible figurehead, so yesterday was a very sad day.”

Jermain Defoe

363 appearances/143 goals - 2004-2014
Met Her Majesty twice, in 2002 and 2017; awarded OBE in 2018

“The first time I met the Queen was just before the World Cup in 2002. It was at Upton Park. I was only about 19, 20. We spoke, and I was really nervous! It was an amazing experience. The second time was before the 2018 Commonwealth Games. I was invited to Buckingham Palace because of my charity work and work I do in St Lucia, as well, obviously part of the Commonwealth. I had a nice conversation with her on that occasion. She walked around the room, stopped and said hello to everyone, even though there were so many people there. We spoke about football, amazing. I then received my OBE from Prince Charles in 2018. On both occasions I met the Queen, she was so warm, friendly... naturally, you are going to be nervous, but she made you feel so relaxed in her company. She meant so much to everyone, a proper leader, yet so humble. It’s so sad, but I’m sure we’ll now celebrate her life and what she’s achieved.”

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