{"id":534405,"date":"2026-07-20T01:15:42","date_gmt":"2026-07-20T01:15:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/534405\/"},"modified":"2026-07-20T01:15:42","modified_gmt":"2026-07-20T01:15:42","slug":"on-this-day-18-july-2006-bob-stokoes-statue-is-officially-unveiled","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/534405\/","title":{"rendered":"On This Day (18 July 2006): Bob Stokoe\u2019s Statue Is Officially Unveiled!"},"content":{"rendered":"

HAWAY THE PODCAST!<\/p>\n

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CLICK HERE TO FIND OUT MORE!<\/a><\/p>\n

The Bob Stokoe statue was officially unveiled on this day in 2006.<\/p>\n

It was sculpted by Sean Hedges-Quinn, a bronze monument to one of our most loved and idolised managers \u2014 nicknamed The Messiah.<\/p>\n

The enormous grin and Stokoe\u2019s attempts to keep that trademark trilby hat on his head even in the heat of such a triumphant moment marked him out as a special man and a gentleman, with his mackintosh raincoat wafting behind him as he raced onto the pitch at the full time whistle to wrap his arms around Jim Montgomery and hold him aloft.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s now a well known and well-loved feature outside The Stadium of Light; a favoured meeting place for many fans but on a busy match day (just like the Bobby Moore statue at Wembley), perhaps it\u2019s not the best idea!<\/p>\n

But what about the story behind it, and how did it eventually come about?<\/p>\n

\"Sunderland<\/a><\/p>\n

Photo by Ian Horrocks\/Sunderland AFC via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Everyone was already indebted to Stokoe even well after his retirement, but following his death on 1 February 2004 at University Hospital Hartlepool, there was a wave of support to create a lasting memorial and a drive was started to raise \u00a373,000 for the creation of a statue in his honour.<\/p>\n

It seems that \u201873 is a recurring figure in Stokoe\u2019s story \u2014 the 1973 famous FA Cup win over the-then mighty Leeds United, the figure of \u00a373,000 needed to produce the statue, and his age of seventy three when he passed away.<\/p>\n

There was a huge local \u2014 and indeed global \u2014 effort to raise the funds. We may take it for granted now, but over twenty years ago, you couldn\u2019t have avoided stunts and promotions to raise the cash by fans and the wider public.<\/p>\n

There were, of course, the usual bucket collections outside the ground. Over eighty volunteers would be around the stadium on match days and at the famous Sunderland Air Show, there were folk galore raising awareness and money for the cause. Limited edition t-shirts were on sale, capturing Sunderland\u2019s FA Cup-winning manager running onto the pitch, and plays were put on to raise money.<\/p>\n

Various beer companies got in on the act. \u201cA rich and malty 3.8% beer\u201d was sold, with 15p per bottle from every sale of Stokoe\u2019s Trophy going towards the statue appeal, whilst the Double Maxim Beer Company sold Stokoe\u2019s Best Bottled Ale with a similarly generous offer.<\/p>\n

\"Soccer<\/a><\/p>\n

Photo by Peter Robinson\/EMPICS via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Art exhibitions of Sunderland memorabilia could be found, as well as some well-known local bands putting ticket sales towards the appeal.<\/p>\n

Such a band at the time was one of my favourite local bands for many years: The Junco Partners. Elsewhere, Ronnie Barker (not that one) and John Anderson (not that one!) were doing their stuff at The Exchange Building at Wylam Wharf.<\/p>\n

TV agony aunt and famous Sunderland fan Denise Robertson advertised the appeal and encouraged people to donate. Hotlines were set up \u2014 the first by a Jarrow law firm \u2014 and ex-players helped to spread the word and promote the appeal.<\/p>\n

As 1973 cup-winning captain Bobby Kerr said: \u201cIt\u2019s not just Sunderland fans who appreciate what Bobby did for football. Part of his career was spent at Newcastle, as well as other clubs. Although the \u201873 win was most poignant, it wasn\u2019t the whole story.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Sunderland\u2019s<\/a><\/p>\n

Sunderland\u2019s captain Bobby Kerr held aloft by his teammates Billy Hughes and goalkeeper Jim Montgomery after their FA Cup Final victory against Leeds United at Wembley Stadium. Final Score: Leeds 0 Sunderland 1. The unlikely lads who wrote their names into FA Cup folklore with Sunderland in 1973 instantly became legends on Wearside. Keeper Jim Montgomery\u2019s double save, Ian Porterfield\u2019s goal and manager Bob Stokoe\u2019s joyous sprint across the Wembley turf made them household names across Britain and helped to cement the reputation of the football\u2019s oldest knockout competition throughout the world. (Photo by PA Images via Getty Images) PA Images via Getty Images<\/p>\n

Newcastle United\u2019s former players association donated \u00a310,000 and Freddy Shepherd put his hands into his large pockets.<\/p>\n

A report in the West Lancashire Gazette ran a feature to appeal to Blackpool fans, where Bob enjoyed two separate spells as manager, to dig deep, whereas other ex-players used their platforms to keep the money rolling in.<\/p>\n

In the Sunderland Echo, Gary Rowell in The Rowell Report stated: \u201cIt\u2019s something I want to see achieved, because I\u2019m a big believer that clubs are about more than just the present day \u2014 they\u2019re about standards and traditions.\u201d<\/p>\n

After speaking to Jim Montgomery (himself a leading figure in helping to launch the campaign), local poet Sally Lawson penned a poem titled An Appeal For Bobby that was published. So it continued \u2014 through The Wearside Roar, city councillors and Tom Cowie (\u00a35,000) \u2014 the money kept coming in and less than nine months from the launch of the appeal, the money was raised.<\/p>\n

But where would it be placed, which Bob would be on show, and who would do it?<\/p>\n

Of course, all these questions were part of the procedure. And it wasn\u2019t without controversy. Some complained that they\u2019d contributed to a separate appeal for a statue three years earlier, so where had that money gone? Others argued that the fans shouldn\u2019t have to raise the money at all and that it should be the club\u2019s responsibility.<\/p>\n

Ipswich Town had paid for their statue of Bobby Robson and Newcastle had paid for Jackie Milburn\u2019s, but why had Sunderland AFC not funded Stokoe\u2019s? I\u2019m sure those arguments would be the same today. But it is the people\u2019s statue. For the people\u2019s hero. That feels right.<\/p>\n

The eventual short list of sculptors was drawn up and Sean Hedges-Quinn won the honour.<\/p>\n

It was unveiled by Stokoe\u2019s daughter Karen Craven, who was very moved and impressed by the statue and all the efforts to bring it into being. Hedges-Quinn had spent hundreds of hours working from video footage and photographs, and incorporated tiny details in order to enhance the artwork.<\/p>\n

Did you know that Stokoe\u2019s watch has its hands set at exactly 4:50 pm, the time the final whistle blew that day? It came in at \u00a35,000 under budget, which was donated to the Alzheimer\u2019s Society at the request of the Stokoe family.<\/p>\n

\"AFC<\/a><\/p>\n

Photo by Ian Horrocks\/Sunderland AFC via Getty Images<\/p>\n

And as we move towards the present, how absolutely fitting it is that the man who enthused Stokoe so much to run onto the pitch \u2014 goalkeeper Jim Montgomery \u2014 is also going to be immortalised with his own statue, facing Stokoe and reenacting that glorious scene from that iconic day.<\/p>\n

The story lives on. The history continues to grow.<\/p>\n

I didn\u2019t bring the magic. It\u2019s always been here. I just came back to find it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"HAWAY THE PODCAST! Have you heard about Haway The Podcast, the official Roker Report Podcast? We\u2019d love you…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":534406,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[442,498,499,500,501,156,337,111,139,69],"class_list":["post-534405","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-arts-and-design","tag-arts","tag-arts-and-design","tag-artsanddesign","tag-artsdesign","tag-design","tag-entertainment","tag-features","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/534405","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=534405"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/534405\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/534406"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=534405"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=534405"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=534405"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}