John Wilkinson, who famously helped save Coventry Rugby Club, has died of cancer at 74
John Wilkinson was key to the campaign to rescue Coventry Rugby Club.(Image: CT)
Tributes have been paid after a much-loved former Coventry Telegraph sport reporter died. John Wilkinson helmed the paper’s coverage of Coventry Rugby Club for years – and played a huge part in ensuring its survival.
A colleague said John, affectionately known as ‘Wilkie’ was “so much more” than just a rugby man and his encyclopaedic knowledge of all kind of sports made him an important part of the paper and its sporting output.
John had been battling cancer for a number of years and he died aged 74 earlier this week.
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He came to the Coventry Telegraph from theNorthampton Evening Telegraph in 1989, initially covering Rugby Lions, before taking over covering Coventry Rugby Club.
He remained part of the local scene, writing about the club for the paper and its website both in employed and freelance roles for almost 30 years.
Former Coventry Evening Telegraph Sports Editor Alan Poole said: “John was nominally the Telegraph’s rugby union correspondent but he was so much more than that. He raised our coverage of athletics, cycling and boxing in particular to new heights and embraced numerous other so-called minority sports with astonishing energy and enthusiasm.
“In journalistic terms he was the ultimate all-rounder. Long before we could just dial up facts on the internet, he had an astonishing trove of specialist knowledge at his fingertips and he was a superb writer – an old-school craftsman who could knock out high-quality copy, to length, however tight the deadline.
“Even more impressively, though, John didn’t just cover local sport, he immersed himself in it, helping countless clubs and associations with free advice and administrative support.
Coventry Rugby Football Club, The Butts Stadium, Spon End, Coventry.
Feature – behind the scenes at the club.
Sports writer, John Wilkinson.(Image: CT)
“I worked with a lot of exceptionally talented journalists during my half-century in the trade but I can’t think of one who made such an impact on their adopted community.”
Another former Coventry Telegraph colleague, Paul Smith, said of John: “A genial and generous man who was liked by everyone he met, Wilkie always had a tale to tell and a charismatic chuckle with which to embellish it.
“John was also a shrewd sports journalist with a great eye for a story and a lovely, economic writing style. Other tributes will doubtless recall JW the cycling journo, who covered multiple Olympic games and World Championships around the world while he was also a great family man, friend and colleague to many of us.”
Bobby Bridge, former colleague and Telegraph rugby correspondent, said: “This is tremendously sad news. I remember buying the Telegraph as a kid and burying myself in John’s reports, covering the Coventry and Warwickshire rugby landscape.
“His byline had such resonance to me and I am sure I am not alone. So, to meet him when my career followed a similar path was so special, and meeting him did not disappoint.
John Wilkinson receives a framed, signed shirt after Coventry Rugby’s last game of the 2017/18 National League One campaign(Image: )
“Coventry and Warwickshire rugby union has so much to thank John for, and on a personal level, I’ll never forget his conduct with me when I started covering the same patch (albeit nowhere near to the level and quality in which he did it).
“John’s generosity and support meant the world. It has shaped my mindset in how I deal with others entering the media world. Thank you John (Wilkie).”
But John’s role went beyond merely reporting on rugby – everyone who paid tribute to him mentioned the role he played in saving Coventry RFC from catastrophe.
Alan Poole said: “In June 2008 – Friday 13 to be ominously precise – Coventry RFC, once England’s most glamorous club, were summoned to a showdown in Twickenham’s last-chance saloon. Driven to the brink of collapse by a procession of (in no legally identifiable order) fantasists, incompetents, rogues and cockeyed optimists, they had been warned they would be shunted to the bottom tier of the English pyramid unless they could meet a raft of commitments, most significantly a £100,000 bond to set against any future shortfalls.
John Wilkinson starts our campaign to rescue Coventry Rugby Club(Image: CT)
“Two hours before the meeting was scheduled to start, John was tipped off by an RFU contact that, with the financial guarantee undelivered, the club had run out of road. But, rather than type up his scoop, he promptly emailed management board chairman Martyn Thomas to request a reprieve if the cash could be raised independently.
“When Thomas rang back for fuller details John proposed that the Coventry Evening Telegraph would spearhead an appeal (this was two years before the launch of GoFundMe, remember) and an emergency motion duly granted him two weeks’ grace to try to put the public’s money where his mouth was.
“In the event a total just shy of £55,000 was collected in that frantic fortnight but the RFU were so impressed by the community’s commitment to the cause that they gave Coventry permission to carry on in National One.
Old Coventrians RFC, venue for meeting of Coventry RFC supporters about the efforts to raise 100k needed for bond. Top table, ltor Tom Little (Chair of the meeting), John Butler (Trustee), John Wilkinson (Coventry Telegraph)(Image: CT)
“Further crises – administration, relegation – followed but Coventry were palpably re-energised by that lifeline and today they proudly compete at the sharp end of The Championship. And while many people have contributed to their renaissance it was John who lit the flame and carried the torch, be that rattling collection tins in the street or soliciting support from the great and the good of the game.”
“Coventry Rugby is deeply saddened by the passing of John Wilkinson and sends its sincere condolences to his family and friends,” a club spokesman said.
“As a reporter with the Coventry Telegraph, John worked tirelessly with the rugby community and key contacts to help secure the future of the club we cherish today. His impact and dedication will always be remembered.”
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