Kindo Back At The Mic

Award-winning Steve Kindon is booked in and counting down to his first on-stage appearance for two years.

Health problems have played a big part in the former Wolves forward calling time on his speaking career since covid.

But he has been persuaded to turn the clock back at an event on home ground in the Blackpool area on Friday.

“I am appearing with the former Blackpool and Bury forward Derek Spence at a forum to mark the opening of a new youth club,” Kindon said.

“I have not done anything like this for two years, except for having a microphone placed under my nose for a question after a game at Burnley. But I can sit down at this one, which is good, and I am told there will be 200-300 people present.

“Derek and I have something pretty unusual in common apart from both living in this neck of the woods. We also both played with George Best. I lined up alongside him in testimonial matches and Derek was a Northern Ireland team-mate of his quite late on, so we have some interesting stories to tell.” 

‘The Tank’, now 74, is a former sports after-dinner speaker of the year and has been to three or four Wolves games in the last year, adding: “I’ve also seen six or seven Burnley games as they’re only 40 minutes from home rather than two hours, and I’ve been to Huddersfield a few times without managing to see them win!

“They find me a space in the directors’ car park at Turf Moor, so I hope to be there for Burnley v Wolves in the Premier League next season.”

Never a chat with Kindo goes by without him treating us to a jaw-dropping recollection or two and he didn’t disappoint on this occasion either.

We had no idea that he became a close friend to Tom Finney in the Preston legend’s later years – a link that dated back to when they appeared at an event together.

“I think he was on his own by then, so I suggested we should go out and meet when he was free,” he added. “We did so about once a month, then he suggested I should go instead to his house near Deepdale for our chats.

“So I used to take two bottles of Chablis – his favourite wine – and we would have a drink from one and I’d leave the other with him for the next time he had a visit.”