Brighter News Of Much-Loved Keeper

Wolves Heroes continue to send Phil Parkes the warmest possible wishes for a speedy recovery following John Richards’ visit to him in hospital yesterday.

This website’s co-owner led a phone-around of team-mates earlier in the week after being told the much-loved former keeper faced a considerable fitness fight.

It is understood he had a fall at home in Fordhouses and suffered a back injury that has since required an operation at Birmingham’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital.

“The surgery was to pin fractures and to ease pressure and we hope to have other updates fairly soon,” Richards said.

“Lofty is enormously popular among all the lads, so the news of a few days ago was very upsetting. Hopefully the bulletins we receive will continue to be opimistic.

“In the meantime, we are offering all the moral support we can to his two sons and the rest of the famly.”

Lofty’s working days were effectively ended by an accident while he was out on a job well over a decade ago.

He is now 77 and remains highly active and sociable, with golf his sport of choice these days. He is an ever-present at the Wolves Former Players Association late-summer tournament at Oxley Park and a frequent partner of – and comedy act with – Terry Wharton.

While expressing our wish to see him back on the course and back on form as soon as possible, we are also committed to respecting the family’s privacy at such a difficult time.

Lofty, who was inducted into Wolves’ hall of fame two years ago, played 382 first-team games for the club – a total bettered by only 15 men in Molineux history.