Recalling The Doog’s Heartfelt Tribute

Forty years on from the death of John Ireland, another indication of the warmth felt for him by many Wolves players has come to our attention.

We have written several times on here before about the affection in which the former chairman was held in the dressing room and a delve into the archives has given us even more insight.

Ireland’s passing at the age of 77 came on October 22, 1984, at the end of a weekend in which the club ended a run of five Second Division defeats by beating Crystal Palace 2-1 in a low-quality encounter at Molineux.

Although the game triggered a trio of consecutive victories, Tommy Docherty’s side soon embarked on another lengthy slump which accelerated the feeling of freefall.

The death of the ex-chairman added to the gloom and prompted Derek Dougan to pay a fulsome personal tribute to him.

“Everyone at Molineux is totally distressed,” the mid-1980s occupant of the position said in the Express & Star. “This is the saddest day of my 17 years in Wolverhampton.

“Mr Ireland was not just a deep and personal friend. He was like a father to me and brought me to Wolves.

“People don’t realise the size of the contribution he has made to the history of this great club. He was a very humane and humble man who was not interested in self glory. If I ever achieve 25 per cent of what he did, I will be more than satisfied.”

Ireland had generally been in poor health before being taken ill during a planned six-week holiday in Southern Spain at the apartment he and his wife had.

He died in intensive care in hospital in Malaga and Dougan added: “He had pulled through several major operations in recent years and we were all praying he would pull through this time.”

The Wulfrunian embarked on a long absence from Molineux following his ousting by Harry Marshall but was made Wolves president after the Doog-led takeover of the club by the Bhatti brothers and also subsequently had the new stand on the Molineux Street side of the ground named after him.

Although Wolves beat Palace in the weekend preceding the sad news, it was a depressing time at the club on the field and off.

Under the management of Tommy Docherty, they soon lapsed into a run of four and a half months without a Second Division victory – one that effectively condemned them to bottom position for the second year in a row and relegation.