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No stranger to the South Coast, having been on the books of Portsmouth
in the mid-sixties - joining Ipswich when Pompey disbanded their reserve
and youth teams - Mick Mills fitted perfectly into the category of
players that Lawrie McMenemy loved to sign. It was November 1982 and he
was only two months short of his 34th birthday yet his pedigree - which
included leading England into that summers' World Cup Finals - ensured
the transfer was not too much of a gamble. Indeed the fee was only £50,000 and the Saints manager had, under pressure, pulled another 'ageing
rabbit from the hat'.
Sunderland had already called a press conference
to announce that Mick was signing for them but were, it can be seen, a
little premature. Mick had arrived at an unstable time, as the club had
just lost Keegan, Channon and Ball, but form picked up with his arrival
and, from being 19th at the time of his debut against Nottingham Forest,
they were 6th just three months later. In fairness there were still
some excellent players on the books including Peter Shilton, Mark
Wright, Danny Wallace, Steve Williams, Steve Moran, David Armstrong,
Nick Holmes and Reuben Agboola, his up-and-coming full-back partner. He
even scored a goal (a crisp shot) against, yes you've guessed it,
Sunderland as Saints ended the season in a respectable 12th place.
If
1982-83 had been a season to consolidate following the loss of Keegan
and Co. the following campaign was perhaps the best in the Southampton's
history. They reached the FA Cup semi-finals, only to be knocked out by
a last minute Everton goal at Highbury, and then, finished the season
in style to become runners-up, just 3 points adrift of the Champions,
Liverpool. Saints have never got so close to the double, before or
since, and Mick more than played his part, making 34 League appearances
and was ever-present in the Cup run. His near perfect positional play
and tenacious tackling led to talk of an England recall.
That did not
happen but compensation arrived in the shape of a MBE for services to
football. The following season Saints did well again, finishing 5th and
Mick, despite celebrating his 36th birthday in January 1985 participated
in every game. His cool temperament and professional demeanour marked
him out as obvious managerial material and in the ensuing summer he duly
accepted the player-manager post at Stoke City. (Duncan Holley)
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