Mel Hopkins RIP

[Worthing exile]

He was also a part time sports coach at my long gone prep school, Prestonville, just off Dyke Road in the mid sixties. A great player, and part of the team I grew up watching. RIP.

He also coached at my School, Brighton Secondary Technical School in Hanover Terrace. I wasn't much in to football at the time but took an interest not long after. Perhaps inspired by Mel? don't know, but a well known ex International Footballer turning up to 'games' made it more interesting instead of the fodder usually churned out by a bog standard 1960s PE Teacher.
His name is one of the few teachers I remember from School. Nice man.

 

[fleet]

He also coached at my School, Brighton Secondary Technical School in Hanover Terrace. I wasn't much in to football at the time but took an interest not long after. Perhaps inspired by Mel? don't know, but a well known ex International Footballer turning up to 'games' made it more interesting instead of the fodder usually churned out by a bog standard 1960s PE Teacher.
His name is one of the few teachers I remember from School. Nice man.

Taught me at Secondary Tech too. I didn't realise that he was an ex-Albion player at the time. Decent games teacher though.

 

[Spiros]

I never saw Mel play for the Albion. I grew up in Shoreham and first encountered him when playing football for Shoreham Boys Club. My dad also became good friends with Mel over the years. I alwys found him to be nothing other than a pleasant and modest guy who thought highly of the Albion. About 9 years ago I bumped into Mel on the away terrace at Torquay. He was standing there on his own (in some discomfort as I recall as I think he'd just had a hip operation) but had gone along to the game as he was about to head back home at the end of a holiday in Devon when he'd seen Albion fans in town so thought he'd go along. I think Barbara was packed off shopping. Despite seeing us lose 3-0 and put in a really crap performance he refused to criticise the players and preferred to talk about the more positive aspects of the game. A true gent who will certainly be missed.

 

[perseus]

He said of Stanley Matthews: dangerous when the ball was at his feet, but it was easy (relatively?) to cut the ball out before it reached him. Garrincha: did not have much to say about him in the one game he played against Brazil and the youngster Pele scored.