Links With The Past: John McVey's Second Division Champions Plaque
This nine-carat gold hall-marked plaque is one of a set commemorating Leicester City winning the old Second Division title in 1980 for a then-record sixth time, enabling them to return to the top flight after an absence of two years.
The manager was Jock Wallace and his side included players such as Mark Wallington, Tommy Williams, Larry May, Ian Wilson, Eddie Kelly, Bobby Smith, Andy Peake, Martin Henderson, Alan Young and Gary Lineker.
These plaques were not only presented to the players and to the manager, but also to the Club’s physio, John McVey, whose plaque has been kindly loaned to the Club by Mrs. McVey following her husband’s sad death in 2015.
This was a well deserved award for John as he was a key factor in winning the title. Alan Bennett, the club secretary at the time, remembers that John was singlehandedly responsible for the treatment of all of the Club’s players, from trainees to senior players. He was a vital part of the success of 1979/80.
John joined Leicester City in 1977. As well as Wallace, he worked with managers Frank McLintock, Gordon Milne, Bryan Hamilton and David Pleat. He was also Northern Ireland’s physio for seven years, accompanying their squad, which included Leicester City’s Paul Ramsey and John O’Neill, to the 1986 Mexico World Cup Finals.
The plaque was manufactured by Vaughtons of Birmingham. This firm produced the medals for the 1908 London Olympic Games, and have been making Football League medals since 1911. They also manufactured the FA Cup.