Micky Greenaway, Folk Hero, 1946-1999.

Welcome to Priesty´s Chelsea FC Refuge - In memory of Matthew Harding

"ZIGGER ZAGGER, ZIGGER ZAGGER !"

Anyone hearing those words sung at a football match involving Chelsea between 1960 and the mid eighties will have heard the voice of the great Mick Greenaway, a genuine Chelsea legend, who passed away on the 22nd of August 1999. He had fallen on hard times in the past few years, and his health ultimately failed him. I'm told that the turning point for Micky was when the News of The World accused him of orchestrating a riot in Brighton, and implied that he had right-wing connections. This is complete nonsense, like most of the stuff that's printed in the NoW. Micky was a relative innocent who became caught up in the witch hunt that followed all the publicity about the Headhunters. Because of the NoW's allegations Mick lost his job, and wasn't able to find another at his stage in life.

I never had the opportunity to speak to Greenaway, but as a boy I stood near him in the Shed from 1965 onwards and considered him as a benign but awe-inspiring figure. He was always to be seen in the company of the various "firms", although I don't think he was a particularly violent man himself; I never saw him steaming in with the rest of them, and he was pretty hard to miss - he often wore a smart business suit and carried a briefcase, of all things.. I think he loved Chelsea and football too much to bother much with fighting.

Unless it was unavoidable, he usually left it to specialists like Danny "Eccles" Arkins and Steve "Icky" Hickmott (remember them?) and their firms. To quote an acquaintance of Mick's: "Micky liked people and he wasn't in the business of hurting anyone." I've spoken to a quite a few of the faces from those times about Greenaway, and most say that if it went off around him he got stuck in like everyone else, although he was not much of a fighter. Nevertheless, he commanded the respect of every one of those boys.

Greenaway couldn't have cared less about riots, and was more interested in getting a good atmosphere going in the ground. There's even a letter in a Chelsea programme from the 60's where he asks people not to swear on the terraces - hardly the actions of a violent riot organiser. I've heard countless stories about Greenaway stopping Chelsea fans from fighting when there have been children in the way, etc. etc. I can't say if they're true because I don't know for sure, but I've never heard any stories about him being involved in organised violence. Enough said.

Larger than life in every way, Greenaway was the ultimate football fan. His singing and chanting got the whole crowd going, and spawned a legion of imitators, but none of them had his personality and sheer presence on the terraces. Here are a few stories I've either heard from others about Greenaway, or know first hand from my time spent observing him in the Shed:

It was Greenaway who was mainly responsible for naming the Fulham Road Stand "The Tram Shed", later famously known as The Shed. He said that he and his followers had moved there from other parts of the ground because "the acoustics were better for singing". He was also responsible for the monotonous chant of "Chelsea, Chelsea, Chelsea" sung to the tune of Amazing Grace that sometimes used to go on for almost the entire match. If the singing started to fade, Greenaway would just sing louder until everyone joined in again. His complete confidence that the crowd would always follow was evident, and it made him unstoppable.

He was known for his wry humour, and once famously said that he couldn't understand why Ken Bates hadn't made him a director of Chelsea, as the only difference between him and Matthew Harding was that he had no money. He will be sadly missed by all fans from that era, as his name was well known at every ground in the country that Chelsea visited.

It's probably fair to say that the majority of chants that went round First Division clubs in the seventies were first sung by Greenaway. I always remember the Chelsea choir outsinging everybody, except perhaps the Scousers when the Kop was terracing - that was unbelievable. Greenaway acknowledged that it was seeing the Spion Kop in full voice that gave him the inspiration to get the ball rolling (if you'll forgive the pun) at Chelsea.

Here's a quote from fellow Chelsea fan Garry Jones, who knew Greenaway:

"In 1981 he took a childrens tape on the pre-season tour of Sweden. On that tape he played "one man went to mow". What is extraordinary is that outside of childrens radio this song had never been heard. It was not a football song. We sung it in Sweden when we heard him playing it. It became a bit of a laugh. Most of us on the tour met up again, three days after returning home, for Chelsea's pre-season friendly against Exeter. We sung "one man went to mow" for a bit of a joke. From there it went to the pubs outside the ground, The Swan, The SBA and the Britannia. And then into the grounds, at first at away games, and by the end of the 81/82 season "Greenaway's" song was heard at home games. Just think, 60,000 Chelsea singing that song at the cup final of 97 - And all because of Greenaway.

He died a lonely and poor man, alone in a bedsit in Catford on August 22nd. Despite hundreds of names in his address book his landlord did not bother to contact any of them. He is buried in a paupers grave in Hither Green."

I will always remember a game at Spurs in the late sixties (1968 ? 1969 ?) - The Park Lane end where the Spurs crew stood kept chanting something along the lines of "Where's your Greenaway ?". I clearly remember the pride I felt to be part of Chelsea that afternoon as Micky responded with a massive "Zigger Zagger, Zigger Zagger" that could be heard all round the ground. Even the Spurs mob joined in with the "Oi Oi Oi".

That might not sound impressive in this day and age, but you have to put it in the context of an atmosphere of hatred between Tottenham and Chelsea in those days that had to be experienced to be believed. I remember being in a state verging between sheer terror and total exhilaration, depending on which mob had the upper hand, for the entire day when we went up to Tottenham. It's no wonder you tend to remember moments like those for the rest of your life.

Greenaway just cut through the hatred by sheer force of personality - the guy was a born leader. Although I couldn't claim that Micky Greenaway was a friend, I will miss him, as he is an indelible link to my youth. The contrast nowadays at Chelsea is marked when you think back to how it was when people like Greenaway were around. God bless, Micky.
© Priesty's Chelsea FC Refuge.

**"ZIGGER ZAGGER, ZIGGER ZAGGER !"**
Anyone hearing those words sung at a football match involving Chelsea between 1960 and the mid eighties will have heard the voice of the great Mick Greenaway, a genuine Chelsea legend, who passed away on the 22nd of August 1999. He had fallen on hard times in the past few years, and his health ultimately failed him. I'm told that the turning point for Micky was when the News of The World accused him of orchestrating a riot in Brighton, and implied that he had right-wing connections. This is complete nonsense, like most of the stuff that's printed in the NoW. Micky was a relative innocent who became caught up in the witch hunt that followed all the publicity about the Headhunters. Because of the NoW's allegations Mick lost his job, and wasn't able to find another at his stage in life. I never had the opportunity to speak to Greenaway, but as a boy I stood near him in the Shed from 1965 onwards and considered him as a benign but awe-inspiring figure. He was always to be seen in the company of the various "firms", although I don't think he was a particularly violent man himself; I never saw him steaming in with the rest of them, and he was pretty hard to miss - he often wore a smart business suit and carried a briefcase, of all things.. I think he loved Chelsea and football too much to bother much with fighting. Unless it was unavoidable, he usually left it to specialists like Danny "Eccles" Arkins and Steve "Icky" Hickmott (remember them?) and their firms. To quote an acquaintance of Mick's: "Micky liked people and he wasn't in the business of hurting anyone." I've spoken to a quite a few of the faces from those times about Greenaway, and most say that if it went off around him he got stuck in like everyone else, although he was not much of a fighter. Nevertheless, he commanded the respect of every one of those boys. Greenaway couldn't have cared less about riots, and was more interested in getting a good atmosphere going in the ground. There's even a letter in a Chelsea programme from the 60's where he asks people not to swear on the terraces - hardly the actions of a violent riot organiser. I've heard countless stories about Greenaway stopping Chelsea fans from fighting when there have been children in the way, etc. etc. I can't say if they're true because I don't know for sure, but I've never heard any stories about him being involved in organised violence. Enough said. Larger than life in every way, Greenaway was the ultimate football fan. His singing and chanting got the whole crowd going, and spawned a legion of imitators, but none of them had his personality and sheer presence on the terraces. Here are a few stories I've either heard from others about Greenaway, or know first hand from my time spent observing him in the Shed: It was Greenaway who was mainly responsible for naming the Fulham Road Stand "The Tram Shed", later famously known as The Shed. He said that he and his followers had moved there from other parts of the ground because "the acoustics were better for singing". He was also responsible for the monotonous chant of "Chelsea, Chelsea, Chelsea" sung to the tune of Amazing Grace that sometimes used to go on for almost the entire match. If the singing started to fade, Greenaway would just sing louder until everyone joined in again. His complete confidence that the crowd would always follow was evident, and it made him unstoppable. He was known for his wry humour, and once famously said that he couldn't understand why Ken Bates hadn't made him a director of Chelsea, as the only difference between him and Matthew Harding was that he had no money. He will be sadly missed by all fans from that era, as his name was well known at every ground in the country that Chelsea visited. It's probably fair to say that the majority of chants that went round First Division clubs in the seventies were first sung by Greenaway. I always remember the Chelsea choir outsinging everybody, except perhaps the Scousers when the Kop was terracing - that was unbelievable. Greenaway acknowledged that it was seeing the Spion Kop in full voice that gave him the inspiration to get the ball rolling (if you'll forgive the pun) at Chelsea. Here's a quote from fellow Chelsea fan Garry Jones, who knew Greenaway: "In 1981 he took a childrens tape on the pre-season tour of Sweden. On that tape he played "one man went to mow". What is extraordinary is that outside of childrens radio this song had never been heard. It was not a football song. We sung it in Sweden when we heard him playing it. It became a bit of a laugh. Most of us on the tour met up again, three days after returning home, for Chelsea's pre-season friendly against Exeter. We sung "one man went to mow" for a bit of a joke. From there it went to the pubs outside the ground, The Swan, The SBA and the Britannia. And then into the grounds, at first at away games, and by the end of the 81/82 season "Greenaway's" song was heard at home games. Just think, 60,000 Chelsea singing that song at the cup final of 97 - And all because of Greenaway. He died a lonely and poor man, alone in a bedsit in Catford on August 22nd. Despite hundreds of names in his address book his landlord did not bother to contact any of them. He is buried in a paupers grave in Hither Green." I will always remember a game at Spurs in the late sixties (1968 ? 1969 ?) - The Park Lane end where the Spurs crew stood kept chanting something along the lines of "Where's your Greenaway ?". I clearly remember the pride I felt to be part of Chelsea that afternoon as Micky responded with a massive "Zigger Zagger, Zigger Zagger" that could be heard all round the ground. Even the Spurs mob joined in with the "Oi Oi Oi". That might not sound impressive in this day and age, but you have to put it in the context of an atmosphere of hatred between Tottenham and Chelsea in those days that had to be experienced to be believed. I remember being in a state verging between sheer terror and total exhilaration, depending on which mob had the upper hand, for the entire day when we went up to Tottenham. It's no wonder you tend to remember moments like those for the rest of your life. Greenaway just cut through the hatred by sheer force of personality - the guy was a born leader. Although I couldn't claim that Micky Greenaway was a friend, I will miss him, as he is an indelible link to my youth. The contrast nowadays at Chelsea is marked when you think back to how it was when people like Greenaway were around. God bless, Micky. © Priesty's Chelsea FC Refuge.

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