Motty’s skill and delivery secured his status at the heart of our national psyche

The loss of John Motson will be felt deeply in commentary boxes and directors’ boxes at football stadiums across the country this weekend.

Motson knew everyone in football, and everyone knew him. He made it his mission to be on good terms with stewards, strikers and chief executives – any one of whom might pass on that nugget of information that could raise his commentary above the ordinary. Meticulous doesn’t do it justice.

When I joined Match of the Day full-time in 2001 – having cut my teeth at Capital Radio and BBC Radio 5 Live – John was the first person to ring to congratulate me. He insisted I could call him at any time for advice, and I often did. Motty would offer words of wisdom and help with contacts. I felt that he wanted me to succeed and to create a niche for myself in the football department at TV Centre. His input was invaluable.

My relationship with John was always good, except for one incident at the 2008 European Championship, hosted in Austria and in Switzerland, which is where Motty and I were based for the group stages.

Part of our daily routine was to sit over coffee and chat about the tournament. One morning Motty asked if we could exchange notes on the Dutch and the French. I had seen France a couple of days earlier and he was about to commentate on their next game. I was happy to swap as his Dutch notes might save me some time preparing for my commentary on their game against Romania in Berne.

Motty’s match notes were something of an institution in their own right. As you would expect they were meticulously researched and hand-written in pens of various colours; insanely neat, and, as such, extremely time-consuming to produce or replace. I like to think that my own notes are also meticulously