Sky Sports' Martin Tyler has shared his memories of John Motson, after his legendary fellow commentator died at the age of 77 on Thursday.
I was very shocked to hear the news. I didn't know John had been ill and I'm finding out now that he had been a little bit ill over the past year or so. I hadn't seen him so much since he disappeared from the gantry, but I saw 45 years of him on the gantry!
First of all, he was somebody I admired in terms of the profession enormously. His preparation was second-to-none, his attention to detail, his wish to know everything possible about the game he was about to broadcast. He was a real example to me for that.
Before my first television game back in 1974, he sent me a telegram, which said 'Talk little, but say a lot'. And I think that summed up John, really. He was economical with his words, but he punched them out when he spoke and they had great resonance
He was a funny guy away from the microphone, a bit quirky as a person, and had a great sense of humour. I think the sheepskin coats were to do with a game where he was doing a live interview, with snow on the pitch, and the coat came to the fore. I don't know whether he got a regular supply of sheepskin coats from the manufacturers after that!.
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