OBITUARY: John Shepperd, ex-club secretary at Oxford City FC

The Wheatley resident, who has died aged 84, became life vice president of the team he first watched as an eight-year-old at their old White House Ground.

He spent a scarcely believable 43 years as club secretary and only left the role two years ago.

John Shepperd was born on February 16, 1935, in Marlborough Road, south Oxford - a stone's throw from the White House Ground.

His parents, William and Winifred, both worked at the telephone exchange in the city.

John's older brother, Leslie, served in the Second World War and died when his ship was hit by a German U-boat in February 1944.

His connection with City began when he watched his first game as a youngster and he started attending matches regularly with friends.

John went to school in south Oxford and completed his national service after leaving education, serving as a chef in the army.

By this time, he had graduated from City's youth team into their reserve side, while he also had a spell with Kidlington.

In 1960, Mr Shepperd married Carol Giles, a nurse he met in hospital when his mum had an eye operation.

They also lived in Marlborough Road and had two children, Julie in 1965 and Alan in 1967.

By day, Mr Shepperd was a sales representative and travelled all over the country selling lead weights for car wheels.

But his main love was football and he would help out at the White House Ground whenever possible, before joining the management committee in 1971.

Mr Shepperd became club secretary three years later, attacking his endless to-do list with relish.

In 1980, England's World Cup winning captain, Bobby Moore, took charge of the first team, with Harry Redknapp, who went on to manage Tottenham, West Ham and Southampton, his assistant.

The legendary defender would often ring Mr Shepperd's home phone, but he treated the football icon like anyone else.

After games, he would ring through the match reports to the Oxford Mail and local radio stations, while he hand-wrote books with page after page of City players and statistics.

He never sought personal accolades, but received a UEFA Golden Jubilee Award Diploma in 2004.

Nine years later, Mr Shepperd was given a medal for his commitment to grassroots football as part of the Football Association’s 150th anniversary celebrations and in 2016 he received another for his long service to the game.

Away from football, he played badminton and tennis and attended Lime Walk Methodist Church in Headington.

There, Mr Shepperd arranged services for sportsmen, with ex-Portsmouth defender Linvoy Primus a regular speaker.

He lived in Wheatley for many years and became groundsman at Magdalen College and Chippinghurst Manor, south Oxfordshire, after he retired.

Mr Shepperd died at home on July 28 and is survived by his two children.

His funeral is at Oxford Crematorium on Wednesday, August 21 at 1pm, with the reception taking place at Oxford City FC's ground in Marsh Lane, Marston.