Grantham mourn legend 'Benny'

Grantham Town are mourning the loss of former manager Alan 'Benny' O'Meara who passed away on Friday.

Known by all simply as 'Benny' throughout his playing and managerial career, he was 54 and had played 13 times for the Gingerbreads in three spells before stepping in as manager after the departure of Bob Duncan following a financial crisis at the Evo-Stik NPL Premier Division club during the 1992-93 season.

The loss of numerous players compounded the club's predicament, forcing 'Benny', who made 41 appearances in midfield for Scunthorpe United in the 1970s, to pull on his boots again and play seven games himself.

He returned to another former club Harrowby in 1993 as manager, taking them to the United Counties Division One championship and continued to live in the area while working for a local tyre production company. In August 2005, 'Benny' returned to the South Kevestan Sports Stadium once again as part of Gingerbreads' Legends Day celebrations.

Over the weekend fans on Grantham's message board paid tribute to their former player and manager, one post describing him as a 'genuine and wonderful bloke' and a 'great servant to the club'.

Grantham spokesman Graham Cowell said: "The thoughts of the club are with his family."