Hennie de Regt: John looked out for the rest of the team
Hennie de Regt, who coached John in between 13 and 14 says one incident sticks in his memory that marked the youngster out as a true team player and a future leader.
“If it was raining and one player had forgotten his waterproof, John would make sure the entire squad went out to train without one,” recalls de Regt.
“This way, the forgetful player escaped the manager’s wrath. John looked out for the rest of the team. He would say the rain wasn’t so bad and that there was no problem for the squad to train without waterproofs.”