Football Statues No 57 (in a series of several): Ted Bates (1918 – 2003)
This statue of “Mr Southampton”, the former Southampton player, manager, director and president, who died in 2003, is not without controversy, or rather, it replaced an original statue that caused uproar on the South Coast when it was unveiled in 2007.
The £102,000 statue by Ian Brennan was heavily criticised, and not without justification, for looking not the slightest bit like the Saints legend, and survived just a few weeks before being taken down.
The replacement statue (shown here), by sculptor Sean Hedges-Quinn, was unveiled in 2008. It cost a further £120,000, but was met with considerably higher critical acclaim and stands as a far more fitting tribute to a man that served the club for an incredible 66 years.
Photo Credit
More football statues here.
