Bill Dodgin Jr and Chris McMenemy were each on Southampton’s books under the management of their respective fathers. But neither made the first team.

So it was left to the Redknapps to become the Saints’ first father-son partnership at that level, when Harry signed Jamie in January 2005 and played him 17 times in the Premiership and FA Cup. The pair of them had rehearsed their double-act at Bournemouth before Jamie headed for the big-time – to aggregate almost 300 Premier League appearances for Liverpool and Tottenham, captaining both, and winning 17 England caps.

A stylish, intelligent midfielder, who read the game well, created space and passed accurately,

Jamie might have done more for club and country, had two broken ankles, a torn hamstring and, ultimately, a dodgy knee not taken their toll – not to mention mutterings that he was one of an Anfield quartet – mischievously labelled the “Spice Boys” – who were allegedly spending too much time on the catwalk, to the detriment of their performances on the park. Jamie has objected strongly to that suggestion. There could certainly be no doubting his dedication to the cause – albeit, at the last, a lost one – of avoiding relegation with Southampton. The club chairman, Rupert Lowe, told Harry Redknapp’s biographer that he’d found Jamie “entirely committed,” despite a “very, very bad knee,” from which a pint of fluid had to be drained after every game he’d played. Which explains why Jamie accepted medical advice to retire at the end of that season. A good talker and a snappy dresser, he was an obvious candidate for the TV studios. He had served his apprenticeship with the BBC during Euro 2004 and has become, since retiring, one of Sky’s most regular football pundits.