The son of Grenadian parents, George Lawrence came to First Division Southampton on the recommendation of Richard Middleton, a Dell season ticket-holder who was teaching in London. Once seen, George was hard to forget – and, just in case, he acquired the memorable nickname of “Chicken George”.

That soubriquet may sound demeaning to younger fans, but it was an affectionate label, conjuring up, as it did, the image of a lovable, fun-loving character in the popular TV-dramatisation of Alex Haley’s Roots. In Haley’s story, “Chicken George” acquired his moniker for his work with his slave-master’s fighting cocks. George Lawrence may have been so named for his likeness to the actor who played the role and/or for his personable demeanour – even if

he would often create the kind of chaos that might be expected of a fox in a chicken-run.

He was fast – as a 14 year-old, he had clocked 11.2 seconds over 100 metres – yet not especially elegant, as his powerful runs down the right flank crashed their way through hapless challenges.

More like a one-man cattle stampede, you might say, than a darting fox. Quite simply, he could panic defences en masse.

His critics might complain that his crosses were then more likely to find a fan behind the goal than any of his forwards in the box, but his supporters – avowing that he was worth the admission-price on his own – could reason that he so distracted, exhausted and generally discombobulated defenders as to create the disarray on which the likes of Colin Clarke, Danny Wallace, Steve Moran and Joe Jordan could thrive. Either way, there was no gainsaying that George entertained.

He had two stints at The Dell. The first ended when Lawrie McMenemy traded him and Trevor Hebberd to Oxford in order to acquire Keith Cassells and Mark Wright. But Chris Nicholl bought him back from Oxford for a further two-and-a-half seasons in the top flight. This second stint began, in January 1985, in classic “Chicken George”-style in an FA Cup-tie at Leyton Orient, as he evaded tackle after tackle, only to be finally dispossessed by the corner flag. Whether he might otherwise have crossed to Joe Jordan or to fans behind the goal is irrelevant:

George’s second coming would cement his reputation as one of those players who – like him or lump him – had earned a cherished place in the club’s folklore. Following his second departure, he had another 10 years in the game, in and out of the country and in and out of the League. Since when he has worked as a football agent and as a London bus driver. In 2003 Southampton FC appointed him an ambassador for their Racism Just A’int Saintly initiative, which ran in parallel with the national Kick Racism out of Football campaign. In March 2019 his reply to Lawrie McMenemy after being asked what he was doing now was “still on the buses”.