Former Spurs player Joe Kinnear has died at the age of 77.
Dublin-born Kinnear, who won the FA Cup, League Cup and UEFA Cup as a player with Tottenham, also went on to manage Luton, Nottingham Forest, Wimbledon and Newcastle.
He had been living at the Aarandale Manor care home in Mill Hill since 2022 after being diagnosed with dementia in 2015.
He passed away on Sunday afternoon with his family at his side, the home announced.
Kinnear - who never lost "the Joe sparkle" - was using soccer as a therapy at the home to help his and others' dementia.
“His passion for football was clear from the minute he moved in,” Aarandale Manor’s general manager Kirsty Harris said.
“He was not alone — many residents here are also Spurs fans. So we created football therapies to help Joe and them in their progress.”
As part of the therapy, the home showed footage of games by teams Joe managed in his later years, such as Newcastle United and Nottingham Forest.
It also used ‘seated soccer’ - with staff kicking footballs to residents to help with co-ordination and stimulate the senses.
Kirsty added: “The care team at Aarandale Manor are deeply saddened by the passing of Joe. He was a lovely man with a big personality.
“His presence at the home will be missed by us all.”
Kinnear was born Joseph Reddy in Dublin on December 27, 1946. His parents' marraige was not a happy one and his mother eventually walked out and went to look for work in England.
Having set up home with Gerry Kinnear in Watford, she returned for Joe and his sisters Louise and Amelia when Joe was six. The children took on their stepfather’s surname.
Joe started his football career when he was just eight, excelling at sports at both Kingswood Primary and Leggatt’s Way Secondary Modern schools.
Always ambitious to become a professional, he played for and captained Watford Boys and then Hertfordshire Boys before being granted a trial at Watford FC at the age of 15.
To his intense disappointment, the Hornets did not offer him a contract and he took a job as an apprentice printer.
He first played professionally for St Albans, his talent recognised as a defender, before moving to Tottenham when he was just 17 after being spotted by Spurs’ chief scout Dick Walker.
After a successful trial, he signed amateur terms with Spurs' youth team, having been asked to switch from his accustomed right-half role to right full-back, and won his first professional contract at the age of 18.
Kinnear went on to win major honours like the FA Cup in 1967, the UEFA Cup in 1972 and two Football Leagues in 1971 and ’73.
He spent 10 years with Tottenham, making 200 League appearances. Kinnear was also capped 26 times by the Republic of Ireland.
His daughter, Russ Doffman, said only last week: “Sadly, he has recently deteriorated but still has ‘the Joe sparkle’. The carers know him well and mum and I are also supported by them.”
The 65-bed Mill Hill care home run by the Abbey Healthcare group specialises in nursing and dementia care, providing activities for social interaction and mental stimulation with holistic practices.
The soccer therapy is Joe Kinnear’s legacy to Aarandale Manor care home.
Manager Kirsty added: “Joe loved to commentate when we put the games on video. It was a real ‘feel good’ factor that brought warmth into the home.”
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