Posh legend’s medals reunited with family after donation from fan

Nathan Foster bought a series of miscellaneous medals belonging to former Posh skipper Norman Rigby at an auction at The Cherry Tree Pub, on Oundle Road, roughly 15 years ago.

Many of them appear to date back to Norman’s time spent playing in the Nottinghamshire county leagues and for Notts County.

Centre-half Rigby joined Posh in 1951 from Notts County and will forever be remembered amongst fans for captaining the all-conquering 1960-61 Posh side that were crowned Division 4 champions in the club’s first ever season in the Football League, scoring 134 goals in the process, still a league record. Prior to their election, the side had won five consecutive Midland League titles.

Rigby made well over 400 appearances for the club before going on to become manager. He also led Stamford to two United Counties League Premier Division titles as well as the final of the FA Vase in 1976.

Nathan, a youth coach at Stamford himself, had kept the medals for many years but after being passed down his grandfather Keith’s war medals, decided that Ridby’s medals should be returned to his family.

He said: “I’ve always been a keen collector of memorabilia, old programmes and things like that, my dad and I used to buy them all of the time.

“That night at the auction, a series of his medals were being sold, his medal from 1960-61 went for around £2500, I wasn’t going for that but was happy to pick up these other medals relatively cheaply.

“A couple of years ago, my grandad’s war medals from Korea and Northern Ireland were passed down to me. He died recently and I know how much they mean to me and I would never sell them. It made me realise that Norman’s medals should be with his family. To me they are nice to have but there’s no sentimental value, like there would be with his family.

“Being a massive Posh fan and connected with Stamford myself, I am well aware how highly he is regarded by both.”

Norman passed away aged 78 in 2001 after a battle with Alzheimer’s but after an appeal on Twitter, Nathan was able to be put in touch with his nephew, David Nixon, and the medals have been posted off to him.

David said: “Me hearing about the medals and them getting sent over was mostly facilitated by a good friend of mine, Peter Lane (Peterborough United’s Club Historian). He told me Nathan had brought them at an auction and wanted to return them, which was a really kind gesture on his part.

“My brother Brian and I really idolised our uncle. Norman and his wife never had children but they treated us as their own. I remember so many weekends where our parents would put us on the train down from Newark to watch the games. I have great memories of hanging up shirts in the dressing rooms, running the baths for the players and making them orange juice for half time. There was such a wonderful atmosphere at the club at the time and we’d get the chance to play with the players regularly.

“I know Norman is held in such great esteem by so many in Peterborough. He gave so much to the city and the club. He just loved the game, the comradery of it and sharing his experience with the younger players. He would not have changed any of it, even if you would have told him that later in life he’d go on to develop Alzheimer’s he still would have chosen to play the game.

“It was such a great era of football he played in and one that will probably never be repeated. It was a great era for the club, winning the fourth division at the first time of asking and the players were real men.

“You played with 11 men and if one got injured you had to play with ten and if another got injured you had to play with nine. If you had a knock you were expected to play through it. There was very little focus on welfare and what to eat, training consisted of running up and down the stands and most of the lads smoked unfiltered cigarettes but still had the energy to run around for 90 minutes, I don’t know how they did it.

“He also got to manage face so many of the games greats in testimonials, such as Bill Shankly, Brian Clough and Jackie Milburn. He was just a down to earth lad who put his heart and soul into football and it means a lot to have his medals back in the family.”