By Leicester Mercury | Posted: March 1, 2012
Nearly 400 people joined Leicester City ambassador Alan Birchenall to look back over his 40-year association with the club on Saturday night – and the evening began with a kiss.
The Birch was joined by a host of former team-mates and former City favourites and among the special guests was former Sheffield United star Tony Currie.
The Birch and Currie became friends after the famous "kiss" at Bramall Lane in 1975 which sparked such controversy at the time.
The pair met up again outside the Great Hall before Birch's anniversary dinner, which was also a charity fund-raiser for the Foxes Foundation One in a Million campaign, and posed in front of the iconic photo of that moment.
Currie said: "It all started when I replaced him at Sheffield United when he was signed by Chelsea, but the famous kiss first happened in 1975, when he was at Leicester.
"As I remember, I was tracking him back towards the Bramall Lane end and we ended up tumbling over and sat up facing the goal. He just turned to me and said 'give us a kiss TC' and that's what happened. One bloke with a camera captured it and probably made a fortune. It was in all the papers the next day."
Former City captain Steve Walsh was joined by former stars of the Martin O'Neill era, such as Matt Elliott, Gerry Taggart and Simon Grayson, and he described The Birch as a City legend.
"Ever since I joined the club, I formed a close relationship with The Birch," said Walsh.
"His stories get funnier every time I hear them and he is just a great character.
"The community and charity work he has done around Leicester have earned him the Freedom of the City, an MBE and an honorary law degree, and he thoroughly deserved them. What next, is it a knighthood? There must be a statue outside the stadium at some point.
"With every player who comes to the club, he helps them settle in and he creates a bond with the players. He is in the tunnel geeing up the lads and slapping them on the back as they go out for the game.
"He is a great guy and lives and breathes Leicester City."
Among The Birch's former team-mates were Frank Worthington, Mark Wallington and Mike Stringfellow, who said The Birch's relationship with City was like a marriage.
"The relationship has worked both ways. The Birch has been good for the club and the club has been good for The Birch," said Stringfellow.
"It is like a marriage. When you think of all his charity work, he has done well for the club and the charities, but the club has given him that platform.
"He is very special to the club."
During the evening, which saw The Birch interview some City legends, footage from The Birch's career was shown on the big screens, including a stunning 35-yard strike against Leeds which Stringfellow set up, although Stringfellow had a different recollection of the goal.
"The television cameras were there for that game, ITV, and you know how they flash up highlights in the opening credits at the start of the programme. Well that goal was included and it was on at 1.30pm on a Sunday," he explained.
"It was a cracking goal. I used to be asked about it at supporters' club events and I would explain that what really happened was I was running with the ball, trod on it and fell over, it rolled back to Birch who tried to pass to Keith Weller on the right and it flew into the net! Everyone thought it was planned."
Although The Birch was the focus of the evening, he wanted to raise as much money as possible for 10 local charities – Age UK Leicestershire & Rutland, Leicester Children's Hospital, LOROS, Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Rutland Air Ambulance, PROSTaid, Rainbows, Royal Anglian Regiment Benevolent Fund (Lord Mayor's Appeal), The Harley Staples Cancer Trust, VISTA and Wishes 4 Kids.
Willie Thorne hosted a special auction as the One in a Million campaign looks to bring the total The Birch has raised for charity over the last 32 years since his first annual charity run past the £1 million mark.
"It is awesome to see all these people here," he said.
"I looked upon it as an event to help raise money for the charities but the chief executive Susan Whelan found out I had been associated with the club for 40 years and it is brilliant. It is very nice of the owners and Susan to put on this event on.
"I just want to get over this £1million mark and it would be so important to the 10 charities.
"That is what the Foxes Foundation is all about."
