RUSHCLIFFE MP Ken Clarke said: "Over the years that I went to Meadow Lane I got to know Jimmy. He was a great man, and I saw a lot of Notts County while he was their manager.

"When you think about the resources he had it was a miracle he managed to get them to the First Division.

"Notts County were almost a founder member of the Premiership because of him.

"The test of a football manager is whether they can take an ordinary club and work their way up – Jimmy was a man completely soaked in football.

"His partnership with the chairman Jack Dunnett was crucial too.

"With Jack's business sense and Jimmy's football magic you didn't need millions of pounds to make the club great.

"While in the rest of the country Jimmy may not be as well known as Brian Clough, in Notts he is, and is considered an incredibly substantial figure in our sporting history.

"His team played attractive football and he was a man of great personality and character.

"I remember he had the strongest Glasgow accent you could imagine.

"I wondered if the players could always grasp what he was shouting at them! They certainly played well enough to make you think they did.

"He won't just be missed by County fans, but by anyone who loves living here and knows the area's history.

"I know he had been very upset by the death of his wife. Even then I think football helped him come to terms with the shock and bereavement."