They all came for Marcus. A European Championship winner, a Champions League and Premier League icon, decorated internationals, legends and cult heroes from the blue and red sides of Bristol, Yeovil Town, Exeter City, Sunderland and Ipswich Town.
Former teammates, opponents, managers, a king of the jungle who’s done a fair bit of ducking and diving in and out of the dugout in his time, soap actors, TV presenters, from all corners of the country, some even leaving overseas family holidays to make it.
There can’t have been too many instances of when the East and West Stands of the Mem, usually populated exclusively by blue and white, also had very clear pockets of red scattered through the crowd.
Family members, close and distant, neighbours from when he was a schoolboy in Hartcliffe, mates old and new. Heck, even the weather decided to turn up.
By his own admission, it was all a little overwhelming for a man who for all his achievements, impact in the game, joy he’s provided for others and the lasting legacy he’s left on several clubs, is as understated and down to earth a legend as you can imagine.
He wasn’t overly comfortable with the concept of walking through the guard of honour at the end of Saturday’s charity match in his name, but despite the reluctance it was his way of saying thank you to the 4,462 who had gathered for him.
“I don’t think I’ll be able to put it all into words until a week or so’s time,” said Marcus Stewart in the tunnel at the Mem. “I’m very pleased that everyone seemed to have a good time. Very proud that some ex-teammates, players I don’t know, friends from when I played, just turned up and showed their support for the day.
“Ryan Thomas flew from a family holiday yesterday, arrived late last night, played most of the game and is flying back tonight. Gerry Taggart has driven down from up north, played half a game, and is driving back. He’s come to show his support. I don’t know Gerry, played against him a few times, but that goes a long way. Matty Holland has come from Ipswich.
“I’m usually quite good at controlling my emotions, I’m trying not to get too carried away, but I’m sure it’ll all eventually sink in.”
Stewart’s diagnosis with Motor Neurone Disease (MND) last year was the sort of news that stops you in your tracks, even with the greater awareness and publicity it receives due to the number of sporting icons who have battled it.
That reaction is but a miniscule representation of how it must be to those who know the former City and Rovers striker on a personal level, let alone wife Louise, his immediate family and, of course, the man himself.
But on they fight, living their lives and raising money for the Darby Rimmer Foundation, and it was typical of Stewart that when asked on the microphone before the match, while addressing the crowd, his only thought and hope was for everyone present to simply enjoy themselves.
And that they did. A South West Legends side comprising former players from City, Rovers and Yeovil against an All-Stars XI which was eclectic in its make-up but made for an entertaining 90 minutes in which the former won 4-3.
Chris Lines once again turned on the style at the Mem, gliding through the game and finding the net at his former home twice, while also setting up one of Darren Way’s two goals; Scott Murray delighted in his role at pantomime villain and, we can confirm, can still send an devilishly inviting ball into the box with all the pace and whip of old; Ollie Clarke rampaged through the middle; Marlon Pack stroked it about in midfield with consummate ease; while Lee Brown chugged his way down that left flank, going agonisingly close of scoring in front of the Thatchers' End once again.
For the All-Stars, Jill Scott received probably the second loudest set of cheers all afternoon and fired home the final goal of the game from the penalty spot; Jim Magilton stuck one in the top corner; chef Dean Edwards celebrated loudly after clattering Jay Murray and then had even more to cheer about a few moments later as he rolled a finish into the bottom corner; oh, and Paul Scholes barely broke sweat outside of the heat, as his weight of pass and first-time flicks haven’t lost their sense of wonder and charm.
Each one had a different path as to what led them to be present on Saturday afternoon, but the common denominator was, of course, Marcus and they way he’s touched their lives.
For Darrell Clarke, a friend and colleague during their time in the dugout at Rovers, the event was the mark of the man, but also Rovers as a club and fanbase, as he once again stepped into the technical area at a stadium he’ll always be able to call home and among people who will always consider him a friend, even if they may never have met.
“He means the world to me,” Clarke said. “We experienced some special memories together, certainly at Bristol Rovers, and he’s somebody I can call a very close friend. He knows I’m always on the end of a phone if he needs me, and likewise.
“The way Marcus is dealing with it and getting on with his life, and doing such unbelievable work for the charity is amazing. He’s a strong character and he’ll remain a strong character, knowing Marcus as I do. He doesn’t like a lot of fuss, he’s never been one for that but all our thoughts and prayers are with him.
“I love the Gasheads, they’re always tremendous with myself and you look at this as a football club, the way they’ve come out to support Marcus and the charity. I saw a lot of this when I was here, it’s certainly a special fanbase and it’s a proper club.”
Alongside him was Harry Redknapp, a man whose transfer dealings over three decades of managing in the Premier League mean he’d be a ubiquitous link if you were playing a football version of the Six Degrees of Separation.
Indeed, he confirmed that he’d tried to sign Stewart at least once during his time in charge of West Ham, and quite possibly for other clubs. But his association with the striker went back much further. To when he was in the FA’s schoolboy set-up and was a dominant force in those age groups alongside and against his son, Jamie.
“They played together and against each other at places like Lilleshall and that,” Redknapp said. “So I followed his career after that and he was a great player. And I mean a great player. A real intelligent footballer and, most of all, a great lad. He’s just a great fella and I wanted to be here.”
For Birmingham City full-back George Friend, now a seasoned Championship campaigner, Stewart played an influential role in the early stages of his career when he was making his breakthrough at Exeter under Paul Tisdale’s management.
Stewart was a mentor, guiding figure and the example for which a young teenage boy from Devon was meant to follow. As he admitted, growing up in the West Country there weren’t too many icons to follow in the footsteps of. Marcus Stewart was one, and he got to call him a colleague.
“Stewie was brought in by Paul Tisdale to help the younger players like myself and I shared a brief time with him there but he made a big impact; just an amazing guy, calm, brilliant around the place and he had an amazing career behind him,” Friend said.
“I soon moved onto Wolves but he was a big part of my career and it was a smart move by Tis to bring him in. Just a brilliant influence for me in terms of how he conducted himself and offering little tips about the game, which is what you need as a young player. Especially in Devon when you’re not really exposed to that much football. He had travelled the country and was able to share that experience.”
In a recent conversation with Rovers manager Joey Barton towards the end of the 2022/23 season, the identity of the greatest Bristolian to have played in the Premier League became an area of debate when discussing football in the area.
As a native of the north west, Barton wasn’t quite aware of all the potential candidates, and names were pinged around the room from Gary Mabbutt to Jack Butland (we’re counting it), Keith Curle to Julian Dicks, while Bobby Decordova-Reid has been flying the flag for the city in recent years.
But unquestionably Stewart is in the conversation, if not delivering a pretty compelling case for being the correct answer; 81 appearances for Ipswich and Sunderland in the top-flight and 26 goals and eight assists, enrapturing crowds in two footballing hotbeds of the country.
One of those such fans was Jill Scott who, for all her fame and success and icon-like status since, knows Marcus simply as a fan, starry-eyed inside the Stadium of Light as he was banging goals in for the Black Cats.
“I used to watch Marcus a lot. I was a season ticket holder at Sunderland so I’m here as a fan, really,” Scott said, whose association with the Darby Rimmer Foundation goes back to the beginning as Stephen Darby - the former Liverpool defender who founded the charity - is married to former England teammate Steph Houghton. “I remember being so excited when Marcus signed for the club and he managed to score a fair few too.
“It’s been brilliant. MND is such a terrible disease and more research needs to be done, so to have days like this when you can raise money, and to see so many people here having a great time, it was brilliant.”
A slightly different story could be told throughout the individuals on the respective teamsheets, while the same could also be true across the supporters present, whether of a red, blue or totally neutral persuasion. Each one has something positive to say about Marcus.
As reluctant a star he may be, and while it may take time for it all to properly sink in, eventually he’ll know that they all came for him.
You can read more about Team Stewart, MND and donate to the Darby Rimmer Foundation HERE
