By
James Martin
1 min read
By
James Martin
Craig Ellis, one of Jewish football's great stalwarts, was described as a "great leader of men" by former Charlton Athletic manager Les Reed, on the night 150 people attended his testimonial dinner.
Reed, who worked with Ellis as head coach of last year's GB football squad at the Maccabiah, was one of several high-profile figures at the dinner, which included a question and answer session with Tony Adams.
Ellis, who joined Wingate's Centre of Excellence in 1996 from Maccabi club MAL, was being honoured for making nearly 300 Wingate and Finchley senior appearances since making his first-team debut in 2001.
Ellis, 26, said: "I got into the club after a Centre of Excellence for Under 14s was put on by Jeff Bookman for Jewish players. Sam Sloma and Paul Hakim were also part of that intake.
"It's amazing I've lasted such a long time considering there are only a couple of Jewish boys left at the club."
Ellis, a lifelong Arsenal fan, was impressed by the candour of Adams, who regaled the audience with tales about his own experiences at Wingate, which included a late-night drinking session with Niall Quinn in the club bar.
"The pubs in Holloway Road were closed, so Quinny, who lived near the Wingate ground, said he knew this place that was open late so we came here for a late-night drink, with some other boozers. I remember we went for a kick-around on the pitch afterwards," said Adams.
The 43-year-old, who later in his career recovered from alcoholism, said that Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger "freed" him as a player.
"I was a month sober when Arsene arrived so I was a different man. Not having the booze made it a joy to play. Arsene then allowed me to release my creativity. For example he didn't stop me from playing one-twos like George Graham did."