Tributes paid to O'Donnell

Brown also has words of praise for Motherwell captain

Last updated: 30th December 2007   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Tributes paid to O'Donnell

O'Donnell: Tributes paid by colleagues

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Chris Porter paid tribute to an 'amazing guy' after Motherwell captain Phil O'Donnell died at the age of 35.

O'Donnell collapsed during Motherwell's 5-3 win over Dundee United on Saturday as he was about to be substituted.

Porter, who moved to Fir Park from Oldham Athletic in the summer, admits it will be 'a massive loss' to the club.

"He was an amazing guy," Porter told Sky Sports News. "When I first came he was the first person I met - he came out especially to meet me.

"I could just tell from the first time I met him that he's a nice guy. He's got a nice family.

"I can't say enough good things about him.

"It's a massive loss to Motherwell, he was just a great player and a great person. Everyone will miss him."

Shock

Porter described the shocking scenes towards the end of the game when O'Donnell collapsed and revealed how he thought his captain had just fainted.

"I've never experienced anything like it," he said. "It's a massive shock and a massive loss to Motherwell.

"His number had come up for him to go off and he literally just passed out.

"He went down and no-one really knew what had happened. Doctors and physios ran on, he was unconscious on the floor and it was clear he was in a bad way, but personally I never thought anything would happen.

"I'm just really shocked about it all. Everyone thought he would be okay and he had just fainted, so it was a real shock to find out he had passed away."

Craig Brown, who gave O'Donnell his only Scotland cap, believes the former Celtic and Sheffield Wednesday midfielder was the 'ideal role model'.

Gentleman

"There is no doubt that anyone who knew Phil O'Donnell knew he was a gentleman, a good family man, a courteous, polite, totally conscientious guy," said Brown.

"You would not get a more ideal role model for a young footballer than Phil O'Donnell.

"I think in his first spell at Motherwell he was probably the best box-to-box midfield player - maybe not just in Scotland but in the UK.

"He was a Steven Gerrard-type of player, and he went to Celtic and that was no surprise.

"He was a Celtic fan as well as a Motherwell fan."