Home
KEVIN Davies will soon say goodbye to his adopted home of Bolton - but the former Wanderers skipper is determined to offer fans something to remember him by.
After nearly 14 years in the town Super Kev, his wife Emma and children are packing up to move to Dorset.
The family have been hugely active in the community, even setting up a charity - KiDs of Bolton - in 2010 which raised hundreds of thousands of pounds to help local sporting clubs and athletes to fund equipment.
Davies made 820 career appearances, almost half of which were made in a Wanderers shirt. But three years after his retirement from playing he said the time felt right for a change in scenery.
“It’s just a lifestyle change,” Davies told The Bolton News. “I haven’t got anything fixed up down there - I’m effectively going in cold. But I’m 41 now, I don’t think I’ll just be sitting around drinking pina coladas in the park. I’ll find something to do.
“We’ve been down there a few times now and it felt right. The kids are coming up to their GCSEs and had they been against it we wouldn’t have considered it but they seem to be on board, so we’re going for it.
“It’s a bit of a leap of faith to be honest but we’ve had it in the back of our minds for a while now and the time seemed right to make the change and move on.
“We’ve made a lot of happy memories here in Bolton, both at work and making loads of good friends around the town. We’ll miss it.”
Before he leaves, however, Davies has unpacked a career’s worth of footballing memories and is now auctioning off items for fans to buy online.
Memorabilia from all his clubs - including Preston, Southampton and Blackburn Rovers, along with some items from his international duties with England are available until Sunday, starting from just £5.
Among the diverse collection of items is a massage chair - complete with a story on how he bought it whilst hungover at Harrods, an official BWFC blazer worn in the UEFA Cup game against Bayern Munich, Amir Khan’s signed boxing gloves and a Bolton shirt signed by the late, great Nat Lofthouse.
In total, 100 lots have now been added, which gave Davies ample time to stroll down memory lane.
“It has been nice to go through everything and reflect on them,” he said. “I’m not someone who attaches too much to things. I don’t have a trophy cabinet and all my awards from Bolton have been up in the loft. I considered putting them on, but decided against it in the end. Maybe that is better off being kept for the children, because I kept stuff from when may dad used to play football.
“In my office I’ve got my England shirt hanging up and that’s about it. But there are things we have kept, like when my parents were around they kept a scrapbook of my time at Chesterfield, and my old YTS tracksuit. I’ve got a pair of shorts I can probably fit one leg in now.
“There are a lot of memories in there but I think it’s better to pass it on to the supporters of the clubs I have been at. I’m sure there’s stuff there people can get pleasure from, rather than it be stuffed up in a loft.”
Many of the big vinyl photos on offer were once hung on the walls of the stadium and Euxton but were too large to hang in the Davies household.
“There are some great pictures and they are the ones you stop and look at the players you’ve played alongside and the expressions on the faces and think ‘they were good times’. There’s one of the European games in there which made me stop and think about the success we’d had at Bolton.
“But some of them are quite large and I think they’d be better hung in offices or somewhere with a bit more space.
“I had a room full of boots as well, which brought back memories from the various games I have played but realistically I am not going to find a use for them again, so why not have someone else enjoy them?”
Davies says he will sign any of the items won, if required, and is looking to organise an afternoon or evening at the Macron Stadium in the near future to allows bidders to collect their prize in person.
The auction can be found online at www.32auctions.com/SKD and will be open until Sunday at 2pm.
http://www.theboltonnews.co.uk/sport/16337173.kevin-davies-to-bid-farewell-to-bolton-with-career-auction/?ref=mrb&lp=1
After nearly 14 years in the town Super Kev, his wife Emma and children are packing up to move to Dorset.
The family have been hugely active in the community, even setting up a charity - KiDs of Bolton - in 2010 which raised hundreds of thousands of pounds to help local sporting clubs and athletes to fund equipment.
Davies made 820 career appearances, almost half of which were made in a Wanderers shirt. But three years after his retirement from playing he said the time felt right for a change in scenery.
“It’s just a lifestyle change,” Davies told The Bolton News. “I haven’t got anything fixed up down there - I’m effectively going in cold. But I’m 41 now, I don’t think I’ll just be sitting around drinking pina coladas in the park. I’ll find something to do.
“We’ve been down there a few times now and it felt right. The kids are coming up to their GCSEs and had they been against it we wouldn’t have considered it but they seem to be on board, so we’re going for it.
“It’s a bit of a leap of faith to be honest but we’ve had it in the back of our minds for a while now and the time seemed right to make the change and move on.
“We’ve made a lot of happy memories here in Bolton, both at work and making loads of good friends around the town. We’ll miss it.”
Before he leaves, however, Davies has unpacked a career’s worth of footballing memories and is now auctioning off items for fans to buy online.
Memorabilia from all his clubs - including Preston, Southampton and Blackburn Rovers, along with some items from his international duties with England are available until Sunday, starting from just £5.
Among the diverse collection of items is a massage chair - complete with a story on how he bought it whilst hungover at Harrods, an official BWFC blazer worn in the UEFA Cup game against Bayern Munich, Amir Khan’s signed boxing gloves and a Bolton shirt signed by the late, great Nat Lofthouse.
In total, 100 lots have now been added, which gave Davies ample time to stroll down memory lane.
“It has been nice to go through everything and reflect on them,” he said. “I’m not someone who attaches too much to things. I don’t have a trophy cabinet and all my awards from Bolton have been up in the loft. I considered putting them on, but decided against it in the end. Maybe that is better off being kept for the children, because I kept stuff from when may dad used to play football.
“In my office I’ve got my England shirt hanging up and that’s about it. But there are things we have kept, like when my parents were around they kept a scrapbook of my time at Chesterfield, and my old YTS tracksuit. I’ve got a pair of shorts I can probably fit one leg in now.
“There are a lot of memories in there but I think it’s better to pass it on to the supporters of the clubs I have been at. I’m sure there’s stuff there people can get pleasure from, rather than it be stuffed up in a loft.”
Many of the big vinyl photos on offer were once hung on the walls of the stadium and Euxton but were too large to hang in the Davies household.
“There are some great pictures and they are the ones you stop and look at the players you’ve played alongside and the expressions on the faces and think ‘they were good times’. There’s one of the European games in there which made me stop and think about the success we’d had at Bolton.
“But some of them are quite large and I think they’d be better hung in offices or somewhere with a bit more space.
“I had a room full of boots as well, which brought back memories from the various games I have played but realistically I am not going to find a use for them again, so why not have someone else enjoy them?”
Davies says he will sign any of the items won, if required, and is looking to organise an afternoon or evening at the Macron Stadium in the near future to allows bidders to collect their prize in person.
The auction can be found online at www.32auctions.com/SKD and will be open until Sunday at 2pm.
http://www.theboltonnews.co.uk/sport/16337173.kevin-davies-to-bid-farewell-to-bolton-with-career-auction/?ref=mrb&lp=1
