Ted to be given the Sir Alf treatment

8:23am Tuesday 29th May 2007

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THE man who sculpted statues of Ipswich legends Sir Alf Ramsey and Sir Bobby Robson has been commissioned to produce the second Ted Bates statue at St Mary's.

Sean Hedges-Quinn has spent the last few weeks collecting vast amounts of pictures of Saints legend Bates and speaking to members of his family and Saints officials.

Hedges-Quinn has been chosen by Leon Crouch, acting chairman of Saints' football board and the chairman of the Ted Bates Trust.

The sculptor's contract will be between himself and Crouch, with the chairman funding the replacement statue himself.

The original statue, costing over £100,000 and created by Warsash artist Ian Brennan, was taken down within a week of being unveiled outside St Mary's in mid-March following widespread criticism.

Hedges-Quinn, who also designed the acclaimed statue of Bob Stokoe on display outside Sunderland's ground, will take around nine months to a year to complete his work.

Crouch told the Daily Echo last night: "This is great news for Southampton Football Club.

See today's Daily Echo for full story.