11 August 2023 , 08:00
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Millwall fans and staff will come together on Saturday to pay tribute to one of their own in John Berylson.
The Lions' beloved late owner and chairman tragically passed away aged 70 on July 4 following a road accident in his native Massachusetts.
News of Berylson's passing rocked the club to its very core; the bond between Berylson and the Lions was far stronger than the average relationship between club and owner. In an era where a majority of teams have found themselves at the behest of chancers and charlatans, Berylson was everything a football club owner should be and more.
That point is hammered home by Millwall chief executive Steve Kavanagh, who was the last person to speak to Berylson before his tragic accident.
"John set himself apart; he was unique," Kavanagh told Mirror Football in the build-up to Saturday's tribute to Berylson, which will take place before the match against Bristol City.
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"He adored the fans and had a real phenomenal understanding with them. He was a man of the people and I think the fans appreciated that. He made himself one of them. He then understood the mentality of the club and what we were, so that's a great foundation to build on for any club owner."
Perhaps that's what endeared Berylson to so many Millwall supporters. As a lifelong fan, I know firsthand just how unique this football club is. Millwall isn't a gimmick; it's real and it's raw. Very few people outside of the crux of hardcore fans who inhabit the Den on a weekly basis can comprehend just exactly what Millwall Football Club actually is. But Berylson, against the odds, not only understood that aspect of the club, he embraced it.
"He didn't get involved in day-to-day details, but he was heavily involved in wanting to know what was happening. He didn't want us to be Americanised; he was very much about learning football, understanding the club and the culture and connecting with the fans.
"He started in that way and it allowed him to get it right. I was fortunate enough to inherit a chairman who had run the club that way, but that had been done over the previous 10 years."
Would many, if anyone, have predicted that a New-York-born businessman with no obvious interest in football would end up as not only one of them, but as one of Millwall's most important historical figures back in 2006? Probably not.
The club were riddled with financial issues and flirting with oblivion when Chestnut Hill Ventures, led by Berylson, arrived on the scene. The Lions have since grown into a stable Championship club under his astute stewardship, but they were hardly an attractive proposition back then.
The initial perception was that Berylson perhaps had one eye on the proposed regeneration of Bermondsey. Like so many before him, though, Berylson was bitten by the 'Millwall bug' and even managed to transcend his role as the figurehead of the club over the years.
Chief executive Steve Kavanagh has paid tribute to Berylson (Tgsphoto/REX/Shutterstock)A regular feature of his many trips to the Den involved a pre-match walk around the ground where he would greet countless fans. In some ways, Berylson walking around the perimeter of the pitch prior to last season's finale against Blackburn - his final match - was scripted perfectly, as Kavanagh puts it.
"The Blackburn game...he was going out to the crowd and saying thank you but they were saying thank you to him. You couldn't have scripted that better.
"He was adored," adds the Lions CEO, who quips that it would take Berylson "ages to go 100 yards" because of fans approaching. "Most just wanted to shake his hand and say thank you."
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On Saturday, albeit in tragic circumstances, around 18,000 Millwall fans will get the opportunity to do just that. Fittingly, that will be witnessed by Berylson's immediate family, including his son James - the club's new chairman - and his wife, Amy.
Kavanagh explains: "I want it to be a celebration; I don't think any of us want to be sad. I'm not pretending there won't be a few tears, because I'm sure there probably won't be a dry eye, but at the same time it should be a celebration.
"We're celebrating John's Millwall life, which is what Saturday is really all about. The family who can be here are here. They're coming to celebrate and to remember what John was at Millwall."
Berylson would always greet Millwall fans both inside and outside the ground whenever he attended matches at the Den (Action Foto Sport/NurPhoto)The club have prepared a memorial book which fans will be able to purchase and will be sharing a tribute video on the big screen ahead of Saturday's match against Bristol City. An award will also be presented to the Berylson family in honour of John by the CEO of the EFL, Trevor Birch.
"We could do much, much more. It's about giving fans the chance to show the family what John meant to them as well. Middlesbrough showed me, but I know exactly what this place will be and what it'll be like. In a sad way I'm really looking forward to it."
The Berylson family sent out personalised notes of thanks this week to some fans who offered their condolences. Their presence at the weekend will be the catalyst for a deeply emotional afternoon.
Kavanagh continued: "John loved Millwall - that's why he owned the club. That love is infectious and it rubbed off on his family, so they were as concerned about me and the club as they were about themselves when this was all unfolding. Those aspects made life so much easier."
It was confirmed last month that James would be fulfilling his father's wishes by taking on the chairman role, and he is already hard at work behind the scenes with Kavanagh.
"We try to talk everyday. James has been on the board since 2010 as a director; I know James and the family behind him, so those aspects made this smooth. Whilst he's been on the board, he'll be the first to admit that he's got a hell of a lot to pick up and learn. He's different from his dad; he's got a deeper understanding of certain aspects like social media and some of the modern ways that life is run.
"He is different but we're trying to give him a real deep-dive into the business. Non-executive directors don't necessarily get into the real nuts and bolts, but John and I spoke [a lot] and he'd understood that over 17 years. We're trying to quickly get into [James] that deep knowledge so he can be comfortable in dealing outwardly, because it will take time.
James Berylson will follow in the footsteps of his late father as Millwall chairman (@estoesmillwall/Twitter)"He's a very intelligent individual - Harvard business school trained, etcetera - so he's picking things up very, very quickly. I'm probably doing more of the talking now so that he can understand all the different aspects and moving parts of what a football club is, because it's quite complex. We're doing what we can to make sure he can follow in his dad's footsteps."
Kavanagh's role has always entailed a near impossible brief, but things have progressed in the wake of Berylson's passing; a period he admits has been "exceptionally difficult". He will be one of the few who are tasked with ensuring that Berylson is honoured and remembered at the club for generations to come courtesy of a legacy committee.
Already, figures at the club have spoken of honouring John on the pitch in the best way possible: promotion to the Premier League. But there is a determination to put in place a tribute that will last the test of time.
"We can't deal with what happens on the pitch. We all love a fairytale, but we all know they don't always happen. We have to focus on the variables that we are in control of.
"Some of [the ideas that have been put forward] sound great but actually don't deliver what you really want to deliver. What we want to do is ensure that John Berylson is enshrined forever in the memory of Millwall Football Club and that in 30 years time, he's as known as he is today. That's on our shoulders to try and do that. We will look at how we create that lasting legacy for John, because he absolutely deserves it."
Kavanagh has shouldered more than most in the weeks since the passing of Berylson. He is quick to pay tribute to his colleagues and the many fans who spoke to him in the aftermath of the tragedy after thousands flocked to the Den to pay their respects.
"I had a tear in my eye at Boro [where Millwall fans sung Berylson's name]. I'm sure the fans couldn't see me but I clapped them. It was really appreciated and I've made sure that the family have been made aware of the videos we've got. In fact, I was just talking to James and he's seen the clip [of fans singing at Middlesbrough] and it's really appreciated.
"The fans who left tributes outside really helped me. Talking really helps in these scenarios and I was out talking about John to fans in the cue. I've lost both my parents, I know the pain you go through. Everyone was grieving and mourning in their own way and you have to talk. The fans really helped; I said thank you at the fans' forum because they were a great crutch for me in terms of dealing with what was a very emotional time."
Perhaps most fittingly, though, it's one of the principles which Berylson embraced which has helped Kavanagh steer the club through choppy waters.
"John had a guiding principle which was: 'do the right thing'. That doesn't mean be soft or don't be tough, because he was a tough businessman, but it was about doing what's right. When all this happened, I just tried to do that - I tried to do the right thing. Whether I got that right or wrong, what I did felt like the right thing and the staff followed me on that."