Bowles was the maverick of the maverick…he could drink as well as he could dribble

STAN BOWLES was the maverick of the maverick.

In an era of the football dandy that began when George Best became the ‘fifth Beatle’, Bowles epitomized a player who wanted to make the most of every moment.

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Rodney Marsh, Alan Hudson, Tony Currie and Frank Worthington are cut from the same cloth.

But Bowles’ material was superior, deeper. A player who could drink as well as dribble.

Who could score just as well on the field as off it. And who could never resist a punt.

That was the case even before he inherited Marsh’s number 10 shirt at Loftus Road.

His Crewe boss Ernie Tagg came up with one of the best jokes: “If Stan could pass a betting shop like he can pass a football, he’d be a rich man.”

Now, after a long battle with DementiaBowles has died aged 75, leaving behind memories that still stir blood at QPR, half a century after he did his work with Gerry Francis, Don Givens and Dave Thomas.

Perhaps never quite looking like it fit, the blue and white shirt with the hoops billowed out as he made his way across the rice fields of the 1970s.

But Bowles loved every minute of it.

The fame. The fun. The attention. The drinks.

And especially the girls.

There was no doubt that he could play.

After making fewer than 20 appearances in three seasons at Manchester City, it took spells at Bury, Crewe and Carlisle before he really got the stage he deserved.

Terry Venables, a kindred spirit who died in November, once admitted: “He is one of the best players I have ever known.”

The Rangers fans who saw Bowles come so close to the title in 1975-76 – galvanized by Liverpool’s death – will agree.

Few modern stars would conduct a singalong from their own fans after scoring. Or throwing a bucket of water over the fans who gave him a stick.

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He once showed up just 12 minutes before the start of a race to tell his boss, “You wouldn’t believe it – that damn horse got beat in a photo finish.”

He then scored within 120 seconds of kick-off.

And then Sunderland the FA Cup they won by beating Leeds in the 1973 final on the Roker Park touchline. He dribbled from the other flank before sending it flying through the air.

Bowles at one point secured sponsorship deals with two different shoe companies for the SAME match – and wore a product from each manufacturer.

Worthington once said, “Stan has spent all his money money on gambledrinks birds.”

Which led to the inevitable response: “At least I didn’t waste it!”
That inability to follow rules also hurt him.

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Bowles only played five games in England and was simply not the type of player that Alf Ramsey, Don Revie or even Joe Mercer would ever trust.

Angry at being taken off by Mercer just 55 minutes into a win over Northern Ireland, he left the squad before the next one match against Scotland – and was spotted at White City greyhound track.

There was no self-pity even in retirement.

Bowles wondered if he was a creature of his own urges, insisting, “If I wanted to, I could stop myself. I don’t need to be told.”

It was a life fully lived both on and off the field. If it is not always lived well.