A TRIBUTE to someone’s life is normally written after they have passed on.

But Bryony Hill has decided to share her memories of the man she loves with him very much still alive.

Her husband, legendary football pundit Jimmy Hill, has succumbed to the ravages of Alzheimer’s disease. And the 87-year-old has spent the past three and a half years in a care home in Sussex.

Mrs Hill said: “It has a devastating effect on your life. I lost the old Jimmy a long time ago. He’s still Jimmy but in a different form with different needs. He’s still my Jimmy.”

Mrs Hill, herself born in Bolney, spoke to The Argus from the Hurstpierpoint home the couple moved to 30 years ago.

Even away from London, Jimmy was unable to shake off football and would sometimes watch non-league sides Burgess Hill or Lewes play locally.

She said: “Football dominated his life from boyhood. Once he was amongst his friends inevitably there would be something going on with football.

“He knew I wasn’t as interested in sport so it didn’t take over our lives altogether.

“He was fighting a losing cause in converting me to football as a spectator. He knew that and accepted it.”

Jimmy had trials with Reading before he joined Brentford and then Fulham.

But his post-playing career made as much of a mark on the game, if not more so, than his on-pitch days.

He went on to become involved in the game at many levels, being the man who introduced three points for a win and removed the maximum wage cap for footballers – as well as the only ex-professional player to be manager, director, managing director and a chairman.

Mrs Hill said: “He was always very proud of what he had achieved in a modest sort of way.

“He was most proud of scoring five away goals for Fulham in a league match.”

But his achievements went further. At a time when footballers were paid badly he helped remove a maximum wage cap for players, little knowing how far wages would inflate in future decades.

Mrs Hill said: “He never got more than £20 a week when he played but it became big business.

“He would always be astounded at the astronomical fees and say they must be a mistake.

“He never got a penny out of the clubs he worked with and gave his time freely.”

Jimmy also commissioned the first English all-seater stadium: Coventry City’s old Highfield Road ground.

Mrs Hill said: “There were all sorts of problems with violence at the grounds then and he said it was harder to be a hooligan sitting down.”

Jimmy is also credited with introducing three points for a win in 1981.

In addition, he lifted a ban on media interviews, introduced the first electronic scoreboard in 1964, the first colour matchday programme and, for the 1970 World Cup, helped bring about the first panel of football pundits.

And his exploits also stretched to being involved with a five-a-side charity event called Goaldiggers.

One such event took place at Withdean Stadium in 1977, and was a way of funding hard-surface playing areas for children.

Mrs Hill said: “The tournaments were a really good way of raising money and having fun.”

She met Jimmy 15 years before she became his third wife when the TV personality was advertising for an assistant.

She said: “We had so many things we enjoyed doing together. Football was his life – it was part of the package. It wasn’t an issue.”

Mrs Hill’s mother lived in Sussex, and was “very much part of our lives” when they moved.

She said: “It’s a lovely county. We used to go to Brighton for fish and chips; we would make a trip there.

“Jimmy had no airs and graces – he was just a normal man and we were normal people.

“We did play golf and he was always keen to get the best out of me.

“It was in his character – he was a wonderful coach.”

Jimmy’s diagnosis with Alzheimer’s hit Mrs Hill hard.

She said: “There was a fear to begin with, a fear of the unknown. As things get worse you really do grieve. You are losing the person you love. He always had such a fresh young face and a beaming smile.”

It was as she was reflecting on the “old Jimmy” that she decided to write a book about his career.

It details not just his footballing legacy but also his life as a keen golfer, huntsman, charity fundraiser and even songwriter; Arsenal and Coventry both have Jimmy to thank for their club songs.

Mrs Hill said: “Out of the blue I was having time to reflect on the life Jimmy and I shared and it grew and grew and became a real labour of love.

“It became a celebration of our life together and a side of Jimmy perhaps people weren’t aware of.

“There was an enormous amount to call upon and I would like to think Jimmy would be proud of what I have done.

“I have never been one to sit down and I love cooking and writing. And thank goodness I have those activities. In writing the book I have been able to relive the life we have had.”

As for future plans, she said: “You can’t project anything – it’s impossible. I have no ambitions except to make sure Jimmy is safe.”

My Gentleman Jim by Bryony Hill is out now.