Reiss was brought in for training at the age of eight by scout Alan Knowles," says Massey. "He had already been spotted by Tottenham Hotspur, with whom he was training. Some players want to continue their careers in coaching, and they would come down and look at the training and coaching. Steve Bould was another one,"tells Massey, labelling Bould a "wonderful man".

Following the games against City he would command the strikers role for the following four fixtures against; Northampton Town (H L1-2), Plymouth Argyle (A L0-1), Hull City (H D1-1) and at Portsmouth in a 3-2 defeat. We got together and then I thought more seriously about my time in football and the many stories that accumulate, over many, many years,” said Massey, whose grandfather Jim Massey was a professional footballer for Sheffield Wednesday in the 1890s.

Massey said: “Arsenal have always been committed to producing their own talent - and when I played briefly for the A team there were six or seven lads who played in the Double-winning side of 1971.

But the ones that do, you work so hard even from eight years of age these days and seeing them play in the first team is an unbelievable experience.” Massey served as organist of St Alban-the-Martyr, Bordesley (1953–1960), and of St Augustine's Church, Edgbaston (1960–1965), before becoming warden of the Royal School of Church Music and organist of Croydon Parish Church (1965–1968).

And Massey, who retired in 2014, details how some of today's Premier League stars benefited from the Gunners' system. Bukayo Saka - 'maturity beyond his years' Aged 21, Bukayo Saka has already made 135 Premier League appearances for Arsenal and been capped 28 times by England He asked me if I’d help him take some youngsters up to Norwich, particularly boys from the London area. He was an unbelievable young player. We saw him when he was eight years old, playing for Luton Town, and we paid compensation for him. As a schoolboy, he was exceptional between the ages of eight and 18 and we all thought we've got a fantastic young player for many years to come, competing for Arsenal in midfield." Born in Birmingham, Massey was educated at Moseley Grammar School and the University of Birmingham, where he was awarded the degree of Bachelor of Music (BMus). He also holds the diplomas of FRCO(CHM) and the Archbishop's Diploma in Church Music (ADCM).