PLANS to build a statue in honour of Saints legend Ted Bates have taken a big leap forward following a hugely successful fund raising dinner at St Mary's on Sunday.

Organised by the Ted Bates Trust, the charity auction alone raised some £14,761 towards the estimated cost of £90,000, with the club having pledged to match whatever money is raised by fans.

Fair Oak Saints Supporters Club member Dave Ford, who organised the dinner along with Janet Formby, said the event raised in the region of £20,000.

Fans have now raised about £30,000 - well on the way towards their target of £50,000, with chairman Rupert Lowe matching whatever the supporters raise.

Many Saints greats past and present were in attendance, as well as Bates's daughters Jo Bates and Jackie Jarvis.

Guest speakers were former winger John Sydenham, who had travelled from Australia especially for the big event, as well as FA Cup winner Peter Osgood.

Sydenham donated the ball given to Saints striker Derek Reeves back in the early 1960s for scoring four goals in an FA Cup tie at Manchester City. It raised around £600.

Other former Saints included Cliff Huxford, Bill Ellerington, Jim Steele, Nick Holmes, Hughie Fisher, Tony Godfrey, John Christie and Tommy Traynor, while the club were represented by Keith Wiseman and John Mortimore.

Club captain Jason Dodd and midfielder David Prutton were also present.

Sydenham recalled watching Saints as an eight-year-old and a career spent under the management of Bates. "When he became manager, the club never looked back," he said. "We can see the fantastic stadium we have now, but none of it would have happened without the input of Ted Bates."

Osgood added: "He was a fantastic man - we called him 'Mr Loyalty'. To spend 18 years as manager and take the cub from the Third Division South to European football is just awesome. He was a special, special man."

Bates died in November 2003 at the age of 85 after serving the club for an incredible 66 years as player, manager and president.

Ford added: "Myself and Janet would like to thank everyone who helped make the event such a great success.

"It might have been a mistake from a corporate point of view to hold the event on a Bank Holiday weekend, but that allowed lots of fans to attend and it make for a cracking atmosphere.

"Obviously that was helped by the result the day before!

"I'd like to thank Doddsy and Prutts - they spent a lot of time posing for photos and signing autographs.

"Both of Ted's daughters told me they fully backed the statue idea - they said it was a magnificent gesture by the fans."