"People only look at John the football player. He's so far removed from that"
JOHN Hughes sits at dinner with his wife. Rather than consult the waiter, or his better half, about what is good on to eat, he instead picks up the phone to someone who many believe he should already be married to.
The bond struck up by Hughes and his great friend Brian Rice is such that interruptions of family occasions are expected. And there is only ever one thing on the menu.
"I don’t think John and I ever speak about anything other than football," says Rice. "Every time we meet up there’s no ‘How’s your wife, how’s your family’. It’s all about football with John."
Do not take that as a slight on the man who has made not just his career but his life, fighting for what he believes is right. Everything that the artist-commonly-known-as-Yogi throws himself into, be it football, golf or cycling, is done with nothing less than all of his heart.
"If you want to be good at anything you have got to put your heart and soul into it. If he sets his mind to something, such as building the academy at Falkirk, then he gives it 100 per cent. 99.99 per cent is not good enough for John," says Rice.
Falkirk is where the roots of a brilliant friendship reached soil. Rice arrived in 1991 when Hughes was already a well-ingrained feature of the Bairns’ setup. When Hughes earned his big break, joining Celtic in 1995, their trajectories veered off in opposing directions, with Rice heading off to Dunfermline, Clyde and Morton as his playing career drew to a close.
However, a reunion was to be on the cards eight years down the line. Hughes and Owen Coyle pitched up at Falkirk and when Coyle was lured by his old club Dundee United, Rice was promoted to assistant manager alongside Hughes.
Peter Houston and co will still be reaping the benefits of the work they did together at The Falkirk Stadium to this day.
"He built that club. It was on its knees and he pressed for the academy, seeing that was the future for a provincial club. He started from scratch and built it up," said Rice.
"It was 24/7, non-stop working with him. It was trying and difficult but the rewards are there for everyone to see."
Demands of excellence were ever-present for Hughes, on and off the park. One moment stands out to 51-year-old Rice when both he and the effervescent Hughes knew the time was right to call time on his playing days.
"He was playing for Falkirk when he was 40 and I subbed him off in one game with five minutes to go," said Rice. "He was raging. He came off and bumped into me as he went past and I was thinking ‘what have I done?’
"He came back and whispered in my ear ‘Why did you take me off?’ and I said to him ‘I think it’s finished’. To my surprise he turned round and said ‘Aye, I think you’re right’.
"The fact that he was still playing Premier League football at 40 tells you everything about him. We would get home from training at about seven in the evening and I’d get eight, 10, 12 calls before I went to bed from John to talk about football."
From the empire he had built at Falkirk, the sour, grating experience of Hughes’ time at Hibernian was like taking a sledgehammer to his very foundations. This was a boy born in Leith. His parents and brother are buried in the cemetery behind the Famous Five Stand at Easter Road. He was Hibernian Football Club.
To this day Rice, a former Nottingham Forest midfielder, still brands the decision to sack Hughes "ridiculous". He had guided Hibs to fourth, in a league that contained Celtic and Rangers, and into Europe. What happened to the club after he left?
"Being mistreated like that spurs him on and he uses any negative situation. That’s what happened at Hibs and it inspired him. That’s the one word I’d use for John – inspire," said Rice.
The big question when encountering this giant of a man, perhaps not in stature but in personality is who is the real Yogi? What is there behind that irreverant humour, merciless ribbing and Cheshire-cat grin that drives John Hughes towards being the best? Rice believes many a chairmen have been left floundering by choosing the wrong answer.
"The jovial and joking side is a promise he made to enjoy his work every day. The other side of John Hughes is so far removed from that — the thoughtful, thinking side that goes into being what he is," said Rice.
"I think people judge John as the football player — the big centre-half who would tackle through a brick wall for you. They don’t judge him on taking three teams into Europe and keeping Falkirk in the Premier League for five seasons. People only look at the football player and he’s so far removed from that.
"I’m sure there are a few chairmen who wish they had taken a chance on him. They probably still look at him as the football player."
The kind-hearted gestures the 50-year-old displays are also known only to a few. During the duo’s time at Falkirk, triallists would be brought into Scotland and put up at Hughes’ residence. Rail tickets and hotel bills would come out of the manager’s own pocket. Rice has personal cause to thank Hughes, given it was Yogi who co-ordinated fundraising efforts when Rice found himself in financial trouble due to gambling debts in Qatar, where he currently coaches.
"He helped me on a personal level without me even asking him. That’s the sort of guy he is and I think he’d be embarrassed by seeing his name with that. But it’s a natural thing for friends to do," said Rice.
"Without doubt he’s one of the best friends I’ve got. We still speak to each other two or three times a week. I can’t speak highly enough of him."
Rice is one of the privileged few. During the furore over Josh Meekings’ suspension, the Al Khor head coach was one of a small group to speak to Hughes. The rest of the time? Phone off. Time off. Head away from the game.
It is something the Caley Jags’ boss has a proclivity for doing.
He and Rice could spend days on the golf course without reading a digitial communication. Expect Rice to be a lucky recipient of a call on Scottish Cup final day.
Split loyalties ran through Rice’s mind while watching the semi-finals. The club he loves and the friend he treasures — both had to be in the final.
The final outcome, however, is not in doubt. "There’s only one person I want to see lifting that trophy and if anyone deserves success, it’s him. I’m desperate for him to win," said Rice.
