Phonecalls, pep talks and coffees in the park: An ode to Lee Bullen - Sheffield Wednesday legend and great human being

Since it was announced he would be leaving to start his managerial career at Ayr United, social media has been flooded in recent days with stories of how Lee Bullen the human being has helped individuals connected to the club.

The Star spoke to just three people whose lives have been touched by Lee Bullen.

Sid Gavrielides – Owls supporter

Thrown into the depths of depression as so any were during the first coronavirus lockdown last year, London-based Wednesday fan Sid Gavrielides decided to find solace in reaching out to the Sheffield Wednesday community on social media.

Support came back in droves, from fellow Wednesdayites offering messages of support and solidarity.

But one meeting in particular, in Sid’s own words, helped save his life.

Days before Wednesday were scheduled for a Championship away day at Brentford, Sid's phone buzzed in his pocket. Remarkably, he had received a message from Lee Bullen, the assistant manager of the club he loves.

A few days later the pair were drinking coffee together in a London park.

“He encouraged me to step up,” Sid remembered. “Since that meeting with Bully I’ve just gone up and up and up. His talk was outstanding and it was something he didn’t need to do.

“He organised it all himself, he saw what I was going through and he searched through Facebook to find me and organise a little chat with me.

“Entirely off his own back, he suggested we meet up and have a coffee. It was amazing.

“It was like a team talk, one to one. The guy is an absolute legend, football or not. We sat for about 45 minutes.

“I went home with a smile on my face and I hadn’t had that in weeks. I’m got all the time in the world for that guy. He’s a legend.

“I feel really sad he’s going. But it’s a great opportunity for him and I think we all wish him the very best.”

Chris Turner – Bully’s former manager

Bullen’s arrival at Sheffield Wednesday took some by surprise. A 34-year-old relative unknown who had played much of his career in far-flung places such as Hong Kong and Greece, from the outside, it wasn’t perhaps the promotion-securing signing Owls fans had envisaged.

It proved to be a masterstroke; all things considered, one of the greatest free transfers in the history of the club.

And from the very first meeting between Bullen and Chris Turner, the manager who brought him to S6, it was obvious they’d got a good’un.

Chris takes up the story: “We’d been monitoring Lee up in Scotland, along with a number of other players, for a little while. It was Peter Eustace that recommended him to us and I’s been up to see him play.

“When he was coming down to sign for us, the plan was to offer him a two-year deal. I’d been told he was 29 years old, going on 30.

“On the day we were all sorted to sign him I found out he was 34. Well I thought ‘bloody hell, I can’t offer him a two-year deal’.

“I had to be totally honest with him, that I thought he was a lot younger. We’d discussed a two-year deal and I had to tell him we’d have to change it to a one-year, but that if he did well we’d sort something out for the following season.

“He’s travelling down with his family and everything, uprooting. I was fully expecting him to say no.

“He said ‘not a problem, Chris. I’ll prove myself’.

“Nine times out of 10 footballers would give a different answer. Straight away that told me what sort of person he was and it ended up being one hell of a move for the club.It showed the quality of the man.

“The first game was at home to Colchester and we got beat 2-0. Bully said ‘Gaffer, I’ve played at Ibrox, I’ve played at Parkhead. But at five to three when we were stood there waiting for the kick-off and the crowd were signing, I’ve never felt like that before in my career.’

“I’ll never forget that. He’s a great lad, a great human being.”

Cess Nyoni – Bully’s former youth team captain

A talented teenager, former Sheffield Wednesday starlet Cecil Nyoni was Bullen’s captain during his first spell as academy boss at Middlewood Road.

Life hasn’t been easy for Nyoni, who since leaving Wednesday in 2012 fell into the depths of drug addiction and alcoholism before turning his life around in recent years.

He left under a cloud to join Nottingham Forest, where registration issues prevented the move. As his issues began to spiral, he took a call one morning from Lee Bullen.

“He reached out,” Cess remembers. “We had a great relationship and he’d been looking after me for a long time. I was his captain and he was looking out for me even when I was playing up at the club. He didn’t need to do that.

“When he found out things had gone wrong with Nottingham Forest he got in touch to tell me he had a mate who was looking for a centre-back. It was over in Ireland, in Limerick.

“He sorted everything out, he even got me a flat sorted in the area. He saved my life, I would’ve been so much worse if he hadn’t reached out to me.

“It speaks volumes about what type of guy he is. I speak to a lot of guys who leave football clubs and so many get released and fall into depression and other things.

“Bully didn’t need to take the time to keep an eye out for me. He didn’t need to do that, there was no benefit for him personally. I’d left the club. He’s an amazing person.”