The players, supporters and of Logica FC, not to mention those owning a season ticket in Row Z of the Deva Stadium, received some grave news just before Christmas. Hushed whispers had begun circulating after Logica’s league match against Welham at the end of November, intimating that might have played his last game for the club. Sadly, these rumours were finally confirmed by the player’s agent and brother, , two weeks later, and the team was left to face the future without one of its defensive stalwarts. , it transpired, had secured a big money transfer to Northern giants Chester City for an undisclosed fee.

It was typical of the player that his final appearance in a long and distinguished Logica career was accompanied by minimal fuss. If there is a single phrase that sums up succinctly the style and attitude of this quality defender, then it is "no-nonsense". Accordingly there were no pre-match presentations, no human mosaics shouting their gratitude from the packed terraces of the Stade, and no excruciatingly sycophantic post-match TV interviews. Instead, quietly mentioned to a couple of colleagues in the dressing room that this was to be his last game, whilst wishing them good luck for the rest of the season. And with that, he was gone.

has proved himself a talented, committed and, of course, no-nonsense defender during his 8 seasons with the club. Boasting the unusual distinction of belonging to one of just two sibling pairs ever to work for Logica (Martin and being the other), it was older brother Jeff who bullied him into helping out briefly when the team was in crisis at the start of the 1998-99 season.

An exodus of big name stars had resulted in Logica’s first ever relegation the previous season, and with the rearguard more porous than a set of blotting paper colanders racked with self-remorse, an injection of defensive steel was desperately needed. Having initially offered to help out in the short term, it was again typical of the lad’s commitment that he stuck around for 8 more matches. And when, in spite of presence, Logica romped home to a second consecutive demotion, he was back for more the following season.

Slowly, and with a little help from , he helped put Logica’s defence back on to a more stable footing, and the club’s fortune’s began to improve as a result. Hatton Minor proved himself dominant in the air and fearless in the tackle, and the sight of an opponent being unceremoniously but fairly lumped into an advertising hoarding became a regular pleasure for the Stade faithful. The only regret for was that similar scenes of bloody carnage were regularly repeated at Thursday night training.

But was able to claim a small slice of immortality when the Oxford English Dictionary included 'The Hatton Harvester' in its 2001 Edition as a definitive term for no-nonsense opponent-lumping. Further recognition followed in the 2005 OED, which was forced to explain that an 'Atomic Hatton' was a variant that also took out everything within a 20 yard radius.

Despite such literary tributes, accusations of elaborate noncery could never be levelled at the Warrington warrior, who knew his place as a defender. With the ball invariably reclaimed, there were no dangerous dribbles or ambitious 60-yard raking cross-field passes. Like the afore-mentioned opposing forwards, the ball was simply lumped out of harm's way. Rumours that the ruefully presented his departing defender with a four-figure bill for unretrievable footballs remain unconfirmed.

This admirably pragmatic approach to his defensive duties perhaps does not do justice to undoubted talent. For, on some rare occasions, he would permit the fans at the Stade a tantalising glimpse of a more dexterous side to his game, such as when he scored his goal. A closely fought match against a powerful Prince of Wales side was finely balanced when, from nowhere, popped up in the box to elegantly sweep home what would prove to be the winning goal. And few will forget the sight of the dancing down the wing in Matthewsesque style in the crunch relegation six-pointer against Everyman a couple of seasons ago.

Whilst was never guilty of dozing on duty, there was one infamous occasion when the defender's off-field snoozing nearly had catastrophic results for the club. It was April 2000, and Logica faced a do-or-die final league game against South West Six, with victory the only way of avoiding a third consecutive relegation. Committed as ever, the arrived early doors in ample time to prepare for this vital battle - so ample, in fact, that nobody else had yet turned up, including the groundsman. Deciding to settle down in his car for some pre-match R&R, the hard-as-nails defender duly lapsed into a characteristically no-nonsense slumber.

With just a few minutes left to kick-off, in his last game at the helm was perplexed at the uncharacteristic no-show from one of his most reliable charges, as just 10 Logicians took to the field seemingly resigned to their fate. Perhaps it was the raucous noise emanating from the away section of a packed Don-o-Drome, but miraculously woke up just as the game was kicking off. His hurried entrance minutes later inspired his colleagues, who went on to record a famous 3-0 victory that kept them in Division Two.

went on to play just a handful short of 100 domestic games for Logica FC over eight years, as well as being honoured with international selection for the 1999 and 2000 World Cups. Despite increasing domestic demands on his time with the addition of two other Minors to the herd, he has continued to rank highly in the appearance charts, his farewell against Welham being his seventh start in 8 games this season. As ever, it was quality as well as quantity, as the again found himself an almost constant nominee in the MoM Polls.

It was also typical that the defender should crown his final appearance in a Logica shirt with an exemplary execution of the Hatton Harvester, the somewhat flashy Welham striker duly being upended in classic no-nonsense fashion after losing control of the ball. Unfortunately the referee was one of these modernist pinko types, and harshly awarded a spot-kick for what was little more than the traditional clatter of defender into attacker (although justice was seen to be done when the penno was missed).

But with that, the was quietly on his way. We can only wish him and his family every success and happiness after their move north, whilst sparing a thought for those unfortunate local Deeside strikers who don't know what is about to hit them. will be badly missed by all at Logica Football Club, and we can only hope that circumstances arise in the future that enable him to grace the red and black jersey once more, either on a Sunday morning or in the World Cup.