‘Napoleon' Rallies His Troops With Steely Grip

‘Napoleon’ Rallies His Troops With Steely Grip

- Chris Dunlavy

IN the summer of 1989, a relegation play-off was the last place Jos Luhukay wanted to be. Little did he realise it would save his life.

Called up to represent Kleurrijk Elftal - a selection of Dutch players from the former colonies – the new Sheffield Wednesday boss was due to play a three-team tournament in Surinam.

But. with his club side VVV Venlo vying to stay in the Eredivisie, Luhukay reluctantly gave up his ticket. Other players to duck out included Ruud Gullit and Frank Rijkaard.

Sadly, nobody would play in Paramaribo. On June 7, the plane carrying Kleurrijk Elftal crash-landed on a wooded hillside a mile from Zanderij airport. Of the 178 people on board, only 11 survived.

“It was pure luck and coincidence I was not on the plane,” Luhukay told Bild in 2010. “I lost a lot of colleagues. A terrible experience. It took me a long time to process and organize everything in my mind. It’s a stroke of fate you will not forget again.”

Years later, Luhukay would cheat death again when a truck crushed his car into a motorway barrier. It was a mangled wreck, but Luhukay and Ingrid, his wife of 35 years, were unharmed.