text: Sir Alex Ferguson, the quiet years. No singular drive, no all-consuming discipline that keeps him on the go from pre-dawn ‘til the streetlights are burning bright. As this most honoured of sporting knights puts it himself: ‘I don’t have obsessions now.’ There’s certainly nothing that comes close to football for the famous Fergie, who has instead chosen to spend his retirement devoting himself to any number of causes; at last count, he was associated with a good dozen charities or foundations. And it will surprise no-one to learn that, while doing his bit for UNICEF, Barnardo’s et al, a little of the old firebrand spirit still burns brightly. If you want to build a statue to a Govan radical who led a rent strike and changed more than just her own wee corner of the world, Sir Alex is the man you call. Sir Alex Ferguson watches on from the stands during Manchester United's clash with Chelsea on April 18 . Ferguson, in Glasgow on Thursday to make a £5,000 donation to the Remember Mary Barbour Fund, actually physically writing out a cheque towards a permanent memorial, revealed that his life hasn’t so much slowed down as merely changed gear since he stepped down as Manchester United manager in the summer of 2013. The 73-year-old, who had lived and breathed football since making his senior debut at the age of just 16, was famous not just for the trophies won – his haul of 49 assorted cups and prizes making him easily Britain’s most successful ever manager – but the hours put in. Raised to believe that hard work was as necessary as breathing, Ferguson’s ability to push players hard was based at least in part on the example he set himself. That work ethic, simply part of his upbringing in Govan, isn’t something he’s let slide just because he no longer has one demanding day job. ‘What I’m doing is making sure I remain active,’ said Ferguson, looking trim and at ease. ‘That’s important when you retire, so I’ve got many things on my plate. ‘It’s funny, though. It’s a different kind of work. Whereas at United I was in at quarter to seven every morning, and be there to tea time every day, that was one constant thing all your life – I was doing one thing. Ferguson celebrates United's Premier League title victory in May 2013 with Rio Ferdinand . ‘Now I’m doing different things, which is maybe even more exhausting! There is no one thing, nothing like that. I don’t have obsessions now. I don’t get up at six o’clock in the morning, that’s for sure. I have a long lie now and again.’ Football is no longer the dominant factor in his life, with even questions on the game receiving short shrift, although – and this wasn’t always the case back in his managerial days - he was very polite in his refusal, answering the one out-of-bounds query by saying: Listen, Aberdeen are doing fantastic. They’ ve got a great manager and I love that club. But I’m here to talk about Mary Barbour. I don’t blame you for asking …’ Wherever Ferguson goes, he takes his native burgh with him, freely attributing a great deal of his sporting success to the lessons he learned either at home, at Harmony Row Boys Club or Govan High. ‘Your upbringing is important,’ he said yesterday, adding: ‘I think it’s the foundation of your life. I was fortunate enough to have good parents who did the best they could possibly do for me. ‘There are many people who have said I came from a poor background. I don’t think people brought up in my time thought they were poor. Ferguson and then Everton boss David Moyes shout instructions from the sideline at Old Trafford in May 2013 . ‘Talking about the role of the housewife and mother, they made sure the food was always on the table. That was the case with me. ‘You were always dressed the best way you could possibly be – and you were taught to be the best you can be. ‘That came not just from the parents but from teachers at school. That was their role. I don’t think necessarily education is about learning lessons in school. It’s about inspiring you. And I was inspired by many people.’ Ferguson wasn’t taught about Mary Barbour at school, admitting that he’d only come across her tale when looking through a book of historical Glasgow photographs complied by the great Harry Benson. Ferguson's haul of 49 assorted cups and prizes making him easily Britain’s most successful ever manager . Barbour famously led rent strikes in Glasgow at the height of the First World War, forcing a change in the law with the introduction of the Rent Restrictions Act. A consistent campaigner throughout her life, she went on to become one of the city’s first female councillors, the first female Bailie and female magistrate. The fund-raising campaign is aimed at building a statue of Barbour, to be erected on Govan Cross, Ferguson explaining his involvement by saying: ‘There was a connection with Govan, which is what stirred the real interest in me. ‘There is that great photo of all the housewives in Govan standing outside the close; that rent men was never getting in that close. That registers deeply with me. I’ve looked at that photograph many, many times. That is where my interest comes from – and it’s a great cause.’ For further information about the campaign please go to: RememberMaryBarbour.com . To donate go to www.justgiving.com/r-m-b-a, alternatively send a text to 70070 with the message RMBA15 £ then add the amount you wish to donate: £1, £5 or £10.
target: Sir Alex Ferguson has lived and breathed football since making his senior debut at the age of just 16 .
  Ferguson's haul of 49 assorted cups and prizes making him easily Britain’s most successful ever manager .
  Football is no longer the dominant factor in Ferguson's life .
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