[5] He initially joined the War Reserve police force, spending his time on guard duty at the Shell-Mex oil depot at Hamble or the Pirelli-General cable works at Woolston.

[5] On 8 June 1940, Bates married Mary Smith at St. James's Church in Shirley, and that evening watched Saints play Charlton Athletic at The Dell.

[7] Shortly afterwards the Bates' home was bombed and they moved to West Wellow, where Mary found work with the NAAFI.

[10] After some declining performances on the pitch, Bates made his last first-team appearance on 20 December 1952 at home to West Ham United.

[12] Under his management, the team maintained their First Division status, developing young players such as Mick Channon and Ron Davies, and qualifying for European football in 1969 and 1971.

[citation needed] Bates then joined the Saints' board, where he would serve as a director for another 20 years before being appointed the club's president.

[18] The statue was widely criticised by supporters just hours after its uncovering, for having "tiny" arms and bearing a closer likeness to former Portsmouth chairman Milan Mandarić than Bates,[19] so the club pledged to organise a replacement.