And it is even more of an honour, if also a sad and poignant one, that he is replacing his former friend and mentor Pat Quirke, Wolves’ former dedicated archivist and museum curator who sadly passed away in August of last year.
Peter, a Wolves devotee who carries out his museum duties in addition to his ‘day job’ working in a building society, will join the committee currently comprising chairman and Wolves favourite John Richards, Wolves Former Players’ Association manager Richard Green, past and present Express & Star personnel Steve Gordos, David Instone and Nick Elwell, and former Wolves head of media Paul Berry.
The committee meets to decide which Wolves legends should join the Hall of Fame with the ambition of selecting players or staff spanning the club’s illustrious 146-year history.
Peter, whose father and two older brothers are also keen Wolves fans, attended his first game on New Year’s Day in 1991, and cites some of his favourite memories as coming from the play-off final win in 2003, Mick McCarthy’s Championship-winning squad and then the more recent spell under Nuno Espirito Santo, which included not just promotion to the Premier League but the journeys to the FA Cup semi-finals and Europa League quarter finals.
He will provide not only his own input but will also be able to reflect the views of other staff and volunteers from the club and museum.
“It was such a privilege and honour to receive the call from John (Richards) and be asked to join the Hall of Fame committee,” says Peter, whose uncle, Peter Redfern, was the predecessor to Keith Pearson as Wolves’ club secretary from 1982-85.
“I always see it as an honour any time I meet the former players in the museum – the likes of John and Kenny Hibbitt are such nice people and so humble, even though they are also Wolves legends.
“I really enjoy the work I do in the museum, for a Wolves fan like me it’s more of a hobby, and something I’ve been doing since halfway through the 2017/18 season.
“At that time the crowds were starting to go up and the demand for tours and museum visits was increasing, so Pat was getting bombarded.
“He needed some extra people and, thanks to Paul King who had got me involved with the team of volunteers a few years earlier, I was in the right place to put myself forward.
“Being on the committee is a massive honour and just part of what is so important for all of us in keeping Pat’s legacy going.
“I respect anybody who has ever kicked a ball for Wolves – I was always rubbish at football so could never aspire to be a professional player, so they are all heroes to me.
“But Pat is also one of my all-time Wolves legends because of how much care and enthusiasm he had for the club and for his work in the museum.
“He was such a nice man, and is actually irreplaceable, but all of us in the museum work so hard as part of an all-round team effort to take care of that legacy and all the incredible work which Pat put in.”
Since the Hall of Fame was launched back in 2009, there have been 28 individual players and the 1954 and 2003 Wolves teams inducted, but there has been a delay due to the pandemic with the last quartet of legends honoured in 2017.
The Hall of Fame now has a permanent home within the Wolves Museum, including photographs of all the inductees.
“Pat Quirke played such a pivotal role not only for the club with his work in the museum, but also by sitting on the Hall of Fame committee and proving such an invaluable source of advice and knowledge about Wolves’ history,” says Wolves FPA and Hall of Fame committee chairman John Richards.
“As Peter himself has said, Pat’s loss has left a gap which is probably irreplaceable, but we are delighted that he has agreed to step in and add his own passion, enthusiasm and knowledge about Wolves to the committee.
“Just from our conversation I can see how much of a dedicated Wolves supporter that Peter is, and we are really looking forward to him joining the committee as the club’s representative and being a part of the selection of inductees moving forward.”
The next batch of legends to be inducted had actually been decided by the committee, including Pat, almost three years ago, but was delayed by the arrival of the pandemic.
They are now set to be officially inducted at this year’s Wolves FPA Annual Dinner.
