| Throughout his illness, even in recent months when his health was so obviously failing, the Tangerines chairman/owner refused to let it stop him going about his daily business.
That was because he loved his club and, as well as the long hours he devoted to it, it also meant, when it comes to financial backing, he stands alone in United’s 100-year history.
From the moment he became the first sole owner, he gave his all and a big pot of cash to boot.
An ardent fan from almost the moment he arrived in Dundee in the 1960s, once his four-year war for control of the Tangerines ended successfully in September 2002, his devotion was without equal.
He ploughed in well over £5 million of a fortune accumulated through the success and then sale of his grocery business Morning Noon and Night.
And, on a personal level, there is little doubt the hours he spent on club business was to the detriment of his health.
Even before he became owner, he had been a significant figure at Tannadice.
Although never a board member before taking control, this passion as a fan saw him always on hand to help.
In the 1980s, he was a major influence in the club securing its first shirt sponsorship contract, the deal with local wholesalers Watson and Phillip that led to the appearance of the VG logo on the jerseys.
It was during that long takeover battle and in the six years since that Thompson rose to a position of public prominence.
With the United board having the right to veto any share transfers, for a long time his efforts appeared futile, but his dogged determination saw him finally succeed.
It was not a cheap victory and cost him a seven-figure sum, with legal fees alone running into hundreds of thousands.
That would prove to be only the tip of the iceberg — as he spent the rest of his days bankrolling his beloved team.
With successes on the park thin, managers came and went with alarming regularity during the Thompson years, but none went without first having large chunks of the chairman’s cash at their disposal.
Much of that money saw little in return, and it is a painful irony that, when better fortunes came with the arrival of present boss Craig Levein, it was at a time when the purse strings had been tightened.
Even more sadly for Thompson, much of the optimism of the past 14 months or so must have been tempered by the knowledge that his illness was now terminal and he was unlikely to live to see the best of the team being put together by his new manager. |
