In any other Spurs team, Steve Perryman would have been considered THE hard man. However, he was in a team that had a couple more - both of whom are coming up on this list - so he didn't really get the recognition his toughness warranted, but there is absolutely no doubt that he was a very, very tough player. Comfortable in central defence or central midfield - both positions that require some tenacity and a willingness to get stuck in - Perryman was a tenacious player and captain with the heart of a lion. Moreover, his toughness has obviously benefited him off the pitch in his older years as, in 2012 at an Exeter City match - the club for whom he was and still is Director of Football - he suffered a torn aorta during a game and required emergency heart surgery. In his own words "Sixty per cent don't make it to hospital, and of those that do, only 5% make it", but he made it, emphasising just how tough he is. He had a seventeen year Spurs career between 1969 and 1986. He also managed the club on a caretaker basis in the 1993-94 season.
