Signing off
7 years ago
Thursday, 17 January 2008
Look who's back
Well I never....Philippe Christanval is back in training according to the official site. To be honest i'd completely forgotten he was still on the books. No news yet on Simon Elliot (remember him?) who is still at the club as far as i'm aware, although he hasn't been allocated a squad number. It really is quite bizarre. Coma victims have made speedier recoveries.
King Kevin returns
Well, our own Kevin Keegan has returned to Newcastle United and I, for one, want to wish him the very best of luck. I loved having him as our manager and although the nature of his departure left a bit of a sour taste in the mouth at the end of our promotion season, he did us proud.
I just hope it works out for him. Keegan is a passionate chap and I can see how he has accepted this job on a wave of Geordie euphoria but he is clearly someone who thinks with his heart first which explains his sudden departures in the past.
Either way it's good to have him back in the game. Newcastle are always a team that I've got a soft spot for and i would certainly like to see them back challenging the boring four.
In other news we're still waiting for confirmation about Eddie Johnson. It amazes me that the messageboard posters are already slagging him off before his plane has even landed at Heathrow. We need to have faith in Hodgson - as we did with Sanchez - and if he thinks he's worth a go then I'm prepared to go along with the decision.
Elsewhere, Chopper at the Hammy End Chronicle reports on the departure of Chris Coleman from Real Sociedad here.
I just hope it works out for him. Keegan is a passionate chap and I can see how he has accepted this job on a wave of Geordie euphoria but he is clearly someone who thinks with his heart first which explains his sudden departures in the past.
Either way it's good to have him back in the game. Newcastle are always a team that I've got a soft spot for and i would certainly like to see them back challenging the boring four.
In other news we're still waiting for confirmation about Eddie Johnson. It amazes me that the messageboard posters are already slagging him off before his plane has even landed at Heathrow. We need to have faith in Hodgson - as we did with Sanchez - and if he thinks he's worth a go then I'm prepared to go along with the decision.
Elsewhere, Chopper at the Hammy End Chronicle reports on the departure of Chris Coleman from Real Sociedad here.
Tuesday, 15 January 2008
Bristol...in the rain
If you live in England then the chances are that you will have woken up to howling wind and driving rain - great weather for football eh?!
Ironically, the last time we played Bristol Rovers away conditions were similar and I remember it very well. In fact, I dug out the programme and it was in a dreadful condition due to the utter drenching that it (and I) received on that Friday night.
The match was during our 1998/99 promotion season from what is now classed as League One (or the old third division as it was known in the good ol' days), there was no roof over most of the away section, it was so foggy you could barely see the players and the pitch was a mud bath.
There was also a lady running the line - still a rare sight even today - who received a fair bit of stick poor thing as I remember. We actually ran out winners although the conditions were so bad I don't actually remember seeing any of the goals!
Happy days though seeing Fulham win away eh?
Ironically, the last time we played Bristol Rovers away conditions were similar and I remember it very well. In fact, I dug out the programme and it was in a dreadful condition due to the utter drenching that it (and I) received on that Friday night.
The match was during our 1998/99 promotion season from what is now classed as League One (or the old third division as it was known in the good ol' days), there was no roof over most of the away section, it was so foggy you could barely see the players and the pitch was a mud bath.
There was also a lady running the line - still a rare sight even today - who received a fair bit of stick poor thing as I remember. We actually ran out winners although the conditions were so bad I don't actually remember seeing any of the goals!
Happy days though seeing Fulham win away eh?
Monday, 14 January 2008
Doomed
Any hope still lingering that we can avoid the drop has been dashed - certainly as far as my household is concerned. I'm not being defeatist...I would love us to turn things around...but I simply can't see how we are going to do it.
We are now five points behind the team in the last relegation spot and in very real danger of being cast adrift with Derby. Soon the pundits won't even be talking about us facing relegation, it will be which of Sunderland, Wigan, Bolton will be going down with us.
I really can't believe we are in this position. In the first couple of games the new squad looked young, fit and exciting. In fact I was more enthusiastic about our prospects than I had been for the past couple of seasons. How wrong was I?
There are a few reasons for our plight. Firstly, under-investment in the club over the past five years (prior to last summer); getting rid of Chris Coleman when we weren't anywhere near the relegation zone rather than giving him money to spend; and Lawrie Sanchez.
I know he didn't mean to screw us up - but the fact is that he completely dismantled a team, replaced them with, in retrospect, a pretty average bunch of players and took us to the brink of relegation. Absolutely disastrous.
Of course not all the signings have been poor. Paul Konchesky has been one of the bright sparks of the season, Bouazza has been exciting when fit and Healy has shown he can score goals...when he is given the chance to play. Others - such as Davis and Hughes - have been okay at best.
Then we look at players like Kamara...This is where the big money has been spent but apart from a fantastic bicycle kick against Spurs he has been excrutiatingly awful; while the fact that we swapped Rosenior for the lumbering Seol still keeps me awake at night.
The man I feel sorry for is Roy Hodgson. He has an impossible task - which I think he realises, judging from what he says in interviews. Like Paul Jewell, I imagine he knows we'll be a Championship side next season and is planning for then.
We are now five points behind the team in the last relegation spot and in very real danger of being cast adrift with Derby. Soon the pundits won't even be talking about us facing relegation, it will be which of Sunderland, Wigan, Bolton will be going down with us.
I really can't believe we are in this position. In the first couple of games the new squad looked young, fit and exciting. In fact I was more enthusiastic about our prospects than I had been for the past couple of seasons. How wrong was I?
There are a few reasons for our plight. Firstly, under-investment in the club over the past five years (prior to last summer); getting rid of Chris Coleman when we weren't anywhere near the relegation zone rather than giving him money to spend; and Lawrie Sanchez.
I know he didn't mean to screw us up - but the fact is that he completely dismantled a team, replaced them with, in retrospect, a pretty average bunch of players and took us to the brink of relegation. Absolutely disastrous.
Of course not all the signings have been poor. Paul Konchesky has been one of the bright sparks of the season, Bouazza has been exciting when fit and Healy has shown he can score goals...when he is given the chance to play. Others - such as Davis and Hughes - have been okay at best.
Then we look at players like Kamara...This is where the big money has been spent but apart from a fantastic bicycle kick against Spurs he has been excrutiatingly awful; while the fact that we swapped Rosenior for the lumbering Seol still keeps me awake at night.
The man I feel sorry for is Roy Hodgson. He has an impossible task - which I think he realises, judging from what he says in interviews. Like Paul Jewell, I imagine he knows we'll be a Championship side next season and is planning for then.
Thursday, 10 January 2008
Congrats to CCN
Just going back through the posts to catch up on Fulham stuff from recent weeks and I noticed that Rich over at Craven Cottage Newsround has been given a bottle of champers for his excellent work in The Times. Very much deserved I say. His columns are a great read so well done to him.
Wednesday, 9 January 2008
Manager merry-go-round
Well, well, well, big Sam has left by "mutual agreement" from Newcastle. That phrase always makes me laugh. I imagine the conversation went something like this:
Newcastle board: time you went Sam. Clear your desk eh son?
Sam: er, okay.
I have to say it seems rather farcical to sack a manager when your side is on the brink of the top 10 but expectations are high on Tyneside.
It now means that of the 10 bottom sides in the Premier League only three have the same manager today as they had at the start of the season: Reading (13th), Middlesbrough (15th) and Sunderland (18th)...Spurs, Bolton, Birmingham, Wigan, Derby, us and now Newcastle have all made changes.
Time will tell if this proves to be the filip they're looking for but it's a mad world in which we live isn't it?
Newcastle board: time you went Sam. Clear your desk eh son?
Sam: er, okay.
I have to say it seems rather farcical to sack a manager when your side is on the brink of the top 10 but expectations are high on Tyneside.
It now means that of the 10 bottom sides in the Premier League only three have the same manager today as they had at the start of the season: Reading (13th), Middlesbrough (15th) and Sunderland (18th)...Spurs, Bolton, Birmingham, Wigan, Derby, us and now Newcastle have all made changes.
Time will tell if this proves to be the filip they're looking for but it's a mad world in which we live isn't it?
Tuesday, 8 January 2008
The worst possible result
Due to late family problems I was unable to attend our match against Bristol Rovers on Sunday afternoon and never feel it's right to comment on the performance/commitment of a team if I haven't actually been in the ground myself....
...However, I do believe the result is the worst possible outcome for us. I would have rather us be knocked out of the cup then have to play an annoying replay when all we really want to do is concentrate on the league.
That said, if we do manage to win away (although even against lower league opposition this will be a tall order) there is the prospect of Swindon or Barnet away so a little run in the cup is not beyond our reach.
...However, I do believe the result is the worst possible outcome for us. I would have rather us be knocked out of the cup then have to play an annoying replay when all we really want to do is concentrate on the league.
That said, if we do manage to win away (although even against lower league opposition this will be a tall order) there is the prospect of Swindon or Barnet away so a little run in the cup is not beyond our reach.
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