Once upon a time, the PFA Awards were the undisputed measure of a season’s most valuable players. Voted for by the Professionals themselves, the response to their announcement was one of awed hush and consent – how could mere onlookers presume to know better than those involved in the rough and tumble of the actual sport? But the saccharin, sentimental and simply silly award of the 2009 Players’ Player award to Ryan Giggs changed all that. In one fell swoop, footballers were shown to be as susceptible to a bit of old fashioned press lobbying as the rest of us….
All posts tagged Bristol Rovers
Bristol City and Bristol Rovers announce merger
It has taken less than two months and if the more paranoid among Bristolian football fans expressed worry when Steve Lansdown became the majority shareholder of Bristol Rugby Club in February, that step has now been revealed as a mere staging post in the master plan – for today the formation of Bristol United Football Club has been announced. In a statement, Lansdown admitted that the merger between Bristol City and Rovers would come as a shock to some – ‘As I said a month ago, I love sport generally and I want to see sport in Bristol be successful…
Where next for Paul Buckle?
Forget Roy Keane, among the weapons the now former Bristol Rovers manager Paul Buckle had in his armoury was an icy stare that could single-handedly re-freeze the polar ice caps. I’ve seen it used on misbehaving players in training, at fans who’ve had a differing opinion, and at journalists (including myself) who’ve asked questions that he doesn’t think are worth answering (which, on some occasions, has been a fair response). This icy blast may well have been unleashed earlier this week when he was relieved of his duties as Rovers manager, but it is Buckle who now finds himself out…
Conversations with Paul Binning (Bristol City)
Following Keith Millen’s exit from the managerial post at Bristol City earlier this week, we are very pleased to welcome Paul Binning for our latest interview. Paul trades under the name @cider1977 on Twitter and runs the consistently enjoyable blog, The Exiled Robin. He also contributes a regular feature on social media and football that appears in the Bristol City matchday programme and I was lucky enough to pave the way for this conversation when I met Paul in person at Bedminster Cricket Club last week. Here are his thoughts on the interregnum at Ashton Gate: LR:Keith Millen was unlikely to survive…
The Monday Profile: Darryl Duffy
Darryl Duffy’s career trajectory may perhaps have left the striker wondering if he has perpetually arrived too early for the party. Most notably, journeyman though he may appear to be, he has enjoyed spells at two clubs which, not long after his departure, have attained Premier League status. First, he joined Hull City in a fanfare of publicity five years ago, his 37 goals in just 68 games for Falkirk having promised much but, like Ally McCoist, Owen Coyle and Anthony Stokes before him, such abundance was harder to plunder south of Hadrian’s Wall. After just three goals for the…
James: Are the wealthy middle classes really the ones to back a football team...
Lanterne Rouge: Garath McCleary on signing for Reading today:
"It's amazing to be a...
Lloyd: On the Oxford / Reading thing, Lanterne, you write that "there is no c...
Ben: Yes, it does loom a bit, doesn't it? Moxey's comments on the ground re...
