Players who never quite made it

[oldjamfan1]

6 minutes ago, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

Franz Carr looked like becoming a world beating winger in his early days, he just never got any better as he got older.

He got taken on at Ewood just ahead of my younger brother, they played in the same schools representative teams. Didn't Cloughie pay us a fortune for him while he was still a teenager?

[tomphil]

2 hours ago, blueboy3333 said:

I've expunged this from my Duff-loving brain (3rd only to Sellars & Noel as my favourite ever Rover). What did Duff do?

I was in the away end down there when he scored against us and made a point of looking in our direction and saluting. Think he tried to say he was aiming it at some friends or something in the home box thing in the corner of the cottage but for all the world he was looking at Rovers fans in that bit. He'd had zero stick.

Might be wrong but he may have over done the celebrations once at Ewood as well for Chelsea.

Not that it really matters he was long gone by the Fulham thing but still it was totally out of order.

[Admiral Nelsen]

1 hour ago, Crimpshrine said:

I remember Gavin Friday the singer from the Virgin Prunes. A fellow countryman of yours.

Turning the thread on it's head, how did Emile Heskey get 62 England caps?

Or Nicky Butt get almost 40!

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

5 minutes ago, oldjamfan1 said:

He got taken on at Ewood just ahead of my younger brother, they played in the same schools representative teams. Didn't Cloughie pay us a fortune for him while he was still a teenager?

I don't know. He was offered terms at Rovers as a lad before he'd ever played for the first team, but he chose to go elsewhere.

[oldjamfan1]

Just now, tomphil said:

I was in the away end down there when he scored against us and made a point of looking in our direction and saluting. Think he tried to say he was aiming it at some friends or something in the home box thing in the corner of the cottage but for all the world he was looking at Rovers fans in that bit. He'd had zero stick.

Might be wrong but he may have over done the celebrations once at Ewood as well for Chelsea.

Not that it really matters he was long gone by the Fulham thing but still it was totally out of order.

I think Duffer has celebrated vigorously a couple of times at Ewood for both Chelsea and Fulham but to be honest I have no problem with that - if a footballer can't enjoy scoring, especially against a former club, there's something wrong. I don't remember him going too overboard. 

[oldjamfan1]

Just now, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

I don't know. He was offered terms at Rovers as a lad before he'd ever played for the first team, but he chose to go elsewhere.

Cloughie did indeed pay us £100,000 for him before he had even turned 18. That was a lot of cash to Rovers at the time.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

Just now, oldjamfan1 said:

Cloughie did indeed pay us £100,000 for him before he had even turned 18. That was a lot of cash to Rovers at the time.

It is now !

[Bigdoggsteel]

20 minutes ago, tomphil said:

I was in the away end down there when he scored against us and made a point of looking in our direction and saluting. Think he tried to say he was aiming it at some friends or something in the home box thing in the corner of the cottage but for all the world he was looking at Rovers fans in that bit. He'd had zero stick.

Might be wrong but he may have over done the celebrations once at Ewood as well for Chelsea.

Not that it really matters he was long gone by the Fulham thing but still it was totally out of order.

So saluting once and maybe or maybe not doing it a second time is totally out of order. Remind me not to cross you

I obviously love Duff. He is the best player who has played for both my favourite football teams, so I wouldn't hear a bad word said about him. Totally biased. I will say though that this non celebration stuff has gotten completely out of hand and is now more noticeable than actually celebrating. At the end of the day, shouldn't players just celebrate, what's the harm in it? If the goal was to relegate your old team, obviously not, but in any other instance I don't see the problem at all. We all revelled in Leon Best scoring the OG for Charlton this season. It's football banter 

Duff never says a bad word about rovers, always said he had a great time and credits the club with giving him his big break in football. 

Edited June 8, 2018 by Bigdoggsteel

[tomphil]

10 minutes ago, Bigdoggsteel said:

So saluting once and maybe or maybe not doing it a second time is totally out of order. Remind me not to cross you

I obviously love Duff. He is the best player who has ever player for both my favourite football teams, so I wouldn't hear a bad word said about him. Totally biased. I will say though that this non celebration stuff has gotten completely out of hand and is now more noticeable than actually celebrating. 

Duff never says a bad word about rovers, always said he had a great time and credits the club with giving him his big break in football. 

Your last line kind of justifies being upset at the first line, I thought he had enough respect for Rovers fans to rise above that kind of thing and as Oldjam pointed out he's form for doing it.

Don't mind players celebrating a goal v a former club they were once darlings of in the right way but anything else is a clear F### you in my book but that's just me. One for all and all for one !!!

You chose Duff over me - we're finished ?

Edited June 8, 2018 by tomphil

[Bigdoggsteel]

Just now, tomphil said:

Your last line kind of justifies being upset at the first line, I thought he had enough respect for Rovers fans to rise above that kind of thing and as Oldjam pointed out he's form for doing it.

Don't mind players celebrating a goal v a former club they were once darlings of in the right way but anything else is a clear F### you in my book but that's just me. One for all and all for one !!!

You chose Duff over me - we're finished ?

I refuse to believe he did it 

[Dreams of 1995]

2 hours ago, Crimpshrine said:

I remember Gavin Friday the singer from the Virgin Prunes. A fellow countryman of yours.

Turning the thread on it's head, how did Emile Heskey get 62 England caps?

Emile Heskey was a deadly striker in his Leicester and Liverpool days. 62 caps might be overstretching him but he definitely deserved to be in some of the England squads he was in.

Owen Hargreaves has to be one of the biggest disappointment for me. He had a brilliant tournament (2006?) but then failed to materalise into a regular. He always seemed to have some sort of injury and Fergie said in his autobiography he lacked the determination to be what he could have been. Owen Hargreaves might just have settled the midfield and allowed the golden generation to flourish - he settled that midfield and Lampard/Gerrard would have benefited from having him there.

Paul Scholes was a disappointment for England but more because the managers at the time underappreciated his talent. It was a crying shame he retired so early. The insistence to use 4-4-2 at a time when we had abundance in creative talent stifled careers and there was no bigger casualty to this than Scholes.

[oldjamfan1]

Just now, Dreams of 1995 said:

 

Paul Scholes was a disappointment for England.

Apart from when he single handedly stuffed the Scots at Hampden Park in the Euro 2000 qualifier. 

[blueboy3333]

3 hours ago, Bigdoggsteel said:

I read an interesting book a few years ago while on holiday called "The greatest footballer you never saw" about a player called Gavin Friday. It was a great book and written in a  really interesting way through interviews and old newspaper reports. Do any of you remember him? Sounded a real talent , but had many off field issues throughout his short career 

Robin Friday. Brilliant book.

 

[JacknOry]

6 hours ago, Mattyblue said:

Steve Bruce - 0 caps.

Howard Kendall - 0 caps. Colin Harvey - 1 cap. Two out of Everton’s ‘Holy Trinity’.

Amazing really when you think of some of the players that have played for England this past 15 years.

Steve Bruce never getting a cap really surprises me

[Bigdoggsteel]

Just now, JacknOry said:

Steve Bruce never getting a cap really surprises me

Especially that he played for utd 

[JacknOry]

Just now, Bigdoggsteel said:

Especially that he played for utd 

Exactly, him and Pallister. I always remember him being a top top defender so not get a single cap is truly baffling. I know we had Adams around at that time but still...

[speeeeeeedie]

3 minutes ago, JacknOry said:

Steve Bruce never getting a cap really surprises me

Another 80's 90's stalwart Steve Bould only got 2 caps as well. Both in friendlies too.

For years England had access to quality central defenders; Butcher, Adams, Des Walker, Mark Wright, Martin Keown, Sol Campbell, Rio Ferdinand, Ledley King.

Pallister had a mere 22 caps.

Edited June 8, 2018 by speeeeeeedie
JacknOry's Pallister post.

[Bigdoggsteel]

15 minutes ago, speeeeeeedie said:

Another 80's 90's stalwart Steve Bould only got 2 caps as well. Both in friendlies too.

For years England had access to quality central defenders; Butcher, Adams, Des Walker, Mark Wright, Martin Keown, Sol Campbell, Rio Ferdinand, Ledley King.

Pallister had a mere 22 caps.

Some great players there and i think you might even be leaving some better players out, eg John Terry, Bobby Moore and the legendary Big Jack Charlton! 

Edit, sorry I see now you were intl referring to 80s and 90s players 

Edited June 8, 2018 by Bigdoggsteel

[Husky]

I'll have to go for Ryan Giggs.

He never quite made the right decision . .

[JacknOry]

Just now, Husky said:

I'll have to go for Ryan Giggs.

He never quite made the right decision . .

The perfect answer to our lack of left wingers...

[Colt Seavers]

George Best got 37 caps if memory serves. An attempt was made to get him fit for the 1982 World Cup in Spain. I think George went to Boro to try to regain his fitness but couldn't make it. He was around 37 years old.

My favourite ever winger Noel played in that tournament instead of Best so it wasn't all bad.

[LDRover]

5 hours ago, Bigdoggsteel said:

I read an interesting book a few years ago while on holiday called "The greatest footballer you never saw" about a player called Gavin Friday. It was a great book and written in a  really interesting way through interviews and old newspaper reports. Do any of you remember him? Sounded a real talent , but had many off field issues throughout his short career 

I've read the book, never saw him play but sounded like an absolute nutter.

[Norbert Rassragr]

Robin was also on a Super Furry Animals cover. Man don't give a f--k I think.

[Mattyblue]

His wiki, the Mark Lawrenson anecdote alone does it for me ?

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robin_Friday

[roverandout]

If le tissier had been french or spanish or brazilian, he would have had about 80 caps..should have left southampton instead of being a big fish in a small pond..could have been as good as zidane..that goal he scored at ewood