Tyrone Shoelaces

We’ll know a lot more this time next week. Two tough away games coming up but our away form is decent so far. Four points would be really good, Two wouldn’t be the end of the world.

You know it’s going to be your day when you dummy the keeper with a miss kick, and then the defender kicks the ball against your shins for a goal. They all count the same though. Quality penalty for the hat trick.

Football isn’t what it was. Too much possession based nothingness. If they put the goals at the sides of the pitch instead of at either end it would be more exciting.

I didn’t want them to go out of the league. Where’s the fun in that ?

Having experienced life under the chicken chokers for the past decade I’ve plenty of sympathy for other clubs who get taken over by the wrong sort of people. It shouldn’t happen but unfortunately it does.

That didn’t have to be the case.

There’s fast and then there’s quick. IE fast is first in a 50 yards race and quick is first in a 10 or 15 yards sprint. It’s nice to be both fast and quick but for a goal scorer quick is vital.

The Rochdale fans weren’t too impressed with the stewarding at last night cup tie at t’Turf. When Rochdale fans are saying you’re a tin pot club it’s time to worry.

Only £50 million, some guys have all the luck.

I went on one called “ The Bee Hole End “. Last night there wasn’t a mention of the series and we’re on episode 3.

When Darren Peacock actually scores a goal that isn’t an own goal then you just know it’s not your night.

“ You are number 11 in the queue “.

I went on the dingle site just to see what their feelings were regarding “ Fever Pitch “, the history of the early days of the Premier League. Guess what - this excellent programme doesn’t even get one mention. As far as the dingles are concerned it doesn’t exist. There’s plenty of chat about tonight’s “ Panorama “ programme about young players but “ Fever Pitch “ ? Not a flicker. Rovers winning the big one must still rankle over there.

I saw him play as a kid in a pre season friendly at Rochdale. All the other kids were playing, Beckham, Scholes, Butt, the Nevilles etc. Gillespie was head and shoulders above all those, he was first team ready then. He was taking the defence on at warp speed, going inside or outside , they couldn’t get near him. He could have been anything he wanted to be. What a waste.

Keith Gillespie features a lot tonight. What a player he could have been.

Jimmy was a bit of a dog whisperer. During the World Cup game against Brazil in Chile in 1962 he managed to catch a dog that had run on to the pitch and had evaded everybody else. The dog promptly peed on him ! Dogs running onto the pitch was a common occurrence back in the day, it never seems to happen nowadays. I recall Noel Dwyer, an international class goalkeeper, got injured trying to catch a dog and was never the same player again.

Yes he was, the best player in a one on one with the keeper situation I ever saw. He made going around the goalkeeper look ridiculously easy, a goal was a formality if he was bearing down on goal. He was coolness personified in a crowded goal mouth. He didn’t run around much off the ball but he really came alive when he got in possession. You could watch him for hours and not know what foot he favoured, he was really good off either side.

After the 0-0 draw Terry Paine and then Ian Callaghan played on the wing in the next two games against Mexico and France. Ramsey still wasn’t happy with conventional wingers and how it was going though and he brought in Alan Ball who played right through the rest of the games including the final.

That game is etched in my memory. The best performance by a Rovers team in my lifetime. Bryan Douglas got 11 out of 10 for me that day.

We played Spurs over the Easter weekend in 1965 - April 16 th 1965 Spurs 5 - Rovers 2. ( Douglas, McEvoy ) att 36,497. April 19 th 1965 Rovers 3 - Spurs 1. ( Harrison pen, Douglas, Byrom) att 14,026.

Jimmy Greaves got one goal Jim, Dave Mackay got the other with a shot from the edge of the penalty area.

The best pure goal scorer I ever saw. He was a one off. If he was through on goal you could get ready to kick off again.

That’s a shame . Edinburgh is a fantastic City that in my experience welcomes the English. Good luck with job.

But Venkies are the ‘ Devil we know “ . At least with the Issa’s if I want to protest I can go around to their house and put a brick through their window. Metaphorically of course.

Are The Chicken Chokers ?