Newsletter #232
We have a match report of the Lincoln game – written in great personal danger! We really need more people to share the burden of writing these; although I quite enjoy doing them, my wife is threatening me with bodily injury if I spend too much time on MCIVTA. So, please lend a hand, I honestly think they’re fun to write once you’ve got over the initial hurdle of starting to type… and, don’t worry about writing for all those people, they all want to hear what you have to say about the match!
The newspapers seem at a loss as to who our new manager will be. The problem of what to write has been solved by Paul Hince, who by all accounts, wrote an extremely vitriolic piece against Lee, apparently he loathes Lee with a passion. I really do wonder how long the MUEN can carry on with it’s ‘City’ writer virtually on a war fronting with the club, and Lee in particular.
Finally, just a request that would help me in putting MCIVTA together: at the end of any articles you send to MCIVTA, could you put your name and email address (in brackets) in the form they normally appear in in MCIVTA. Cheers, Ashley.
Next game, Sheffield United away, Saturday 28th September, 1996PROBLEMS
Martin Ford is offline due to computer problems at UMIST but he’s managed to get this message through:
The MCIVTA practice footie match is on Sunday, 17:00-19:00. The pitch should be booked under the name of Dan Ellingworth. My mobile number, if anyone should want to contact me is: 0802 572 079
The predictions league: If any messages are sent to me they’ll either bounce back or get queued until the system’s back. So could predictors use this username until everything is sorted. (I’ll send out a personal message from this username later on in the week when I’ve created a d-list).
Martin’s conatct address is: MFORD@fs1.op.umist.ac.ukMATCH REPORT ‘LIVE’
MANCHESTER CITY vs. LINCOLN CITY, Tuesday 24th September, 1996
Coca Cola Cup
I wasn’t sure if I could make this game or not so I ended up ringing late in the afternoon to check if it was still possible to pay at the turnstile or whether everything had been altered at the last minute. I persuaded a friend of mine that a floodlit night in Mancs would be a good idea (sorry Jenny!) so off we set for a soon-to-be-rainy Maine Road. Indeed you could pay at the turnstile, but only for the lower tier of the Kippax; apparently the upper tier tickets had to be bought from the ticket office – not the information I was given over the phone!
I managed to resist paying £2.00 for a pint and went to find our seats in Block EE. The first thing I noticed was the small crowd; I think it was around 14,000. City turned out in the same formation as Saturday with McGoldrick as sweeper. This wasn’t to last though, as he left the field after about 2 minutes! It all happened as if by clockwork, including the repositioning, which indicated that they knew something before kick-off. This was a far-from-ideal start as McGoldrick had given us real solidity at the back and options coming forward out of defence.
City made several reasonable attacking moves but consistently failed to get behind the Lincoln defence; high balls were easy for them to deal with and low balls were dealt with by expedient use of the body to shove, hold, push etc, all without action from the ref. City were sent reeling after about 20 mins when Mr Liability (Frontzeck) lost possession on the halfway line; the resulting cross somehow evaded Dibble (?) and came to Symons on the by-line, he attempted to boot the ball upfield but instead it cannoned off one of their players, past the stranded Dibble and straight into the path of one of their attackers who had the easiest of jobs to tap in. City attacked repeatedly after this but never really made a clear-cut chance. Lomas in particular was guilty of some wayward passing and shooting.
The second half was really attacking practice for City as Lincoln defended in depth, in fact they hardly broke into our half at all. This sort of mass defending is very difficult to break down without getting round the back of the defence, something Summerbee in particular failed miserably to do. All he did was run up to the defender, make a half-hearted attempt to round him (unsuccessfully), then either pass the ball in-field or backwards. He came in from some stick from the crowd and retaliated, gesticulating angrily towards the Kippax. This merely made matters worse. If you can’t get past a third division left back then you might as well call it a day as a winger.
Luckily for us, Frontzeck had been replaced by Buster who was a delight to watch. He constantly ran at the right back and must have delivered upwards of 12-15 crosses into a densely packed 6-yard box, as well as winning several corners. He also continually ran into space to receive the ball. Despite almost constant pressure the ball just never seemed to fall and it almost seemed pre-ordained that we wouldn’t score.
Although we were defeated, there wasn’t much booing at the end (by our standards). Although we lacked penetration up front, until Kavelashvili replaced Dickov anyway, we kept the ball on the ground and spread it around well. We would have beaten some good passing sides but against a penalty area filled with physical giants, it’s was always an uphill task. Believe it or not, we played some attractive footie and actually looked like a football team!
Most humourous moment: A guy behind us in the Kippax singing aloud and alone “What the ***k is going on” and being told to stop swearing by a steward, whereupon he restarted singing with “What the hell is going on”!
Final score: 0-1
Ratings
Dibble (7): possibly at fault in not collecting the cross that led to the goal but otherwise solid.
McGoldrick (?): only on the field for 2 minutes.
Frontzeck (5): an unnecessary error led to the goal; we desperately need a good left back.
Symons (6): error led to the goal but otherwise solid.
Wassall (7): This guy will never be a star defender but he’s reliable and the right sort of player for us at the moment.
Lomas (7): after some awful passing in the first half, he played very well in the second, acting as midfield anchor, constantly asking for the ball and distributing it across the field, unfortunately, too often to Summerbee.
Summerbee (4): either this guy isn’t trying or he just hasn’t got what it takes. I don’t think he got past the left back all night and what’s more, he just didn’t run into position to receive the ball.
Clough (5): almost completely anonymous, I have serious doubts about him at this level.
Kinky (7): worked his stuff but was constantly faced by three huge defenders who weren’t averse to being a tadge physical.
Dickov (7): tried hard and has some neat and quick turns; needs more protection from refs though.
Rösler (5): too frequently let down by his first touch, should be replaced by Kave.
Kave (7): made a big difference, loads of triangular passing moves centred around him and he managed some sharp turns in the box; still, it’s difficult to get past 5 defenders in there!
Phillips (8): intelligent running and a myriad of crosses; Summerbee should be slung out on his ear and his place given to Buster.
NEWS – FRANNIE ON APPLICANTS
Frannie was on GMR yesterday (Monday) denying that any illegal approaches had been made to Bassett or to Kendall. He also said Ricoch must have been misquoted as he hadn’t even applied for the job so wasn’t on the shortlist!
An interesting discussion took place bewteen him and the interviewer in which he stated “that the chairmen of several clubs would be very upset if they could see some of the names who had applied for the post”!
AshleyNEWS – INJURIES AND TRANSFERS
Following last night’s defeat against Lincoln, Paul Dickov has a suspected broken nose and Eddie McGoldrick has a calf strain. Another short-term loan signing has been made – Arsenal winger Mark Flatts. Flatts is 23 years old, 5 feet 6 and had made 16 appearances for Arsenal before the start of the season. He’s had loan spells with Cambridge, Brighton, Bristol City and Grimsby. City are reported to have agreed a fee with Arsenal for the permanent transfer of Eddie McGoldrick, but the fee hasn’t been disclosed.
The MoleNEWS – NORWEGIAN GOALIE
City are giving a trial to former Norwegian U21 goalkeeper Andre Ulla as another goalkeeping crisis looms. Andy Dibble has been playing despite having a recurring groin strain (and legal problems which could affect his availability for selection in future), Eike Immel is in Germany having treatment on a pelvic problem and it seems that Martyn Margetson is destined not to play for the first team again.
City hoped to give Ulla a game in the reserves on Wednesday night but his clearance didn’t come through so he was unable to play. Margetson deputised and had a good game in City’s 2-1 win over Barnsley. City’s scorers were Jeff Whitley (from 20 yards) and Chris Greenacre (close range header). Triallist Mark Flatts played the first 70 minutes or so but didn’t really impress.
The latest name to be linked with the City manager’s job is Sammy McIlroy, currently manager of Vauxhall Conference side Macclesfield Town. McIlroy led Macc to the Conference title two years ago but they were not promoted as their ground did not meet the Football League’s entry criteria by the deadline. It is also rumoured that a managerial appointment will be made this week but we’ve heard that before, haven’t we?
Paul Howarth (paul@city-fan.org)NEWS – FLATTS
I saw the note on the home page about Mark Flatts; he was down here at Ashton Gate for a month or so’s loan at the end of the 94/95 season. Not an amazing player – tried hard enough (may have wanted a move?), but nothing to write home about. Mind you, since then Bristol City have had on loan Kevin Watson, Spurs’ (alleged) midfielder, and Craig Maskell, then at S’oton; both of whom were s***e. So… we could do worse I guess – bit on the small and slight side, but occasionally tricky on the ball.
Jeremy Poynton (jp@deadhead.geac.co.uk)NEWS – MANAGER
GMR and Teletext report that City will appoint a management ‘team’ with 48 hours!
AshleyRUMOUR?
This morning’s rumour (Tuesday) is that City could appoint Kenny Dalglish as director of football, with Asa Hartford staying on as manager. A figure for transfer funds has also appeared – 6 million pounds. How much either of these rumours is based on fact isn’t clear but I suspect that the papers are putting two and two together and getting seven.
The MoleOASIS AT KNEBWORTH
I can now make copies of “Oasis At Knebworth”, as my brother has finally given the tape back. The quality isn’t great, but you can distinctly hear all the crowd cursing the Rags (and they aren’t really splitting up. What else is Liam qualified to do except loaf round Burnage?)
P.S. If Frannie suggests “taking over himself for a while”, I’m starting the riot.
Heather Fleming (mffx5hjf@stud.man.ac.uk)BLUE VIEW AND SHARES!
I am probably stupid but could someone let me know what Blue View is and where I can find it – is it a discussion page? – if so where? (sorry but I can just about work out how to turn the PC on).
There was a guy a week ago asking about shares in MCFC plc He should try any stockbroker to get him a quote for the shares on an exchange called OFEX. They are quite illiquid – and most importantly I’d advise that this was an investment with the heart and not the head!
Be careful to stress MCFC – I called up the other day to see how my shares are doing (they are not quoted in the press) only to find I had quadrupled my investment!
Whilst dancing round the house singing the praises of FHL et al and trying to find my contract note the phone rang by a humbled trader confirming that I did say MUFC and not MCFC. Git.
I hate Rags!
I hate Rags!
I hate Rags!
Blue View is indeed a WWW-based discussion page and is run by Doug Bennett:
URL http://homepages.enterprise.net/dbennett/blueview.html
AshleyLOU MACARI
I must challenge the view expressed in MCIVTA 231 that Lou Macari is a good manager who would do a good job for City. He may be an effective manager for lower division club of limited ambition, but, if his experience at Celtic is relevent, he is not equipped to handle a major club.
At Celtic he constantly criticized the squad in public as ‘not good enough’ and carped through the media about not having large sums of money to spend. When provided with money he filled the team with donkeys such as Wayne Biggins (remember him?) and Willie Falconer. He signed a goalkeeper Carl Muggleton despite having two international ‘keepers on the books (Packie Bonner and Gordon Marshall). While neither could be classified as top class (same with Muggleton), it was hardly Celtic’s top priority at the time. He continued the Celtic tradition of transferring anyone who could score goals, selling Gerry Creaney to Portsmouth for a bargain price.
After an embarassing home defeat by an unfashionable team, the Celtic players were cowering in the dressing room in expectation of a tongue lashing. He put his head around the door and bid farewell and departed back to Stoke. One player queried “who was the guy who shows up each week for training on Friday and then disappears after the match?”
Macari’s absenteeism was used as the pretext for his dismissal after less than one year by the new regime at Celtic. Despite the large sums of money that Celtic had available, after the takeover, Macari was not trusted to spend anything but small change. His gambling was notorious. “If he could pass a bookies’ shop as well as he could pass a ball, he would be a millionaire by now.”
He was deeply unpopular with the players and mistrusted by the board. The only reason he lasted as long as he did was that Fergus McCann, Celtic’s new owner, was too tight to pay off his lucrative contract!
Macari did a good job for Scottish football by weakening Celtic to give a chance for other clubs in Scotland such as Motherwell, Hibs, and Dundee United.
He appears to know his way round the nationwide First and Second Divisions, so if City are concerned about avoiding relegation then he might be the right choice as manager. If City see themselves as a major club, he is not suitable. He was a Rag anyway!
John Lowe in Edinburgh (John-Lowe@msn.com)LEE REPLIES!
After the non-performance at Lincoln, I was moved to put pen to paper and sound off Franny about things in general. The letter IMHO was quite passionate and aggressive.
I assumed it would be binned along with all the moans and growns and job applications.
But nay!! This very morning I received a most courteous and sincere reply from Franny himself, so at least the P.R. side of the club is o.k. just the footballing side to be attend to now.
Bob Buckton (bob.buckton@zen.co.uk)ATLANTA MAN?
I note with interest Alistair Deakin’s comments about the rise of the Atlanta Braves in MCIVTA 231. Is their manager doing anything at the moment?
Nigel Kendall (nigel@nkendall.demon.co.uk)MUSINGS
Now we are relaxing in the Nationwide, I realise, as a non-expat exile, what trying to get news of City is like for the true expat. At least we get the papers and the Radio; the TV, however, is a different matter. All you get is the Nationwide goals roundup, usually some time in the wee wee hours on a Tuesday morning; no replays, just goal after goal in quick succession. Nor does it include mid-week games; just those played at the weekend. Still, it makes a change to be able to watch Match of the Day without the obligatory intro of City conceding goals or being skinned by useless Welsh twats. Good correspondence on this subject in the Times – no we rarely get it, but the Monday edition is only 10p, and has a far better sports section than the Guardian, which seems to forget that football is the most popular sport in this country, not golf, that its roots are in Manchester, and that there is only one team in Manchester. Howsoever, I digress … I didn’t catch the start of the correspondence, but a very pumped up Rag was objecting to someone who described Bryan Twiggs as having “a head full of rocks.” Liked that, I did.
Good to see that Steve Bruce was again accorded the Carte Blanche against us; for those not up with the FIFA rules, this is a special White Card which refs can wave when Rags and Ex Rags commit atrocious fouls, but are not punishable under subsection 6.1.2a/114 of the amended Referee’s guide. Reading the MUEN report only confirmed what I had deduced from the Radio 5 report on the game, ille est, that Bruce was given free reign to kick buggery out of our players for 85 minutes of the game; one can only recall his assaults on Kinky in last year’s Derbys (there. I said it. Derby), and his breaking Reid’s ribs some years back, at Maine Road.
Aahhh. That feels better.
Up the Blues, and away with the blues :-)), Jeremy Poynton (jp@deadhead.geac.co.uk)LINCOLN RESULT
I rushed home early from work and switched on the telly to watch the 4pm Sky news (7am in the UK) to eagerly await the football results and City’s beating of Lincoln. But it was not to be and what was worse they showed the goal, the comical clearance and the Lincoln fans going beserk. What surprised me was that I didn’t go beserk at yet another inept but not too unexpected result. In fact I was surprised that I didn’t seem to care and what was worse my Aussie wife didn’t take the p**s.
What the hell is happening over there, the club seems to be on a downward spiral and no-one apart from the fans cares. If we’re not careful we could end up like Wolves or Burnley, plunging the depths, proud clubs seemingly never to return.
I’ve suffered over the years with defeats at Shrewsbury (x2), Halifax, even Mansfield in the League Cup in the mid 60’s, to name a few, these were shameful matches, but you never lost sight that City were a big club, a great club. But now all that seems to have changed. Why? I’m at a loss to explain it because there could be so many factors to consider.
Still what’s the betting that we’ll beat Sheffield United on Saturday?
A gloomy Blue in a sunny country, Bill Chapman (bill.chapman@tafensw.edu.au)RAMBLINGS
Oh God, just after I thought we played so well (for us) on Saturday, we go and lose against Lincoln again last night. What is it with this team? After witnessing the 4-1 carnage last Tuesday, I was dreading the Birmingham match on Saturday but I was really pleased with the way we played. I particularly liked Eddie McGoldrick: he was skilful, enthusiastic and delighted with the victory (running round at the end like a maniac and clapping the fans). Brilliant, I thought, just what we need!
And then we go and lose last night. I didn’t bother going as I didn’t really believe we could pull anything back. Unfortunately I was right and we all know what happened. Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear. (By the way, no one seems to have mentioned that at Saturday’s match, Summerbee, Frontzeck and Clough all got booed at the beginning when their names were read out! After this, they all had reasonable games … well, maybe not Clough …)
And while I’m here, I’d like to slag off that bloody s***e Moonchester. Am I alone in my bemused incomprehension here? Who on earth thought that thing up? What a complete waste of time. It timidly appears at half time, makes a half-hearted walk up and down the Main Stand and then disappears. I’ve noticed it never bothers coming near the Kippax: good job, it’d probably get its head kicked in (if it even made it past the away fans – judging by Saturday’s lot, it probably wouldn’t get past the away fans!). And that cartoon in the programme is rubbish as well. Surely they can think of something better than that. I’m amazed hardly anyone else seems to object to it! Am I turning into a grumpy old git before my time?
Well, I feel better now I’ve got that off my chest.
Until next time … fingers crossed for the Rags to get another European stuffing tonight.
Christine (Christine.Haynes@man.ac.uk)OPINION – NEW MANAGER
The saga continues…
Another day, still no manager! My only worry is that Frannie will soon find himself in a situation where he will just take anyone and I mean anyone. Then the saga continues, the poor guy gets slated as the results don’t go our way and by the end of the season, surprise surprise (no Cilla doesn’t make a guest appearance at Maine Road), the manager gets the sack. We really need to find a manager with a strong character and plenty of fight and if we do find such a manager, he should be judged at the end of his contract i.e. 3 years not 3 games or 3 weeks as is the norm at City! At the end of 3 years if we are heading in the right direction, renew his contract if no improvement, ciao! How can there be an improvement if we keep getting rid of managers every 12 months, it takes at least 2 seasons to turn things around, dare I say it and use Alex Ferguson as an example! Personally, I agree with Ken Foster and would consider Tony Woodcock or even Roy Aitken at Aberdeen – plenty of pride and fight with an emphasis on attacking football and a superb youth policy!
Always Blue, Alan Fraser (A.Fraser@amhess.co.uk)OPINION – LEE
Well it’s been quite a spectacular week. I spent Tuesday night in hospital hooked up to machines monitoring the old ticker. My first question to my wife was – ‘What was the Lincoln Result’ – needless to say she didn’t want to tell me!
I hope that that was the low point and we can now start turning things around – if it is once again I wasn’t there – I wasn’t at Maine Road for the 8,000 gate – I wasn’t at Newcastle for the Championship – I wasn’t there for the last day of the Kippax. In 3 decades of supporting City I’ve never been more concerned about the future of the club but I’m certain a corner has been turned.
After the Palace match I was harassed by a supposed Blue who was ‘going to have a word with Lee’ – this because I was wearing my colours (something he wasn’t doing). I must admit to being Pro-Lee – his record may not be the best (as chairman) but he has the interests of the club at heart. We do need to sort out finances and slowly repair all the damage caused over the years. I remember Allison selling good players and bringing in a lot of expensive rubbish.
To my mind Asa is doing a good job – let’s face it some of our players are more interested in the pay packet then playing (Summerbee). We need players who are as proud of that shirt as we are. Players who will fight for the ball, give their all and not be prepared to settle for a 1 goal lead. We already have some – Dickov, Lomas, Symons. but we have several players who are not performing and haven’t been for some time – Rösler, Summerbee, Clough – the sad thing is that we do not have people who can take their places (or do we?). Once again we have injury problems, and although we have a large squad we still need to bring in loan players to cope – can someone post a list of all the squad including reserves?
Once thing we do have are the best fans in the country (even Jimmy Hill thinks so!) – we lose 4-1 to Lincoln and get 27,000 for the next game – we never win away but always have superb away support.
City will get better; what the team lack is confidence in themselves, what we need to do is get behind the team and Franny and stop the slagging and compaining – let’s try and have a manager who will stay for more than a year, we have won nothing for 20 years so surely we can wait another 3 to build a squad who will bring success and a financial setup to ensure it will endure. We do have a club who value their fans unlike the dark side who could’t give a monkeys about theirs so long as the cash keeps rolling in.
If the tickets come through I’ll see you all at QPR and Reading, my son just had a Stevie Lomas haircut and now looks like a midget version – paternity writ is in the post!
Proud to be Blue, Andy Birkin (mcfc@pncl.co.uk)OPINION – DARIO GRADI
Gary Smith was right to notice that Dario Gradi is one of the best (if not, the best) coaches in the lower divisions, but he’s not the man for the City job and I’m not just saying this because I’m a Crewe season ticket holder. He’s been at Crewe for 13 years and in that time we have gone from being perennial re-election seekers to one of the strongest lower division teams with some of the best young players around. But, Crewe have only actually risen by one division during Dario’s 13 years as manager – miraculous progress when you consider the state we were in when he took over but not exactly setting the footy world on fire. If Dario became City boss any progress would be long-term and depend on the development of youth – one of City’s strengths over the years, but not one they have really capitalised on. If, in the unlikely circumstances that Dario did become City manager, in three or four years’ time City would have a production line of talent, but chances are you’d still be in Division One. Would you be prepared to wait that long? I doubt it.
Andrew Geddes (a.p.geddes@liverpool.ac.uk)OPINION – REFS
I’d just like to say, that having thought the ref’s in the Premiership were bad last year, the referee at the Birmingham match would take some beating. The two penalty decisions were good decisions, but at one point Wassall chopped Newell from behind on the half-way line, at which point Newell got up and swung a punch at Wassall. It didn’t connect, and Wassall was booked without the ref even saying so much as a word to Newell. Is this right?
Ric (n5062983@town7.ncl.ac.uk)OPINION – ALARM!
I’ve been reading these pages for several weeks now and I just can’t believe the alarm surrounding City’s supporters at this present time. I have lived in Paris for the last year and despite this have attended all City’s home matches in this time with the exception of two.
In the end we were desperately unlucky to be relegated. The fans however, as usual, have shown how terrific they are turning up in such huge numbers, as vociferous as ever, but there are a few gripers at the club who let our good name down. ‘Lee Out’, ‘Summerbee, Gio Out’ scream the alarmists. Alright they’ve struggled in their new environment and it appears that there is no light at the end of the tunnel but does anyone really think that once the players have settled down they won’t be doing doubles over the likes of Southend, Reading, Oxford, Oldham etc.
Basically, with only a month of the season gone it’s far to early to scream ‘Oh my God we’re going down.’ Let’s be serious and optimistic, There’s a long way to go and once the boat is steadied we’ll start to get the results. The cream always rises to the top, mark my words. 3/1 for the championship, I’m sure the odds will have lengthened now but it still sounds like a steal to me. See you all at Sheff Utd. Sticking one on Judas would be a great way to start the ball rolling.
Stuart Reynolds (REYNOLS@cgyespm.france.msnet.bp.com)OPINION – MCIVTA
How I agree with Ashley’s sentiments. How can anyone even think of changing the philosophy which provides a forum for such diverse views as have appeared in the last 2 MCIVTA issues and many more before? There’s has been passion, intrigue, suspense and I’m sure I almost detected a hint of lust in one letter. There’s been an item fit for the letters column of The Financial Times, articles that could have been culled from the archives of any Agony Aunt’s files on unrequited love, and of course Dave Bara putting everything in perspective by attempting to flog some second hand memorabilia from his City Supporters shop in, Moss Side?, Rusholme?, Whalley Range? No, from good old Seattle that well known hotbed of City support where the only thing in common with Maine Road on a Saturday afternoon is the grey clouds and the rain…
In my opinion what you have here is a unique page which transcends the normal mundane squabble in the mud mentality of most other “fan pages.” There is room for all views, from people maintaining that the sole criteria for a Manager should be a hatred of the “Rags”, and the views of “Rags” such as myself. I am sure the majority of correspondents would support this view and back up Ashley and Paul 100%. It would be sad to see any reduction in the standards.
Anyway I’m off to Disneyworld Orlando tonight as a guest of Mickey himself to celebrate 25 years of Disneyworld. I’ll have a wish in the Sleeping Beauty’s Wishing well that City have a great run while I’m away, and that the Reds get a win in Europe!
Keep Dreaming, Leo Fewtrell. Wythenshawe Exile (leo50@emirates.net.ae)OPINION – MCIVTA, THAT MAN HINCE, AND THE MANAGER!
You keep MCIVTA exactly the way it is and don’t let it become a volataile hate vehicle for the fickle-minded who seem on the verge of screaming ‘Swales In’ any day now. It’s always an intelligent forum and almost has the feel of a self-help group – ‘Hi, I’m Martin and I’m a City Supporter’ ‘Ok relax, you’re in City Supporters Anonymous now…’
I’m very much of the opinion that kicking a dog when it’s down doesn’t help and if 20+ years of City support have taught me anything it’s that however bad it gets we’ve seen it all before and survived. We all knew life in the Nationwide wasn’t going to be pretty – sure, we’ve been hammered by Lincoln, but didn’t the ghosts of Halifax and Shrewsbury float before your eyes as soon as the draw was made? We just need a launching pad now to get going, I thought that first half against Birmingham was just starting to look the part and McGoldrick restored the four man defence which is very obviously needed. Even as the eternal optimist, Clough still angers me – he’s one of the supposedly ‘experienced’ pros yet he never creates anything, pressures anybody or shows any real graft. Brown and Lomas are clearly at a low ebb and soaking up a lot of stick from the crowd but Clough should be at their shoulder and encouraging them for 90 minutes. And just think what a difference Beagrie would make, picking out Rösler’s head….
The Manchester Evening News contained an astonishing full page piece of poison directed at Franny Lee by Paul Hince on Monday night. I’ve liked Hince when I’ve heard him commentating on GMR and he’s come across very much as a Blueheart but I wonder now – this was the kind of gratuitous carping that just doesn’t help or achieve anything at a time when the club only needs constructive suggestions. Today the article has brought a good response in the postbag from angry Blues – one, recalling the MEN’s legendary Bias (which Hince refutes) towards the Swampmen, reminds us of the day the R*ds got hammered 7-3 and the headline in the MEN read ‘U*n*t*d in 10 goal thriller’
And managers? The feeling in my water is that in about three weeks’ time (give or take) Atkinson will walk out of Coventry and into the frame. Let’s face it, the place is only a service station on the M1 and in football terms and history has all the glamour of a night out with Michael Frontzeck. Fat Ron’s done the business and it’s about time we had a high profile in charge. It is only, at the moment, a manager’s track record that will attract quality players – our performances on the pitch are hardly an invitation to enjoy life in Moss Side methinks.
Enough for now. Keep the faith, Martin Wakeling (marwak@globalnet.co.uk)OPINION – MCIVTA
As a long term Man City fan from the south it worries me greatly that anyone might suggest that there should be a single view from MCIVTA. For me the strength of the page is that I can read the thoughts and ideas, aspirations whatever of a wide variety of individuals, the views I read are critical, not just of the club, of F.L. and of the players but also of ourselves and our approach to the team and the potential we have. I believe strongly that it is this diversity that attracts many to the page and the comments about Swales merely reflect this – I want the Blues to win: that we all have in common – but other than that I doubt if any two Blue surfers will ever name the same team for a match let alone agree the financial strategy and plans to develop the team – let’s be proud that we don’t agree – we could be a bunch of Red sheep!
David Banes (100732.3662@compuserve.com)David, no one has suggested that MCIVTA should have a single viewpoint (I hope). One big difference between MCIVTA and a fanzine is that we have no editorial and therefore no viewpoint (collective, anyway). Of course I, personally, have a viewpoint and it does come through from time to time, however, not as an editorial. The point of my statement last week was to stress the fact that we are neutral and that any attempt to run a campaign against the club destroys that neutrality.
AshleyOPINION – PATSY’S OUR (WO)MAN!
I was browsing through the Man City supporters/’ web page and I thought I’d share a great idea with you. As a long time City supporter I think that radical action is required to get the club back on the right track. I’m mailing you to see if you think you could mobilise via the web site to support my idea…
I think that Patsy Kensit should be appointed manager (this is a serious suggestion). She has experience, from fantasy football on BBC2, and could be supported by experienced coaches and assistants like Asa. Her boyfriend is a big City fan, so I’ve heard, and has pots of money. City could then start the “real life manageress” bandwagon: a couple of million for exclusive film rights, £500K form Hello for pictures every month, “Patsy’s Video Diary” could run on TV. The fans would flock to every game and the club would sell millions of souvenirs and so on. It would completely rejuventate the club and its supporters. Key players might stay or be attracted to the club because of the novelty.
It’s the only way forward that makes any sense. What do you think?
Dave Birch (daveb@hyperion.co.uk)REQUEST – TICKET AND STAND INFO
I’ve been a City fan now for 20 years (ever since we won the League Cup in 1976). Eighteen of those years have been spent in Canada, but I’ve still managed to keep in touch. I really enjoy reading the City homepage. Anyway, I will be coming to live in the UK in November and I am planning to be in Manchester on November 9th for the Oxford Utd game. Will I need to buy tickets in advance or can I get them at the gate? Judging from some of the comments on the homepage this year, I get the impression that some of the games are sold out. Will this be the case on November 9th? Also, I would like to know where the best place to sit in the new stadium. The last time I was at Maine Road was in 1986 and I stood in the Kippax. I look forward to hearing from you in the near future.
Thanks, Gary Wilson, Toronto, Canada (gwilson@chass.utoronto.ca)WBA GAME DATE?
I have heard through my WBA source that the Oct 5 game is off due to International committments. Does anyone know of the re-scheduled date?
Also if McGoldrick has played well and looked good in training and if we are ‘worth £40m’ according to FHL then surely he must be worth buying at the end of his loan period? He might even link up well with Dickov?
Big Kev McMeeking (k.mcmeeking@lancaster.ac.uk)WHY BLUE?
Well
- Watching City beat newcastle 4-3 to win the Championship.
- Watching City beat Spurs 4-1 ar White Hart Lane (was it the FA cup semi?)
- watching Neil Young’s superb FA cup goal at Wembley – I was 10.
- Meeting Malcolm Allison at Maine Road while he was training one on onewith big Joe Corrigan – I was 9 and big Mal asked me what positionI played. I told him goalie – big mistake. He told me to get on the goalline – he hit the ball straight at me (not very hard) and it sent meskywards into the back of the net.
- Seeing Joe Mercer and Big Mal and the glory team do a lapof honour at Maine Road.
- Watching City get trounced at Wolves 5-1. My first away gamewithout my Dad – we went on a Finglands Coach.
- Playing a game of snooker against Franny Lee at WilmslowConservative Club just before he took over when he told me“Just keep the faith – it may take a while but I love this club”
- Crying when Joe Mercer died.
- Meeting the 1970 glory team at Maine Road and getting a (almost) completeautographed team photo (real signatures)
Knowing that this too shall pass…
Steve Warrington (achiever@achiever.com)WWW MANCHESTER CITY SUPPORTERS’ HOME PAGE:
http://www.uit.no/mancity/
MCIVTA ADDRESSES:
Contributions: Ashley – mcivta@tollbar.u-net.com
Subscriptions: Adam – Adam.Houghton@sheffield.ac.uk
Club Questions: Stephen – sbolton@buxtonrd.u-net.com
Thanks to Alan, The Mole, Heather, Kev, Andy, Andrew, Ric, Stuart,Jeremy, Leo, Bob, John, Nigel, Christine, Gary, Dave (x2), Paul, Bill and Martin.
DISCLAIMER
The views expressed in MCIVTA are entirely those of the subscribersand there is no intention to represent these opinions as being thoseof Manchester City Football Club, nor of any of the companies anduniversities by whom the subscribers are employed. It is not inany way whatsoever connected to the club or any other relatedorganisation and is simply a group of supporters using this mediumas a means of disseminating news and exchanging opinions.
Ashley Birch, mcivta@tollbar.u-net.com
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editor
The Editorial team of mcivta.com consist of several people. Typically news and information that is provided by a third part will be distributed by the "Editor". Phil Alcock is the current Editor in Chief of the MCIVTA newsletter.