Newsletter #780

So the weekend approaches and we can all have a day off from worrying about the trials and tribulations of pursuing promotion and test our mettle against one of the Premiership’s form teams… or should that be farm? I’d just love it if City showed a large TV audience (as opposed to the small one on ITV Sport last weekend) what we can do, and put one over on the Tractor Boys for a few recent results that have gone their way, especially last season, and this issue has more tips and pleas with regard to watching on TV around the world.

We also have a twist on Ken Corfield’s City Diary with a match report from the 60’s; a bit of an experiment – do you want it repeated? The debate about officials and how better to dispense justice continues, and there’s a view that Derby County are better man for man than City at the moment (and not from a Derby fan either!), though not a view I personally subscribe to, given we’re apparently going in opposite directions. The whole edition is kicked off by Don’s comprehensive news summary – here’s hoping Dickson doesn’t do a Michael Brown on us next month when Preston are in town.

Thanks to Dave Atkins for correcting my “the more I practice the luckier I get” quote – not Shankly but Gary Player. I’ll never get to be interrogated by Sue Barker on “Question of Sport” at this rate 🙁

Heidi’s back in charge from Monday’s edition, provided she’s not jumped off a high building after her exams, so submissions to her from tonight please.

Finally and nothing whatsoever to do with footy (probably), if any Blues based in and around the New York / Boston area or Seattle / Vancouver would like to offer advice on places to go and things to do in those areas to help me plan the Donkin family summer holiday, please e-mail me at mcivta@donkin.freeserve.co.uk.

NEWS

General News

TV Nightmare: So far nine of City’s fixtures have been moved for TV, with at least another six due to move before the end of the season. The club has made a complaint to the Football League. Kevin Keegan said, “I feel sympathy for the fans, for the players and for myself with the way we have been moved. We have only one Saturday game in the next couple of months [March 16, versus Crystal Palace]. We have been moved more than any other club. We know the reasons they do it and we want to support the TV deal, but it shouldn’t be just us who are playing at these different times.” Although City will make £250,000 out of the Ipswich FA Cup coverage, the Nationwide League disruption is less lucrative. It seems that the home team makes £60,000, while the away side pocket only £10,000, which doesn’t seem a lot for the inconvenience to fans and players, and the loss of potential gate money.

The Cost of Relegation: David Bernstein has announced the half-year accounts of the Club. Relegation means that the club’s turnover has fallen by seventeen per cent to £12.4m with an operating loss of £2m and a loss on ordinary activities of £5.3m, but the chairman remains upbeat about the future. “Our board has taken the view that we have a manager who we believe can take us a long, long way. We have our ongoing support which is absolutely fantastic and we have the new stadium which will give us a tremendous boost,” claimed Bernstein, “But we need Premiership football for the new stadium so we are going to go flat out to get promotion and to improve the quality of the squad, even though there is a risk involved in doing that. The risk is that we are losing money. But we believe we are investing for the future. It is being done with our eyes wide open and it is being done with funds which have been made available to us.” Directors John Wardle and David Makin are the providers of these funds. DB reckons that the club have lost £15m due to the loss of Premiership status, but KK will still receive financial backing for new players if required.

Under-17 Switch: City’s under-17 Academy team will take on Coventry at Hyde United’s ground Ewan Fields on Saturday 26 January; admission is free. This is the first time that an Academy side has played at Hyde and follows in the footsteps of the Reserves and the Youth Team.

Cup Preview: KK was in a confident mood as he took the Blues off to a Suffolk retreat ahead of Sunday’s FA Cup match with Ipswich Town. Keegan has taken the players away for a four day training session, mirroring the routine he instigated at both Newcastle and Fulham. “This is the first chance we have had as a group of players to actually go away somewhere together and it will be of benefit in a number of ways. We will have all sorts of little tournaments with the players where we will pair players together who perhaps do not spend a lot of time together and help them to get to know each other better. Some of the lads aren’t keen to be away for four days, but I think we are right in what we are doing. We don’t put many demands on the players here except that they turn up and train well and they have been doing that.” Academy players Glenn Whelan and William Flood have been included in the training camp. Kevin saw Ipswich thrash Derby last Saturday, but foresees a different scenario on Sunday. “They were outstanding and if we can get on our best game like we were in the first half against Watford, then Portman Road won’t be a bad place to be next Sunday night at about seven. It will be a long journey home, but it won’t be a bad place to be.”

Transfer News and Gossip

Clarke’s Progress: After a three-day training stint with City, Halifax defender Chris Clarke has returned to his club with an invite to return soon. Clarke said “Kevin Keegan is very interested and they want me back for a few more days. He told me that if they had not been interested they would not have had me back.” Boss Kev was quick to praise Clarke: “We have had him watched and what we saw we liked. We wanted to see a bit more of him. He is 6ft 4ins, has decent pace and good control and we wanted to see him amongst our players. He is young enough to improve a great deal. He may help us patch up the odd void we have in our own youngsters.” Halifax manager Alan Little said: “Clarkey did very well at Maine Road and just because he’s returned does not mean the deal is dead, far from it. There could be an opportunity for him to go to Manchester City on trial for a bit longer.”

Etuhu Sold: Dickon Etuhu’s wish to join a “Big Club” has been granted, as he signed this week for those giants of Division One, Preston North End. A fee has been agreed based on Etuhu’s future appearances, which Teletext reckoned could rise to £750,000 – not a bad deal for a player who made only a dozen appearances for City. “I wouldn’t exactly say we sold him”, opined Mr Keegan, “I think Dickson just about sold himself in the end. There was no problem in the end and I wish the player ‘good luck’. We got a very good fee for him and if he does well, we will do very well which is only right as he spent four years here.” Strangely there was no word of any interest from any Premiership teams, as had been suggested earlier in Etuhu’s contract negotiations.

Premiership Defender Linked: After last week’s transfer talk of Leigh Bromby of Sheffield Wednesday, and the trial of Halifax defender Chris Clarke, comes news of another potential City target. The Sunday tabloids suggest KK will make a move for Italian centre-back Gianluca “Uncle” Festa. The 32-year-old has hardly featured in the Middlesbrough team since Steve Maclaren’s arrival as manager, and the press think either a loan deal or a permanent move for a small fee is likely. It looks like we might have company in the chase for Bromby incidentally – Middlesbrough, Spurs and Liverpool are the latest clubs to have shown an interest in the player.

Blues in for Goalkeeper? The Sunday Mirror reported last week that City are checking out the form of Leeds’ reserve Goalkeeper Paul Robinson. In 2000-2001, Robinson deputised for half a season for the injured Nigel Martyn, and put in a string of brilliant performances in the Premiership and in Europe. The Mirror reckons Kev sent a scout to watch Robinson in the reserves last week. A move for the ‘keeper depends on City gaining promotion.

Chinese Defender on Way: Chinese international defender Sun Jihai is the latest player trying to impress Mr Keegan. Sun, who two years ago had a season with Crystal Palace before returning to Chinese side Dalian Shide, is keen to try his luck again in Europe. He had been linked earlier in the season with AC Milan and Newcastle, but arrives at Maine Road this week. KK stressed that the player was not on trial, but coming over to check on the Blues. “We know he is good enough to play for us if we are in the Premiership, but we want him to come and have a look at us. That is the way we work,” said Keegan. Sun is quoted as saying “Kevin Keegan is a good coach. I am not sure if he will say ‘yes’ to me, though. I believe in myself and I will try my best.” The fee for Sun, if the deal goes ahead, will be in the region of £1.5 million.

[Ed – Reaction… Hopefully Maine Road won’t end up being the place where the Sun don’t shine… with thanks(?) to Wallace Poulter]

Gissa Job! Pascal Bedrossian seems rather keen to jump aboard the Keegan express, if his comments this week are anything to go by. The 27-year-old Lorient player recently had a week’s trial at City, but has not been too subtle in declaring his interest in returning. “I want to join Manchester City straight away”, hinted Bedrossian, “I stayed in Manchester for four days. It was a brilliant experience. The English league is the best in the world. It is my dream to play there so I had no problem in going to Manchester City. I have no favoured position. I can play in midfield or as a striker – the most important thing is to play. Kevin Keegan was one of the best players of all time. It was bizarre but brilliant to be contacted by him. I was very impressed with the whole set-up.” Do you think he wants to play for City?

`Pinch of Salt’ Time: The fourth central defender to be linked with City would also appear to be the least plausible. Derby County’s star under-21 defender Chris Riggott is reportedly a summer target for City. All we have to do is to persuade Riggott that he should join City, and not Liverpool, who are reportedly lining up a summer deal. Personally I think this story is in the category of last month’s “Andy Cole for City” non-story.

Ex-Blues’ News

Weah Strikes: The previous occupant of Richard Dunne’s squad number has made a typical start to the African Cup of Nations. In the opening game of the tournament, former World Footballer of the Year George Weah scored for Liberia in their 1-1 draw with hosts Mali. Not bad for a man who Joe Royle continually left on the substitutes’ bench at the start of last season, and who was told (according to George) to f**k off if he didn’t like it.

From the Sublime to… Robert Taylor continues his search for new employers. The former Blue, once described by radio commentator and demigod Stuart Hall as being “as mobile as a runaway sideboard”, has just begun a month’s loan at Grimsby. Taylor played in Grimsby’s game at Crewe last Saturday, failing to score as Alex won 2-0.

Colosimo May Go Home: Simon Colosimo may be in line for a return to Australian soccer. According to reports from Australia, Colosimo is being linked with a move to Perth Glory, who are managed by former Ipswich midfielder Mich D’Avray. Colosimo was released by City last month, and has so far failed to attract a club in England.

Reactions and Comments

Heidar the Horrible: The major story of the Watford game was that the comedy own goal of the season was scored – and it wasn’t by a City player! We can thank Watford forward Heidar Helguson for a misplaced back pass which left ‘keeper Alec Chaimberlain scrambling fruitlessly back towards his own goal, giving City an 80th minute winner. Kevin Keegan was honest in his after match summary, stating “Any win at this stage is a good win. We were a little bit lucky, it has to be said – but then again we did create a number of chances in the first half. We should have been in the lead at half-time instead of drawing, but Watford scored with what was almost their only attack of the first half. This is a good victory for us because a lot of rival sides have got to come here, and although they are some points off the pace at the moment I fully believe they will finish in the top six.” Watford boss Gianluca Vialli was gracious in defeat, complimenting City’s first half display and announcing his belief that City were the best team in the division. Vialli said: “We were very unlucky. City were in charge in the first half and created a few chances and we scored against the run of play. But in the second half we really took the game to them and I think City lost their shape a little bit and kept hitting long balls. I didn’t say anything to Heidar Helguson after his own goal because that happens to every player and he was unlucky,” adding with a Keeganesque verbal flourish, “It happens to everyone and we love him.” Boss Kev was full of praise for City goalkeeper Carlo Nash after the Watford game. While gently criticising Nash for the first goal, KK was quick stress that Carlo is worth his place in goal. “I thought Carlo might have kept the first one out,” said Keegan, “but I would reserve judgement on that as it was a very wet ball, very slippery and their ‘keeper, Alex Chamberlain let a couple spill, so it was not a great night for goalkeepers in terms of conditions. Carlo made a crucial save at the time we needed it, that is what he is there for and that is why at the moment he is number one. He has very strong hands and kept a very good goal for us against Watford.”

Squad News

Dear Sir, I’m Very, Very Sorry… KK has outlined the punishment he meted out to Danny Tiatto after his vicious assault on Norwich’s Lucozade bottles last week. “Danny is going to write a letter to the Norwich manager, Nigel Worthington and his staff for kicking the bottles. I suggested he might do that,” said Keegan. “Danny’s response to our talk was fine, I don’t have a problem with him. The one thing about him is that he is one hundred and ten per cent committed. Frankly you do want players with spirit, you want players with emotion and drive and enthusiasm. But you also want players who can control that and unfortunately on Sunday Danny lost that. Admittedly he was unlucky to be sent off, the other player made a meal of it. What happened from that point on made it difficult for us to defend Danny. He took it away from himself and he knows that. The matter is now forgotten, I have disciplined him but I will not tell you what action I have taken. Danny has accepted my actions, he has said sorry and so we now get on with it.”

Keegan Likes New Kid Jensen: Boss Kev has been enthusing about his ninth signing as City Manager, Danish international Niclas Jensen. Keegan said: “He has a wonderful left foot and he never gives the ball away. He finds space just by manipulating the ball. He is a good professional and he is going to be a big asset for us. You don’t play for Denmark unless you are a very good player. He is too good a player to put in the reserves and say watch what we do and learn from it. He is ready-made. He has played in the Champions’ League and he will settle very quickly into English football.” The left wing-back could cost City up to £700,000.

… and Vice Versa! Danish defender Niclas Jensen has revealed the two factors which influenced his move to City – Kevin Keegan and his dad’s love of 1960’s English football. Said Jensen, “Kevin was a big part of the appeal. After first meeting him, I had to pinch myself because I couldn’t believe I was sitting in the car with him. He’s a very nice guy and it is a big thing for me to play under him. When I told my dad that I was coming here, he was thrilled. He told me that it was a big club with a great tradition. He also told me about all the great players from the past such as Colin Bell and Mike Summerbee. He remembered them all. He insisted that I should sign for the club but I had to calm him down, though, as I hadn’t actually met any of the officials or been to see Maine Road and had yet to make my decision!”

The Goat Bleats: Shaun Goater has candidly revealed his fears over his barren scoring spell. Despite scoring 24 goals so far this season, the Goat has failed to score in his last 8 matches. In this month’s instalment of Shaun’s thoughts home in the Bermudan Royal Gazette, Goater is very open in voicing his frustrations. “In the past few games I have had to make way for a player on the bench after 60 minutes or so and the situation was the same on Sunday. It is beginning to play on my mind now because I have come off in the last five or six games. Every time I run out now I am thinking I am going to be substituted. The disappointing thing for me is that the manager is saying I am playing well, but if that is the case then why am I not staying on?” Such sentiments may interest Wolves, who had a bid for Goater turned down in the summer.

Pearce’s Future: Stuart Pearce has given a realistic assessment of his chances of staying at Maine Road once his playing contract and career finishes this the summer. It is clear that City have been assisting the former England skipper in his education for a non-playing future. “Whether I stay here is down to the manager and Chairman,” said Pearce, “The main reason why Kevin got me here was to play and to influence things on the pitch as much as I could. The coaching side of things was a bonus for me. The Chairman has involved me in meetings – that is my learning curve and it has helped me, but come the end of the season I am of the opinion that the manager or Chairman or indeed anyone at this club doesn’t owe me anything. At the end of the season if they turn round to me and say thanks for doing a good season, that will be fine to me. I will probably sit down with Kevin at the end of the season. It will be a case of finding out what League we are in next year and then take it from there.” Blues’ fans must surely hope that City utilise Pearce’s talents in some form or another.

Alfie Seeks Help: In an effort to sort out the knee injury that has ruined his season, Alfie Haaland will visit a specialist in the United States. Haaland has made only played four times as a substitute this season, but is prepared to undergo a third operation on the damaged limb in an attempt to fix the problem.

Mettomo Misses Out: Cameroon won their first game in the African Cup of Nations on Sunday, but without the help of City’s Lucien Mettomo. Patrick Mboma scored a great goal to give the reigning champions a 1-0 win over DR Congo, but our Luci was not in the starting line up. He’ll hope to be involved in Friday’s game against the Ivory Coast on Friday (fashion note – check out the sleeveless basketball-style shirts sported by Cameroon in this tournament – not sure if this style will work on a cold February night at Ewen Fields!).

Late Late Late Late News

“ROYLE SACKED BY CITY”, headline on ESPN.com Soccernet on Friday, January 18, 2002. It’s nice to see that the Internet is the place for up-to-the-minute news items…

KEN’S CITY ARCHIVE REPORTS

Here’s the first of (maybe) a few reprints of reports on old City matches. What seems worth noting is the style of writing as much as what happened on the field.

From The Guardian, Monday 22 January 1968.

“Manchester City Erratic in Success” by Eric Todd.
Sheffield United 0 Manchester City 3.

Manchester City completed a comfortable double against Sheffield United at Bramall Lane where United were defeated for the first time since Manchester United visited them in mid-October. Manchester United were successful on that occasion and City saw no reason to settle for anything less.

City in fact should have won by a much bigger margin and one goal belied their mastery in the first half. Young, for reasons not obvious, was denied a goal after one of the best movements of the afternoon, but disappointment surprisingly did not spur City to more imaginative methods. They opted for exhibition stuff which, while good enough to look upon, usually ended like one of Mr. Tommy Cooper’s party pieces.

In the second half United, having been let off the hook, demonstrated the advantage of a direct, uncomplicated approach and for 20 minutes they applied more pressure than City had managed in 45. Storm troopers compared with gentlemen cracksmen. But failure to score from a penalty was among their sins of omission. City snatched two further goals and achieved a result that was more satisfactory than convincing.

It was nonetheless no mean performance to interrupt United’s run of five successive games without defeat, and apart from occasional eccentricity, without which they would be unrecognisable, City had plenty to offer. Bell, restored to complete fitness, schemed brilliantly – although I wish he were less theatrical in his protests against alleged injustice – and his colleagues in attack responded well. A pity it was that Summerbee committed a retaliatory foul on Malleneder and had his name taken. Summerbee was not the only offender this day.

In defence, Doyle had a splendid match and I regard him and Cooper of Leeds as the most improved players I have seen this term … United’s forwards lacked imagination and not until Buckley set an example in the second half did it dawn on them that City were neither invulnerable nor unflappable. Buckley, a recent import from Wolverhampton Wanderers, deserved every sympathy. If City had capitulated in this period the result might have been very different. But that is the way things go in football and my belief is that City will win something this season. For all their supremacy City did not really test Hodkinson until the 25th minute and then the United goalkeeper made a brilliant save from Coleman. Four minutes before half-time Heslop headed the ball to Bell after a free kick and Bell scored with a really great shot from 25 yards.

Ten minutes after the restart Heslop tripped Buckley but Mulhearn had no trouble in saving Woodward’s feeble penalty kick. Buckley next was fouled by Book just outside the penalty area; Book conceded a corner when challenged by Buckley: Book nearly turned the ball into his own net after a centre by Buckley: Addison, Carlin, and Woodward all drove the ball over the crossbar after perfect passes from Buckley; Buckley had a shot blocked and he was just wide with two other efforts. After all this Buckley rightly decided that this just was not his day.

Fifteen minutes from time Wagstaff upended Connor, substituting for Coleman, and Lee showed Woodward how to score from a penalty. And with a minute left Doyle made it 3-0 with a shot from 30 yards. The ball entered off the underside of the crossbar and poor Hodkinson’s posture was that of of a puppet on a slack string.

Meanwhile, the paper’s cricket correspondent was writing just as fluently of Tom Graveney making 118 against the West Indies in Trinidad: “Here was the ripeness of forty years, here was the man whose name flows like the name of an English river, winding softly to the sea.” When Barrington was out off Gibbs “the umpires were not consulted. Griffiths indicated he had made a genuine catch. Barrington waved his bat and walked. Courtesy reigned. It was all rather like the chivalry of opposing regiments at Fontenoy … It was now 546 for seven wickets and our ears thrummed to the surge and thunder of this English odyssey. We wondered how the pink and green and yellow villas peeping from the surrounding hills like eyelets could remain so remote and disinterested.”

Other signs of the times in 1968 from the same week’s papers: “five football spectators from Manchester were arrested in Sheffield and charged with disorderly conduct and threatening behaviour”; Sikh bus conductors were protesting at a ban on turbans; the Camden Town Blood Centre reported record numbers of people wanting to give blood for North Vietnam and the Vietcong; a Member of Parliament said that living in Britain was now like living in a madhouse; Ian St. John was fined 100 pounds after being sent off; they were stepping up the search for Ronnie Biggs; the Palace Theatre in Manchester had “Cinderella” with Des O’Connor and Vince Hill, while the cinemas on Oxford Street were showing Thoroughly Modern Millie and A Man and a Woman; Radio Caroline had gone off the air; the pound had come down to $2.40. And at Manchester airport three lads from Urmston had stowed away in a cloakroom aboard a B.E.A. jet and flown to Belfast undetected; a policeman said they “would not be charged with anything as they were just running away from home.”

IPSWICH ON TV

Andorra

I’m off snowboarding in Andorra on Sunday (27th Jan) and wondered if anyone knows where I could catch the Ipswich game in the Pas de la Casa resort? Any help with this would be much appreciated.

Belfast?

Can anyone suggest a bar in city centre Belfast which will be showing the City-Ipswich game?

Cologne?

Can anyone email me to tell me where the Ipswich game might be shown in Cologne, Germany on Sunday? I’ll be there for a trade fair and it will be essential viewing if I can find it!

Indonesia

Anyone in Indonesia for the FA Cup game vs. Ipswich can watch it live on channel SCTV at 2am (Monday morning); I will be, come on you Blues.

Southern California

Good news for Southern Calif. City fans… the Ipswich cup tie will be televised at the British & Dominion Social Club, in Garden Grove, at 11am on Sunday. Contact Mike at mancty@aol.com for further information.

[Ed – and not forgetting of course the Beaver pub in Beverley at 7pm. There should be a good turn out of the East Yorkshire CSA, and hopefully this time the Wolves supporting Landlord will not be rooting for the opposition like he was last Sunday. All welcome to join the throng if you’re in the area.]

CITYGOALS SITE

The citygoals site has now moved to http://www.citygoals.com. The move was made to a new domain and servers to increase ‘up-time’ and performance (hopefully) as well as being an opportunity to re-design the site making it open for future expansion. I have noticed that some people had their bookmarks directly to the ‘goals’ pages on the old site and so were not being re-directed – please update your favourites now!

On a personal note I would like to thank all those who made the move possible by chipping in some of their hard-earned cash to pay for the new webspace, domain name and more importantly unlimited bandwidth. Their generosity means everyone should be able to view any goals at anytime – so thanks (there is still about £100 left in the kitty with which when everything is settled down I intend to buy fluff a beer for taking the time to create the video files and then send the remainder off to the Academy)!

If you haven’t visited the site yet it’s at http://www.citygoals.com/. Thanks to fluff we get the goals on-line and ready for download usually within 24 hours (or early Monday morning for the Saturday games). Some ‘classic’ City goals and moments will be going on the site during the coming weeks and we are open to any suggestions/requirements. All free and no membership req’d.

POST-MATCH JUSTICE

Given the number of sendings off this season, culminating in the farcical dismissal of Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink last night (when the supposed ‘crime’ had been committed by Mario Melchiot) is it not time that responsibility for red and yellow cards was taken away from the referee?

Fans pay to watch a fair tussle between 22 men, not 21 or less. So, I would like to see cards being dished out by the video panel the day after a game in order not to spoil the spectacle.

Looking at the advantages, it would mean less pressure on the modern ref in today’s quicker game. All angles would be covered by the cameras and bad challenges could be reviewed many times before a decision made on colour of card, if any. In addition, because the panel would be made up of the same people – and I would suggest 4 different panels, one for each division – you would have consistency of decision rather than the current lottery of Uriah Rennie one week, David Ellerary the next.

It could be argued that this would allow really violent conduct to go unpunished. I believe a draconian suspension for such offences would soon persuade a player that a sneaky punch of his opponent’s jaw would not be worth it.

The World Cup in particular would benefit, as the differences in styles of referees around the world, and their interpretation of the rules, has led to many a farcical sending off in the past.

I understand such a system is used in Aussie Rules Football. Perhaps some of our friends down under could confirm? Does it work there? Will it work here? I think it should at least be given a try.

DERBY BETTER THAN CITY?

A few issues back I commented that I had seen Derby on TV in a couple of matches and it struck me that each of their players was better position by position. A couple of issues later someone replied basically just saying that Derby weren’t all that good but not really addressing the issue, so now that I have functioning Internet I’d thought I’d reply. And no special reason for Derby, it just struck me that here they are almost certainly going down and yet they have much better players.

Given a choice player for player, with the possible exception of Benarbia (for his vision, he’d be even better with a better team around him), I would select the Derby County player as a better player than the Manchester City player. From the ‘keepers, Oakes and Poom through England u-21 defender Riggott, Boertein, Carbone, Ravanelli, Burton and Christie they are all, in my opinion, of a higher calibre than what we have in the squad.

I mean do we seriously think that Dunne, Wiekens and Pearce are better than Higginbottom, Riggott and co? Yes you could make and argument that our B&B Boys are of Premiership quality, but I’m taking Ravanelli and Christie over anything we have up front.

We’ve made some interesting buys with the budget constraints that we have but City have all the makings of a yo-yo club if significant funds, and I mean £30 million, isn’t made available and then spent wisely. Either that or we have to have a superb Bosman crop of signees in the summer.

STATTO ALERT – CITY’S STRIKING RECORD

Some interesting stats of the season so far from our top goalscorers.

League

          Mins    -  GP - Games -   Games    - Games    - Goals - Mins played
         played          started  subbed out  subbed in           per goal
Goater    2282    -  28 -   28  -     13     -    0     -  22   -    103
Wanchope  1184    -  14 -   13  -      3     -    1     -  11   -    107
Huckerby  1471    -  24 -   15  -      1     -    9     -   9   -    163

Cups

Goater    195 mins - 2 goals
Wanchope  198 mins - 1 goals
Hux       311 mins - 5 goals

Total

Goater   2477 mins - 24 goals - 103
Wanchope 1382 mins - 12 goals - 115
Hux      1782 mins - 14 goals - 127

In comparison to leading Premier scorers:

Ruud van Nistelrooy has played 1554 mins and scored 15 goals. That’s 1 goal every 103 mins.
Michael Owen has played 1164 mins and scored 11 goals. That’s 1 goal every 105 mins.

THE BAR FLY RESPONDS

After being accused of drinking whilst watching City on TV (see editor’s prologue, MCIVTA 779) I felt I must at least make some attempt to contribute in a non-alcohol fuelled fashion 🙂

In response to the debate about the 4th Official, I do apologise for not researching about the rules and regs before submitting my Norwich match report to MCIVTA, but I agree wholeheartedly with the comments regarding the 4th official. Although the 4th official is often a recognised and fully qualified ref – many times this season I’ve seen Jeff Winter wearing that rather fetching grey coat. The point being that not only is the 4th official unable to advise on incidents that happen on the far side of the pitch, but he doesn’t have the title of referee’s assistant. I know it is in the rule books but the linesman (sorry referee’s assistant) and the ref were in much better positions to see what was happening, and even using video replay it isn’t exactly clear if Tiatto made any contact (certainly not with the force that Nedergaard suggested). This is possibly the first occasion that the 4th official has used his powers to advise the ref of an on the field offence (allegedly), although I could be wrong – anyone?

In response to Stuart Wells comments regarding Corrie (I don’t really watch it) but does it annoy anyone else that Les has a Rag poster in his house, despite the fact that Bruce Jones (the actor who plays Les and who interestingly enough my brother met on two separate occasions in Preston & Manchester within a couple of days) is a well known City fan. Remember that Curly (Kevin Kennedy) was also most upset when his ex-wife (the following is good enough reason in itself to cause an annulment) Racquel announced she had been offered a job by the Rag hordes – something to do with massage/herbal therapy, in the post-Yorke days this was oh so innocent!

That’s it, I’m done… if Mr Schofield is reading when are we off to Cathedrals next?

LUCKY PARAPHERNALIA

I can’t keep it in any longer, I know why City have gone on such a great run since Christmas… my new hat!

I received the said hat on Christmas day from my girlfriend. I didn’t wear it to the West Brom game (0-0). The hat was worn for the first time against Burnley, 5-1. The next game was Sheffield Utd away (1-3). I was wearing the hat and City were winning 0-2. For some inexplicable reason I removed the hat and no sooner was the hat in my pocket when Brown popped up and made it 1-2. The nerves were starting to go at this point. I whipped the hat out and literally seconds latter, Wright Phillips makes it 1-3, queue celebrations and praise for the hat from my mates. The hat remained in place for the full 90 minutes against Swindon and Norwich (what a performance!). Then the Watford game. We arrived in Watford at 16:00 and after a few pints we made our way to the ground. I don’t know if it was the alcohol but I didn’t put my hat on. City were playing some great football and should have been a couple of goals up. Typical City, Watford go up the other end and score with their first shot. My mate turns round and says why haven’t I got my f***ing hat on. I popped the hat on my head and within 2 minutes Wanchope had equalized. The hat again stayed in place and City went on to win with our second best goal this season (the best was away to Forest). I’ve never been one for lucky objects but I can assure you the hat will be travelling with me to Ipswich on Sunday. Has anybody else got or had any lucky objects?

NIALL QUINN’S TESTIMONIAL

I understand that Sunderland are arranging a testimonial game in honour of the mighty Niall. I believe that it will take place in May and be against the Ireland team before it departs for the far east for some minor tournament taking place this summer! Niall has committed the receipts from the game to children’s charities (typical of the big man and his big heart). Is there anyone out there with as big a love of Niall as myself who might be willing to organise a group visit to the game by City fans in honour of a great servant for this club?

CALLING ALL HERTFORDHIRE BLUES

After a previous message on MCIVTA that asked if there were any Blues in or around the St Albans area – I was surprised by the number who responded – I am therefore investigating the need for an official/unofficial network of Hertfordhire Blues.

The purpose of such a network can be determined by the interested parties but could include: sharing journeys up to Maine Road, sharing tickets, watching City on a pub TV etc. If there are any interested Blues out there who live in the area and would to meet up and investigate this further then please send me an e-mail with your thoughts and I will try to co-ordinate.

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Young German Lad

Nic Heppenstall asked in the last issue what happen to the young German. The player in question is Dino Toppmöller, who is now playing for his Father Klaus’ team Bayer Leverkusen. He was the player Joe Royle said had to learn more about the defensive side of the game before he became the complete midfielder, once again concluding that Joe doesn’t like flair midfielders.

It must be Dino Toppmöller who, despite being fantastically monikered, was released by JR for being no better than we already had. And last season that was a damning indictment!

Kit Contract

Does anyone know if the contract(s) with Le Coq Sportif and/or Eidos end this year? If so any rumours regarding renewals or new contracts?

2002 Calendar

Does anybody know where I can get the 2002 City Calendar as my wife did not buy me one for Xmas and I went to the City shop and they have sold out.

MCIVTA FAQ [v1.7]

[0] MCIVTA Addresses

 Articles (Heidi Pickup)        : editor@mcivta.city-fan.org

 News/rumour (Don Barrie)       : djb1305@yahoo.co.uk

 Subscriptions (Geoff Donkin)   : subscriptions@mcivta.city-fan.org

 Technical problems (Paul)      : paul@city-fan.org

Comments concerning this FAQ should be sent to David Warburton using the address: mcivtafaq@warburton.org

[1] MCIVTA Deadlines

Deadlines for issues are nominally Monday and Thursday evenings.

[2] MCIVTA Back Issues and Manchester City Supporters’ home page

http://www.uit.no/mancity/ is the unofficial Manchester City Supporters’ home page. Created in 1994, it is the longest running of the Manchester City related web sites. Back issues of MCIVTA are also hosted on the site.

[3] Club Web Site

The official club web site can be found at http://www.mcfc.co.uk/

[4] Supporters’ Clubs

Manchester City FC recognises three supporters’ clubs: The “Official Supporters Club” (http://www.mancity.net/osc/index.html); the “Centenary Supporters’ Association” (http://www.callnetuk.com/home/sef/) and “The International Supporters’ Club” (http://www.mcfc.co.uk/extra/fanzone/isc.asp)

[5] Fans’ Committee

The Fans’ Committee operates as an interface between supporters and the club. It has its own website, http://www.mcfc-fans.com/ containing info about forthcoming meetings as well as minutes from previous gatherings.

[6] City of Manchester Stadium Progress/Web Cam

The latest information regarding the progress of our new home can be found at http://www.commonwealthgames.com/

[7] Match Day Broadcasts

Live match commentaries and archives of games, reports and interviews can be found here: http://www.mcfc.co.uk/comment.asp. An alternate live commentary service, hosted by Yahoo, is located at: http://uk.sports.yahoo.com/foot/audio/live/schedule/index.html. GMR Saturday Sport is also available live online between 1-3pm, and 4.45-6pm at http://www.bbc.co.uk/manchester/sport/index.shtml

[8] City on TV

City’s games when broadcast on TV are generally carried by ITV Digital; http://www.itv-digital.co.uk/company/home/publocator/locator.html provides a list of pubs that will be showing the games.

Granada television also has the rights to show a small number of games from the North West region. As Sky now carry ITV regional services these matches can be watched outside the intended region by “adding” channels to your Sky Digital receiver. Under “services/system setup” enter the following details: Frequency 10.891 – H – 22.0 – 5/6. Select “find channels” and you will be given a list of the available ITV regions. From here select the regions you want to add. In order to view the channels you have added, you have to make your selection via “services/system setup/other channels”.

[9] Goals on the Net

http://www.citygoals.com/ has available for download, usually within 24-48 hours of a game being played, all the goals from City’s matches.

[10] 01/02 Season Match Day Theme Tune

The music the teams run out to at Maine Road this season is “Nightmare”, by Brainbug, and is available on the Positiva label.

[11] Acknowledgements

Thanks go to John Arnold for providing the information regarding match day music and to Ian Bell for pointing out the alternate live match commentary service.

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.

Geoff Donkin, mcivta@donkin.freeserve.co.uk

Editor: