The Diary

06 April 2005: Robbo And Nige, 'Avin A Larf!

Quite a strange sort of diary entry for me tonight ? for the first time in yonks, I attended a Supporters Club meeting without my other half, who had other Bulls to batter at Edgar Street, where Hereford took on Carlisle, a game that had ?play-off crunch? plastered all over it. Having just seen the final score on Ceefax ? a bloodless encounter, honours evenly shared ? I just hope it wasn?t one of those awful games where both sides reach stalemate, and everyone gets bored to tears in the process. Don?t worry, though ? given the speed at which my other half customarily drives, I fully expect to have an update whacked onto this piece ere I?ve written half of it. (Late bit ? apparently, it wasn?t; Carlisle ran at ?em, and they could have pinched it late doors, apparently!)

More interesting, though, was noticing our chums from up the road had churned out yet another interminably-boring 1-1, and versus Leicester this time, their equaliser coming in the 88th minute. How many scoring draws is that, now? Just what the hell is going on ? has Jez Moxey got them down on his pools entry, or something? Whatever the reason, I can?t help but think the Guinness Book Of Records could well be getting very interested indeed ere too many moons have waxed and waned above The Custard Bowl. Forest, and our erstwhile chum, Mr. Megson? They play tomorrow night, versus Coventry, yet another encounter that might have some considerable bearing on whether one or both sides occupy a Championship berth next season.

At the considerable risk of sounding very much like an arrogant Villa supporter, though, that sort of lower division stuff?s for them to sort out! (Oooh, yet another excellent reason why I badly want us to live to fight another Premiership day!) But back to the real reason I?m posting tonight, the Supporters Club meet in Albion?s Platinum Suite tonight, the invited guests ? a double detention to the person at the back who said ?victims?! ? being our new gaffer, Bryan Robson, and his very affable sidekick, Nigel Pearson, who, predictably, some might say, both entered the arena to the sound of a standing ovation from the considerable audience present at the gig.

Forget 1930?s fascist rallies, or 1980?s Conservative Party Conferences, the reception the pair of ?em got as they walked to the front of the room was truly manic. Bloody hell, start working a few miracles, heal the lame, halt and sick, and you could end up an entirely new kind of theology on the go, but until that happy day dawns, I suppose we?ll just have to settle for both running our favourite football club, and notching up a series of useful results on the bounce. Before they both commenced operations, though, a couple of announcements from John Homer, the genial lad who sits in front of us on matchdays ? never knew you were once a student teacher, John! ? concerning various Albion-related matters.

The first? Apparently, John and a chum are to walk it to Villa on Sunday. No, not because they can?t afford the bus fare; it?s all for charity, in this case, the one founded by Big Dave and Linvoy Primus, ?Faith In Football?, whose aim is to give deprived kids a bit of a boost ? sponsors welcome, and have a word with John about it, or ask the Supporters Club. And that?s not all; come the summer, Big Dave ? he?s just signed a two-year deal, by the way ? and his chum Linvoy will both be walking The Great Wall Of China (well, part of it; it?s a bloody long structure, and I know because I?ve been there myself!), again, all sponsorship monies going to the same worthy cause. I?m nothing to do with it, so don?t ask me, so if you want to donate etc. get in touch with ?yer man? via the club.

The second concerned The Player Of the Year Night. The club are having one first, same venue as tonight, as advertised in the programme, for which the charge will be ?60, or ?400 if you can get eight on one table, but John also said the Supporters Club were holding a similar event in the near future, to which players, past and present, would be invited, and there would be a meal and a Q and A session, in addition to the conventional trophy presentations. Anticipated cost is likely to be in the region of ?27 squid, so bend the Supporters Club?s ample lugholes if you want more details.

But back to the main business of the evening, The Gaffer, and his Number Two. The preliminaries done with, the first question (no, not from The Fart, this time!) was on the lines of ?how did you manage to achieve such a transformation in the ability of our players so quickly?? According to our leader, it was down to the players, really. They could tell them things, but it was largely up to them how they took such advice on board and use it to improve, believe in themselves once more. There was a spell where we were playing good football, doing all the right things ? but not winning, and that was when it was important to keep hold of that fundamental belief in oneself. The players themselves showed good character during all that time, and now they were getting their just rewards. Bryan concluded by expressing the hope we could maintain that improvement for the remainder of the season.

Then it was Nigel Pearson?s turn to take centre stage. To his boss?s pertinent remarks he added the thought that to effect a permanent change in a playing staff used to playing a completely different style of football took time, and sometimes, a little bit longer than was first envisaged. However, now that aim had been achieved, and things were going our way at last, we were now in a position where we actually had a fighting chance of getting out of the mess we were in.

Bryan continued by saying that with the sort of situation we were in, you wanted things to be in your own hands and not ending up relying on the failings of other sides to keep us up. There was still a lot of hard work to go; on paper, we had one of the toughest run-ins of the lot. However, we?re now considerably more difficult to beat at home (8 unbeaten at the time of writing, apparently), and much is because of a vastly-improved team spirit. The recent American trip was invaluable in that respect. Everyone got to know each other much better than they did, and that had reaped dividends on the pitch, of course. Everyone was now puling together, and the fact we now had a smaller squad had also made a difference, strangely enough. Everyone?s more involved in events; again, this has served to foster a tremendous team spirit and self-belief.

So, what did our dynamic duo actually do in the week, when at the training ground? According to Our Nige, on Mondays, the players are told to turn up about 30 minutes later than is the norm; this enables the managerial team to hold discussions about various issues thrown up by the previous weekend?s game, and also gives both chance to properly sort out the schedule for that week. The gaffer?s in demand elsewhere quite a lot, of course, so he tries to lighten the managerial and coaching load wherever he can. They do work closely together for the most part, of course, and Nige reckons they complement each other very well.

One of the things they do is bounce tactical and selection ideas and thoughts off each other. In training, the workload is shared, but as he?s the gaffer proper, Bryan primarily concentrates on team play. That?s not set in stone, though ? they do tend to mix things from time to time. Joked Robbo, when we played Liverpool, earlier on, Nige did the ?team play? stuff, but when we beat Blues, he did!

Brian then went on to say that when he first arrived, he didn?t know all that much about some of our squad, so it was sometimes a case of learing on the job. Some players had their qualities grossly underestimated at first, and vice-versa; it took some time for them to establish properly who was good regarding commitment, attitude, etc. and who wasn?t quite doing the biz. Robbo reckoned those teething troubles cost us a fair few points at first. It?s all starting to come together, now, though. Clem? Fulsome praise for the lad, who has recently been given a five year deal, of course. The reason why Robbo was so pleased to secure his services for such a long time was because he?d seen him in action when at Boro, and had rated him highly then.

Big Dave has also been offered a two-year deal, a revelation that drew a pretty good burst of applause from the audience. Not surprising, really; Darren is the Albion player most likely to achieve sainthood, in the minds of most supporters. Paul Robinson and Tommy G? The former should be signing on also, while the latter?s done so well since being chucked into the fray because of injuries to other players, although his contract?s not yet up, he?s going to feature very much in Robbo?s long-term plans. Robbo also said they want to add quality players to the side irrespective of what division the club finds itself in next season, which means, presumably, more changes come the summer.

And what was their take on Sunday?s result? Our Nige was pretty pragmatic; in other seasons, our awful run of results prior to, and during the festive season, would have seen us well adrift and doomed by now. Because the other relegation candidates were dropping points also, that wasn?t the case, and Sunday was the first time we?d really managed to take advantage of others crashing and burning 24 hours before. Our back to back wins were great ? all we have to do is keep that momentum going. Because things have improved, the players are stronger; paradoxically, they manage themselves, almost, a happy stare of affairs which tends to make both their jobs much easier. However, we shouldn?t get carried away too much, because the job?s not finished yet. But, having said that, there?s now a belief at the club we can play anyone and do well.

Interjected Bryan (ooer, missus!), apropos the tremendous support both at Charlton, and for the Hawthorns Everton encounter, he reckoned both himself and the players were truly appreciative of our vocal efforts out there. Again, the message for the troops was that we could only ensure success by all pulling together, and that meant everyone ? from boardroom to boot-room. He?s very happy with our chairman; they, of course, want things done a certain way on the commercial side etc. but as far as the supporters are concerned, it has to be like it was versus Everton. Robbo was quite astonished by the scenes outside The Valley as the team coach approached the ground, and so were the players. And, on Sunday, to discover that come the final whistle, not one single soul had left The Brummie; looking at the tumultuous reception the lads got as they exited the pitch, he likened it in his own mind to a Cup Final win!

The next question was in the firm of an enquiry as to what was happening with Robert Earnshaw, and would Robbo be giving him a start, soon? The answer to that was quite surprising really. The fundamental problem with the lad, according to our gaffer, was that he?d never had a proper ?footballing education?. However, he was young, and a comparative newcomer to the Premiership, but someone with fantastic pace, ability, and all that coupled with a deadly finish. He still has to properly come to terms with our division, which, as we all knew, was a ?different planet? to The Championship. Having said all that, the lad genuinely did want to learn, and at the club, we?ve currently got three vastly experienced strikers ?Kanu, The Horse, and Kev Campbell ? all possessive of different strengths, but all providing excellent role-models for a player as young an inexperienced as Earnie.

The problem at the moment was that different games needed different tactics to give us the best chance of getting something from them. It?s always a difficult decision who to go with. The style adopted versus Charlton wouldn?t have done yesterday; because the Everton encounter was likely to be an encounter needing big, strong physical lads ? and, in any case, did they deserve to be dropped? Introducing Earnie might have worked, bit it was imperative we got the balance right. It?s good there?s competition out there. Likewise, all our midfield players know that if they don?t perform, because of competition in that department also, they can be dropped, and someone else shoved in.

Suddenly, a humorous note crept into the meeting. What did Robbo think of the suggestion that we adopt a ?Santa? theme for our end ?of-season-awayaday fancy dress-up? (The idea was based on the hopeful assumption we?ll have beaten the drop by the time we go to Old Trafford, the theme being a dig at the old ?bottom of the Prem by Christmas, relegated come May? hoodoo, which had yet to be broken, of course.) His reply? If we did adopt that particular theme that day, for the first time in the entire history of the Premiership, there could well be a manager sitting on the bench, and directing operations wearing a Father Christmas outfit! And, in response to another suggestion from the floor that Robbo should apply for the newly-vacant Vatican post, Nigel promptly made the sign of the cross at his audience! Naw, it would never catch on. Er, would it?

Then, a member of the audience expressed some pleasure that with the arrival of the new incumbents at the club, there had been a partial thawing of the rule barring supporters from watching training sessions from close distance. To that, Bryan responded that yes, he had tried to bring a little ?glasnost? back to the place, but he couldn?t make all sessions ?open house? unfortunately. No problem with supporters, just the fact there were security considerations regarding equipment to be taken into consideration ? by that, I could only assume that stuff had ?walked? from the place at some time or other.

Back to the playing side of things once more, and much praise for Ronnie Wallwork, whom Robbo rates very highly also. Presumably, Robbo saw much of the lad when he was involved at United. Mind you, there was a bit of a chuckle running around the room when Nigel let on he?d only recently discovered the existence of ?that song? about Ronnie, which documents, in somewhat florid terms, his astonishing improvement in form, of late! How did Nige find out? Easy, his son spilled the beans! A shame about Lee Marshall, though, who has had to call it a day because of injury. Another bit of news; Artim Sakiri has now decided to leave come the end of the season. As Nige said, it?s sad, but it?s better for all concerned the decision?s been made. It?s a shame things didn?t quite work out for him as expected, as he is a man with quite some talent; let?s just hope he can get fixed up with another side before too long.

Turning to happier themes once more, Robbo reckoned the Blues away game spoke volumes about the players as far as the pair of them were concerned. At the final whistle, being so used to Meggo laying into them in the dressing room afterwards, when Bryan and Nige didn?t do that, they thought they?d got away with it. Wrong! Bryan simply told the players to come in the following day, and once suitably gathered what you might care to describe as a ?frank and free? type of discussion took place!

Will Kieran Richardson stay? As things stand, we?ve got no chance of keeping him. He wants to return to United come the end of the season, and try and take his chances of attaining first-team status there. Having said all that, Bryan?s been really impressed by his positive attitude while he?s been with us, but wasn?t all that surprised he did so well; once more, he?s a lad that caught our manager?s eye when he was helping out at United.. He?s really mixed well with his temporary team-mates, and has loads of genuine ambition and drive, qualities Robbo really loves, as is evident from the many times those two short simple words came into the conversation tonight. Ideally, he?d like to keep the lad at The Hawthorns, but, as Bryan admitted, the only way that?s likely to happen is if Fergie suddenly decides he?s surplus to their requirements this summer. The likelihood of that happening? Not much.

Then, it was Nigel Pearson?s turn to hold forth, apropos the many good things to be seen in Zoltan Gera. As far as his command of English was concerned, Nige reckons he?s had something of an education in that respect from his playing colleagues ? but really wouldn?t like to repeat some of the things he?s been taught! Nige describes him as a ?lovely lad, not afraid of making mistakes, but that does make it good to work with him?. Martin Albrechtsen? This one?s amazing; his current ability on the flanks was only discovered by accident! Having seen the lad play right-sided in training, they casualy aked him what side he actually favoured ? only to discover he really should have been a left-sider all along! Incredible.

According to Robbo, though, the lad?s an absolute manager?s dream. But then they discovered a subtle twist to the lad?s playing style. As we all know, some players can do it very well indeed on the training pitch, but when it comes to a competitive game, managers find themselves watching a totally different person. Well, according to Robbo, Martin?s the complete opposite, and it?s only comparatively recently, he?s discovered this for himself. He never shouts in training, is never aggressive towards colleagues when going in for a tackle when they do practice five-a-sides etc. and the reaon is, he?s worried about injuring one of his own team-mates whislst doing so. Get him onto a pitch in a competitive game, however, and you?ve got yourself a completely different player! ?Robust? our manager calls it. No doubt his opposition counterpart can think of a much more apposite term with which to describe the lad.

?That? Villa game? It?s been 20 years since we last bested them, it?s a local derby, but the managerial approach will be similar to that of any other game. Business as usual, in other words. All the usual preparatory work; if we?re to be up for it, we?ve got to be aware of their various strengths and weaknesses. Again, self-belief is important ? it?s about getting out there and producing a performance, and if we do, we?ll get a result. And, chiucked onto the rear end of that one, another question from the floor. How did the present team compare with the 1978-79 Albion side, of which Robbo was such a successful part? The answer? ?Nowhere near!?

And, as the meeting drew to its close, some thoughts on ?that record?, the Christmas hoodoo to which I alluded earlier. According to our gaffer, records are there to be broken. If you have the desire, the belief, and the ability ? then why not? And, returning to the imminent prospect of that Villa game once more, Bryan reckons we?ll give them a hard game, irrespective of the score come the final whistle. Pretty much what I?d like to hear coming from the lips of a manager who was very much an Albion man in days of yore, of course!

As for the final word, that came from a chap who enquired of our manager what was the hardest ? riding the bike in ?Superstars?, or managing West Bromwich Albion? Robbo?s answer? Management, definitely!

And that, good folkies, was yer lot. Time to draw the raffle, and time for everyone to get autographs and piccies ? and that?s when The Fart finally managed to really impose his antiquated presence upon the proceedings. Not by talking, mind ? too simple, by half. No, what he did, when I asked him to line up with Robbo for a pic first off, was moving off prematurely, thinking I?d taken the blasted thing already. No, I hadn?t, my camera?s got an ?autofocus? feature, and sometimes, the little silicon chip inside decides to behave in similar fashion to a that of a more-than-usually-obtuse Dingle. When that happens, things can move somewhat slowly ? which is why I now have in my possession a picture consisting of a grinning Robbo, and only half a Fart!

Then, having explained that little lot to him, I got him to line up for another, at which point he then scooped up a poor little seven or eight year old lad standing in close proximity, much to the child?s complete bewilderment, in order to include the lad on the pic. Just as well for the poor sod he went in blissful ignorance of Tel?s famous bag, quietly lurking in close proximity to its owner at the time the picture was taken. After all, it has been known to devour unwitting urchins whole! (And, before you ask, no ? it doesn?t ?do? Dingles; come on, even the most voracious bits of hand-luggage get food poisoning occasionally!) I?ll be hitting cyberspace again in a couple of day?s time, when The GD Mean Machine moves to Sutton Branch, so until then, just keep making sure all your little important parts are dangling nicely, OK?

And finally?. This message is intended primarily for the chap who was so kind as to hand me an astonishing twenty quid donation to the Dovedale Day Care Centre Fund just prior to yesterday?s game. Laraine Astle was present at tonight?s meeting, and when I told her of your generosity, she was really made up because of it. Needless to say, she does send you heartfelt thanks for taking the trouble to part with such a hefty sum of money all in one go, and to a cause that?s genuinely dear to her ? as you probably know, much of The King?s last few months was spent at that centre, where he?s still fondly remembered. Well done, that man, say I.

 - Glynis Wright

Contact the Author

Diary Index