Tag: Gary Waddock

Tall Tunnicliffe’s tilt at the top fell short and he quit at 24

ONE-TIME Liverpool triallist James Tunnicliffe quit playing football at 24.

When he was only 16, a £750,000 move from Stockport County to the ‘mighty’ Reds was on the cards.

But Liverpool’s then boss, Rafa Benitez, gave the young hopeful the thumbs down and his subsequent short playing career petered out in the lower leagues.

Tunnicliffe – a Russell Slade signing for Brighton in June 2009 – was at the heart of League One Albion’s defence for Gus Poyet’s first game as Seagulls manager.

But there was plenty of competition in that area of the team and, before long, the 6ft 4in centre half struggled to hold down a place. Initially Adam Virgo, Tommy Elphick, Jake Wright and Adam El-Abd were all competing in that position and, although Wright moved on, Gordon Greer – instantly appointed captain – and homegrown Lewis Dunk steamed ahead of him in the pecking order.

Slade had signed him on a three-year deal, declaring at the time: “He’s 20 and one or two other clubs were looking at the situation higher up, Championship clubs.

“We’ve kept everything quiet and gone about the business in the right manner and we’ve got our man.”

Slade told the Argus: “He has got huge potential. He’s a decent athlete for his size, handles the ball very well and hopefully will be a threat for us in the box. There’s lots more to come from him. He’s a really good, positive signing.”

Midfielder Gary Dicker, a former Stockport teammate who made the same move, added: “He’s a good tall, strong athlete and a good player.”

The player himself admitted it was a good word put in by another former Stockport teammate, Jim McNulty, that influenced his move.

“We’re good friends and used to live a couple of doors apart in Manchester and travelled into training together at Stockport,” he told the matchday programme. “He absolutely loves it here and that helped sway my decision to come.”

Albion watcher Andy Naylor had a mainly favourable first impression although he was less sure about the tactic of using the central defender to launch long throws. In an Argus comment piece, Naylor wrote: “He looks composed, comfortable in possession and has good pace for one so tall. The jury is out, though, on just how much Albion should try to exploit Tunnicliffe’s long throw.

“It has more of a loop than Rory Delap’s torpedo-like delivery and has caused opposing defences few problems so far. Albion would arguably be better served exploiting Tunnicliffe’s 6ft 4ins frame in the goalmouth for set pieces.

“His throw remains a potentially useful weapon, for example during the closing stages of the game if the Seagulls are chasing an equaliser, but it should perhaps be used more sparingly.”

Somewhat ironically, while not starting the first four games of the season, he made his first league start at home to his old club Stockport – when Albion were on the wrong end of a 4-2 scoreline.

Tunnicliffe scored the first goal of his career in a 1-1 draw at Bristol Rovers in September 2009 after captain Adam Virgo had been sent off. He said: “I am doing everything I can to keep my shirt. I don’t want to lose that and hopefully I can contribute a few more goals this season as well.”

His performance alongside Elphick drew the admiration of Richie Morris, who wrote in the matchday programme: “Tunnicliffe not only bulleted his first goal for the club with a well taken header, but diverted a Carl Rogan shot over and cleared what looked like a late winner off the line.”

Tunnicliffe scored again – this time just a consolation goal – in a 4-1 defeat at Norwich that was Poyet’s fourth game in charge. But he was cast aside after playing in the FA Cup against Torquay at the turn of the new year and, before long, was sent out on loan to MK Dons.

Any hoped-for restoration to the first team on his return was dashed when at the start of the following season he was shipped out on a season-long loan to Bristol Rovers. Eventually, with a year still left on his contract, he agreed an early end to his Seagulls deal and joined Wycombe Wanderers in the summer of 2011.

Despite it all, he told seagulls.co.uk: “It’s been frustrating for me over the last 18 months but I loved being here and I haven’t got a bad word to say about the club. I made a lot of good friends and I’m sure the team will have a very good season in the Championship.

“I’m a bit disappointed with how it worked out but I’m now focusing on working hard over the summer to try and secure first-team football with Wycombe.

“I’ve watched Wycombe a lot and I know plenty about the manager, Gary Waddock, who looks to play good football, so it’s an attractive club for me to move to.

“I’ve done a lot of thinking about what is going to be best for me and Wycombe is a good club, recently promoted to League One and on the up, so it’s hopefully going to be a good move for me.

“I’m now excited about a new challenge and I feel like I’ve got a lot of things to prove to myself and the other clubs. I want to show that I am a good player.”

Waddock pointed out: “James is a talented young centre-back with experience of playing at this level.

“He’s a footballing defender who can play out from the back. A lot of clubs were interested in him.”

And Tunnicliffe told the Bucks Free Press: “I’m more than just a defender who kicks it, I like to pass it at the right time. I’m looking forward to being in the team next year and doing well in League One.”

Born in Denton, Manchester, on 17 January 1989, Tunnicliffe went to a particularly sporty school, Audenshaw High in Manchester, and, as well as playing a lot of football, he was also good at golf and cricket as well as being a decent 100-metres hurdler.

It was at Stockport’s school of excellence that he honed his football skills: his grandad, John Bishop, was the club’s kitman at the time, and later a masseuse.

In October 2005 the young Tunnicliffe was sent on a two-week trial to European Champions Liverpool and the pound signs were already beginning to form in the eyes of his parent club: a £750,000 deal was said to have been agreed for the youngster.

Unfortunately, Benitez was unable to watch the 16-year-old because he was away with the first team for a Champions League match with Anderlecht.

Tunnicliffe was handed an extra week with the Reds to give Benitez the chance to cast his eye over the youngster, but he but did not do enough to convince the Spaniard and the proposed deal collapsed.

He returned to the League Two Hatters where manager Chris Turner reckoned the youngster’s time at Anfield had helped to develop their promising player.

“It has been a fantastic experience for him and I’m sure it’ll benefit both the player and Stockport County,” he said. “He trains with our first team at the moment and doesn’t look out of place at the age of 16 so you can imagine how highly we regard him.”

As predicted by Turner, Tunnicliffe made his first team debut as a substitute in a 2-0 defeat at Notts County and he went on to make 50 appearances for them. He also had a brief loan spell with Northwich Victoria in 2007 and, perhaps bitten by his Liverpool experience, turned down the offer of a move to Southampton because he felt he would be better served staying put.

If the move from Brighton to Wycombe was an opportunity for a fresh start, he couldn’t have wished for a better start, scoring on his debut in a 1-1 draw against Scunthorpe.

But after beginning as a regular, he was dropped after a 3-1 Johnstone’s Paint Trophy defeat at home to Cheltenham Town in October and only made a handful of appearances after that.

His final Wanderers game was in a 6-0 tonking by Huddersfield at Adams Park in January 2012, after which he was dropped in favour of youngster Anthony Stewart.

The following month he joined League Two side Crewe Alexandra on a 30-day loan, citing homesickness as a reason for wanting away from Wycombe.

Injury curtailed his spell at Gresty Road and in the summer of 2012 he rejoined Stockport, who by then were playing in the Conference National. The following year he made eleven appearances on loan for Stalybridge Celtic before returning to County.

He took the decision to retire from football aged just 24 and, on his LinkedIn profile, says: “The experiences I endured in my eight-year professional career, filled with some highs and many lows, were a catalyst that inspired me to step into the football intermediary world.”

Indeed, he cropped up as a ‘representative’ for former teammate Glenn Murray when he was involved in negotiations with Brighton over a new contract.

Tunnicliffe says of himself: “I am a people’s person and my current role enables me to advise, support, empower and challenge clients, whilst providing opportunities where they can excel and get the best out of their abilities.

“In addition, the role has provided a platform to grow a worldwide network and converse with people from various organisations and backgrounds.”

He says that in September 2022 he enrolled onto the Masters In Sports Directorship programme at Manchester Metropolitan University.

“This course has presented me with an opportunity to enhance my self-awareness and existing knowledge, whilst developing areas of deficiency.

“I am embracing this academic challenge and look forward to learning more about the commercial and business functions of a sporting organisation over the remaining duration of the course.”

Why John Gregory was a hero and a Villain

ANY Brighton player who scores twice in a win over Crystal Palace is generally revered forever. The sheen John Gregory acquired for that feat was somewhat tarnished when he was manager of Aston Villa.

Gregory’s brace in a vital 3-0 win over Palace on Easter Saturday 1981 helped ensure the Seagulls survived in the top-flight (while the Eagles were already heading for relegation).

In 1998, though, he was caught up in a wrangle over Brighton’s efforts to secure a sizeable fee for their input to the early career of Gareth Barry, who’d joined Villa while still a teenage prodigy.

Albion’s chairman Dick Knight pursued the matter through the correct football channels and eventually secured a potential seven-figure sum of compensation for the St Leonards-born player, who spent six years in Brighton’s youth ranks but refused to sign a YTS deal after Villa’s approach.

The Football League appeals tribunal met in London and ruled the Premiership side should pay Brighton £150,000 immediately, rising to a maximum £1,025,000 if he made 60 first-team appearances and was capped by England. Brighton were also to receive 15 per cent of any sell-on fee.

“It was what I had hoped for, although I hadn’t necessarily expected the tribunal to deliver it,” Knight said in his autobiography, Mad Man – From the Gutter to the Stars. “Villa certainly hadn’t; Gregory was furious and stormed out of the building.”

Gregory mockingly asserted that Knight wouldn’t have recognised the player if he’d stood on Brighton beach wearing an Albion shirt, a football under his arm and a seagull on his head.

“For a former Albion player, Gregory surprisingly seemed to take it as a personal affront,” said Knight. “His position was patronising and the behaviour of Aston Villa scandalous.”

Although Villa paid the initial instalment, they didn’t lie down and go with the ruling and ultimately Knight ended up doing a deal with Villa chairman, ‘Deadly’ Doug Ellis, for £850,000 that gave Brighton a huge cash injection in an hour of need.

Barry, of course, ended up having a stellar career, earning 53 England caps, making 653 Premier League appearances and captaining Villa during 11 years at the club.

Knight’s settlement with Ellis meant Brighton missed out on £1.8 million which they would have been entitled to when Barry was sold on to Manchester City in 2009.

But back to Gregory. He had a habit of returning to manage clubs he had previously played for. Villa was one (between February 1998 and January 2002). He also bossed QPR, who he played for after two years with the Albion, and Derby County, who he’d played for in the Third, Second and First Divisions.

His first foray into management had been at Portsmouth. He then worked as a coach under his former Villa teammate Brian Little at Leicester City (1991-1994) and Villa (1994-1996) before becoming a manager in his own right again during two years at Wycombe Wanderers.

The lure of Villa drew him back to take charge as manager at Villa Park in February 1998 when he was in charge of players such as Gareth Southgate, Paul Merson and David Ginola.

During his near four-year reign, Villa reached the 2000 FA Cup Final – they were beaten 2-0 by Chelsea – but won the UEFA Intertoto Cup in November 2001, beating Switzerland’s Basel 4-1.

Although his win percentage (43 per cent) was better at Villa than at any other club he managed, fan pressure had been building when league form slumped as the 2001-02 season went past the halfway mark and a ‘Gregory out’ banner was displayed in the crowd.

Gregory eventually bowed to the pressure and tendered his resignation, although chairman Ellis said: “John’s resignation is sad. It was most unexpected but has been amicable.”

He stepped out of the frying pan into the fire when he took charge of an ailing Derby County, who were bottom of the Premier League, and, after a winning start, he wasn’t able to keep them up.

County sacked him in March 2003 for alleged misconduct but in a protracted legal wrangle he eventually won £1m for unfair dismissal. However, the ongoing dispute meant he couldn’t take up another job and he spent much of the time as a TV pundit instead.

It was in September 2006 that he finally stepped back into a managerial role, taking over from Gary Waddock as QPR manager, and while he managed to save them from relegation from the Championship, ongoing poor form the following season led to him being sacked in October 2007.

It only emerged in 2013 that five years earlier Gregory had discovered he was suffering from prostate cancer. Nevertheless, he continued working, managing two clubs in Israel and one in Kazakhstan.

He had one other English managerial job, taking charge of Crawley Town in December 2013, although ill health brought his reign to an end after a year and former Albion striker Dean Saunders replaced him.

Two and a half years after leaving Crawley, Gregory emerged as head coach of Chennaiyin in the Indian Super League. With former Albion favourite Inigo Calderon part of his side, he led them in 2018 to a second league title win, and he was named the league’s coach of the year.

Born in Scunthorpe on 11 May 1954, Gregory was one of five sons and two daughters of a professional footballer also called John who had started his career at West Ham.

The Gregory family moved to Aldershot when young John was only two (his dad had been transferred to the Shots) but then moved to St Neots, near Huntingdon, when his father took up a job as a security guard after retiring from the game.

Young Gregory went to St Neots Junior School and his first football memories date from the age of nine, and he was selected as a striker for the Huntingdonshire County under 12 side.

He moved on to Longsands Comprehensive School and played at all age levels for Huntingdon before being selected for the Eastern Counties under 15 side in the English Schools Trophy.

Northampton Town signed him on apprentice terms at the age of 15 and he progressed to the first team having been converted to a defender and remained with the Cobblers for seven years.

It was in 1977 that Ron Saunders signed him for Villa for £65,000, which was considered quite a sum for a Fourth Division player.

Gregory famously played in every outfield position during his two years at Villa Park and he welcomed the move to newly promoted Albion because it finally gave him the chance to pin down a specific position.

Chris Cattlin had been right-back as Albion won promotion from the second tier for the first time in their history but he was coming to the end of his career and, in July 1979, the Albion paid what was at the time a record fee of £250,000 to sign Gregory to take over that position. Steve Foster joined at the same time, from Portsmouth.

“I wore every shirt at Villa,” Gregory told Shoot! magazine. “I never had an established position. I was always in the side, but there was a lot of switching around. When Alan Mullery came in for me, he made it clear he wanted me to play at right-back.”

The defender added: “I respect Alan Mullery as a manager and I like the way he thinks about the game.

“Brighton are a very attacking side. There’s nothing the boss loves more than skill. That comes first in his mind. He wants all ten outfield players to attack when they can. That attitude, more than anything else, played a big part in me coming here.”

Gregory started the first 12 games of the season but was then sidelined when he had to undergo an appendix operation.

He returned as first choice right-back in the second half of the season and had a good start to the 1980-81 campaign when he scored in the opening 2-0 home win over Wolves.

His second of the season came against his old club, a header from a pinpoint Gordon Smith cross giving Albion the lead at Villa Park against the run of play. But it was to be an unhappy return for Gregory because the home side fought back to win 4-1.

In November 1980, it looked like Gregory might leave the Goldstone in a proposed cash-plus-player swap for QPR’s Northern Ireland international David McCreery, but the player, settled with his family in Ovingdean, said he wanted to stay at the Goldstone.

“The offer Gregory received was fantastic, but he prefers to stay with us,” chairman Mike Bamber told the Evening Argus. “I regard this as a great compliment.”

The following month, he got the only goal of the game in a 1-0 Boxing Day win at Leicester but in March, with Albion desperate to collect points to avoid the drop, Mullery put Gregory into midfield. He responded with four goals in seven matches, netting in a 1-1 draw away to Man City, grabbing the aforementioned pair at Selhurst Park on Easter Saturday and the opener two days later when Leicester were beaten 2-1 at the Goldstone.

Little did he know it would be his last as a Brighton player because within weeks Mullery quit as manager and Bamber finally couldn’t resist QPR’s overtures.

“I know Alan Mullery turned down a bid but a couple of days after he resigned chairman Mike Bamber accepted QPR’s offer,” Gregory recalled in an interview with Match Weekly. “I hadn’t asked for a move so the news that I was to be allowed to go was quite a surprise.”

He added: “It was a wrench. I found it difficult to turn my back on the lads at Brighton.

“I enjoyed two years at the Goldstone Ground and made many friends, but the prospect of a new challenge at Rangers appealed to me.”

Gregory admitted he used to watch Spurs as a youngster and ironically his two favourite players were Venables and Mullery – and he ended up playing for them both.

Although he dropped down a division to play for QPR, he said: “Rangers are a First Division set up and I’m sure we’ll be back soon.”

Not only did he win promotion with Rangers in the 1983-84 season but, at the age of 29, he earned a call up to the England set-up under Bobby Robson.

He won six caps, the first three of which (right) came against Australia when they played three games (two draws and an England win) in a week in June 1983, in a side also featuring Russell Osman and Mark Barham.

Gregory retained his midfield place for the European Championship preliminary match in September when England lost 1-0 to Denmark at Wembley but he was switched to right-back for the 3-0 away win over Hungary the following month.  

His sixth and final cap came in the Home International Championship match in Wrexham in May 1984 when he was back in midfield as England succumbed to a 1-0 defeat to Wales, a game in which his QPR teammate Terry Fenwick went on as a substitute to earn the first of 20 caps for England.

Gregory continues to demonstrate his love for the game, and particularly Villa, via his Twitter account and earlier in the 2021-22 season, his 32,000 followers saw a heartfelt reaction to the sacking of Dean Smith.

“Dean Smith gave Aston Villa Football Club the kiss of life when the club was an embarrassment to Villa fans and he rekindled the love and passion and success on the field where so many others had failed hopelessly,” said Gregory.

• Pictures from the Albion matchday programme, Shoot! magazine and various online sources.

Seagulls kick-started lengthy career for trailblazer Zesh

ZESH REHMAN became the first British Asian of Pakistani origin to play for Brighton.

He played in two separate spells three years apart and his 20 Albion appearances spanned four different managers: Steve Coppell, Bob Booker, Mark McGhee and Dean Wilkins.

His first action in Seagulls colours came in September 2003 and the experience he gained during a three-month loan provided him with the experience to return to parent club Fulham and make his Premier League debut.

Before his temporary move to Brighton he had played one first team game in the League Cup for FuIham, and, only a matter of days later, Coppell signed him for the Seagulls.

“It’s an opportunity to get some first team football,” said Rehman. “This season I’ve been in central midfield, but it doesn’t matter what position I play, I just hope I can do a job for Brighton.

“(Fulham boss) Chris Coleman told me it would be good to come and learn here,” he added.

I can remember being at the Nene Park home of Rushden & Diamonds (above left) to see 19-year-old Rehman mark his debut in the centre of midfield with a goal to seal a 3-1 win for the Seagulls. He scored with an exquisite lob over ‘keeper Billy Turley to add to goals from Guy Butters and Leon Knight. Incidentally, Paul Kitson, released by Brighton that summer after an injury-wrecked 2002-03 season, came on as a sub for Rushden.

Rehman had only played twice before Coppell vacated the manager’s chair at Withdean to take over at Reading, but in Booker’s first game in charge, Rehman was once again on the scoresheet as the Seagulls beat Grimsby Town 3-0.

The utility player stayed with the Seagulls after McGhee’s appointment as manager but after 13 matches he returned to Craven Cottage in January 2004.

Born in Birmingham on 14 October 1983, Rehman was brought up a stone’s throw from Villa Park in the Aston area of the city. The promise he showed in schools, district and county football was soon spotted and at the tender age of 12 he signed up to Fulham’s academy, with the family moving to London.

He progressed through the junior, youth and reserve sides, mainly as a centre back but also able to play full-back or as a holding midfielder.

The spell at Brighton gave him his first extended run in a first team environment and, three months after his return to Fulham, he made his Premier League debut as a late substitute at Anfield. He went on to make a total of 30 appearances for Fulham (26 starts, plus four as a sub), but with first team opportunities limited he had another loan spell away, joining Norwich City in January 2006.

He was at Carrow Road until the end of the season, making just five appearances as defensive cover, and on his return to London opted to leave Fulham in search of regular football.

Gary Waddock gave him a three-year contract at Queens Park Rangers and he made 27 appearances for the Rs but one of the club’s many managerial changes saw the arrival of former Albion defender John Gregory, and he was happy to send Rehman out on loan.

Lo and behold, Albion, by then with Wilkins at the helm, seized on the opportunity because Adam El-Abd was on the brink of a suspension, and Dean Hammond and loan full-back Joe O’Ceaurill were struggling with injuries.

“Zesh gives us a degree of versatility, as well as the experience he has picked up playing at Premiership level for Fulham, so he is a good addition for us,” Wilkins told the Argus.

For his part, Rehman said: “As soon as I found out Brighton wanted me, I thought I owe the club because they were the first to give me regular first team football.

“I’ve got great memories of my time here before. The club and the fans have had a special place in my heart ever since, so I couldn’t really turn it down.”

His second Albion debut saw him playing right-back in a disappointing 0-0 draw at home to Huddersfield Town, but Rehman was just grateful to be playing competitively again.

He told Andy Naylor: “Being out there on a Saturday is a buzz, whether it is at Brighton, Fulham or QPR. I had that at QPR for the first six months of the season but then a new manager came in and I didn’t play for a little while so, rather than just getting stale, I’ve come to Brighton and hopefully I can kick on again when I get back there.”

Rehman played eight games during his second spell at the club, his last marked by picking out striker Nathan Elder who slotted Albion’s goal in a 1-1 draw at Cheltenham on 5 May 2007.

The following season, a six-month loan at Blackpool didn’t work out as he’d hoped for, featuring in only three games under Simon Grayson, and he went back to QPR. However, by the end of January he was on the move again, this time to link up with bottom-tier side Bradford City, initially on loan, and then making the move permanent.

Rehman details his various career moves on his own website, and at Bradford his involvement took on a lot more importance than just playing games. He said:

“Hopefully I can inspire some local Asian people to start coming to games and really feel a part of the club. I want Asian kids to feel they have someone to look up to. Bradford is a big city with a big Asian population and if I can inspire one or two local kids to go on and make it as professionals, I’ll know I’ve made a positive difference to someone’s life and that’s good enough for me.”

Born in the UK, Rehman represented England at under 18, 19 and 20 levels, but opted to play for his parents’ home country of Pakistan, and he captained them at the 2013 Peace Cup in the Philippines.

Between 2011 and the start of 2017, Rehman spent six years playing in Asia, initially for Muangthong United in Thailand, then Kitchee SC in Hong Kong and lastly Pahang in Malaysia.

But the lure of the English game saw him spend four months at Gillingham between February and May 2017, helping the relegation-threatened Gills to retain their League One status.

The following month he headed back out to Hong Kong to play for Southern District FC where, in May 2020, he became player-manager.

In March 2023, Rehman was promoted to first team development coach by Portsmouth having moved to Fratton Park in the summer of 2022 as the academy’s lead professional development phase coach.

He stepped up to help the first team temporarily when Danny and Nicky Cowley left the club in January 2023 and remained in post when John Mousinho took over as head coach.

Rehman set up training on Mousinho’s first day and the head coach said: “Since that day he’s been absolutely brilliant. He’s incredibly diligent and the lads and staff at the club all really like him.

“He adds something different to me and Jon (Harley), providing a different angle, and is an influential presence on the bench.

“Development is a key part of what we’re trying to do here and when we talk about the complementary skillsets of the coaching staff, that’s something he can bring to the fore.”

Rehman said: “I believe continual development is needed by players of all ages and at all stages of their careers. Every player is a work in progress and never the finished article.

“There is no better feeling than assisting an individual, partnership or a unit to improve and then see that work transferred to a matchday, helping the team win.”