Tag: Steve Harper

Big-time beckoned for Bratislava-born Brezovan

LANKY Slovakian stopper Peter Brezovan, who saved penalties on his Albion and Swindon Town debuts, once came close to a dream move to Everton.

The Merseyside outfit had him on a five-day trial with a view to signing him on a permanent basis from Swindon.

“It was very rewarding just to train alongside Tim Howard and face all these international players,” he said. “It was an experience I’ll never forget.”

Former Man Utd ‘keeper Howard was Everton’s no.1 in 2007 and, having released Richard Wright that summer, manager David Moyes had only new signing Stefan Wessels and the little-used Iain Turner as back-up ‘keepers. Everton’s goalkeeper coach was the former England international Chris Woods.

While Everton didn’t follow up their interest in Brezovan with an offer (three years later they did sign a Slovakian goalkeeper, Jan Mucha), it sounded like Swindon rather over-egged their expectations of a big payday.

Robins stopper

The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald reckoned a £300,000 eve of deadline day offer from Wolverhampton Wanderers had been rejected, saying: “Town will be asking for a substantial amount more.”

The newspaper added: “If the price is right, Town are ready to cash in on their number two keeper.” And manager at the time, Paul Sturrock reportedly told the Mirror: “If I was offered something like £2m, Brez would be an Everton player.”

The Toffees had originally taken an interest in Brezovan and invited him for a trial when he made an eye-catching start in English football in 2006. Not only did he save two penalties in his first game for Swindon, he conceded only five goals as Town won six of their opening seven matches and won the PFA Player of the Month award for September. Unluckily, a badly broken arm put him out of the game for nine months but Everton revived their invitation when Brezovan was fit again.

It probably didn’t help the ‘keeper’s progress at Swindon that successive managers came and went during his time at the club. It was Dennis Wise who signed him on a year’s loan from Czech side 1.FC Brno shortly after he’d taken over as Swindon manager, assisted by his former Chelsea teammate Gus Poyet, but by October the pair (along with goalkeeper coach Andy Beasley, who later spent a year at Brighton) left Wiltshire to take over at Leeds United.

County Ground caretaker managers David Tuttle and Ady Williams were followed by Sturrock for a year; David Byrne twice held the fort temporarily and Maurice Malpas was in charge for 11 months in 2008. When he left in November that year, Danny Wilson arrived the following month.

Born on 9 December 1979 in Bratislava, Brezovan’s first football memories were playing at right-back. In a matchday programme article, he explained: “In the first game of the season our ‘keeper got injured, so the biggest kid had to go in goal – and I’ve been there ever since. I’ve always been tall so looked upon to go in goal but, unlike a lot of kids, I enjoyed it.”

Brezovan spent his youth career at the city’s MŠK Iskra Petržalka and also played for Devin in the city before spending two years in the Czech Republic with FC Slovan Břeclav and HFK Olomouc. He then spent four years at FC Brno in South Moravia, although it was while he was on loan back in Bratislava, playing for FK Inter Bratislava, that he was spotted by Swindon and subsequently made the move to England.

In spite of his spectacular start for the Robins, when he couldn’t speak a word of English, it would be fair to say Swindon have mixed memories of his time at the County Ground, chronicled in detail on swindon-town-fc.co.uk. After former Albion captain Wilson released him at the end of the 2008-09 season, he was without a club for six months.

He had an unsuccessful trial at Crewe Alexandra in October 2009 but Poyet, not long after succeeding Russell Slade as Albion boss, signed him for a month at the beginning of December to cover a mini goalkeeper crisis he inherited.

Regular no.1 Michel Kuipers was injured and Slade’s misfit summer signing Graeme Smith had conceded 11 goals in three defeats and one win.

Handed his debut on a drizzly, grey December afternoon at Exeter (I know, because I was there, getting wet on the uncovered terrace behind the goal!), Brezovan went from zero to hero, according to writer Richie Morris, after upending  former Albion loanee Stuart Fleetwood in the penalty area and then impressively saving Marcus Stewart’s spot kick.

“The former Slovakian under 21 international pulled off a string of comfortable, but reassuring saves,” wrote Morris. “True, he did nearly gift the home side a goal with a wayward clearance, but, considering how long he has been out of first team football, he can be happy with a solid performance.”

A somewhat modest Brezovan attributed his penalty save to goalkeeper coach Tony Godden’s homework. “He told me where Marcus Stewart puts his penalties and I dived the right way but it was a great feeling to help the team to victory,” he said.

Penalty-saver!

On another occasion, Brezovan expanded on his technique with penalties, telling the matchday programme: “It’s mainly instinct on the day. You get the stats guys who help you with your preparation – they will tell you where certain players tend to put the ball but sometimes you just have to go with how you feel in that moment and go for it.

“I don’t get the lads to take penalties at me after training either – I hate doing that. It’s all about how you are on the day.”

Brezovan’s arrival signalled the departure of the hapless Smith who ended his six-month nightmare in English football by returning to Scotland, moving on a free transfer to Hibernian. And the Slovakian’s short-term arrangement ultimately extended into a four-and-a-half-year spell as a Brighton player.

There were occasions when he was tempted to move on for more regular game time, but he confessed to loving the area and stayed put even though first team opportunities were few and far between.

In that first season, fans’ favourite Kuipers, not for the first time, found his place under threat because of the 6’6” Brezovan’s form. But a blunder by the new man in a game at home to Wycombe prompted Poyet to bring back the former Dutch marine (chef) at the start of the new year.

Kuipers had an eight-game run in the starting line-up but then broke a finger. Brezovan, having had his contract extended, seized his chance and kept his place through to the end of the season.

Brezovan told the matchday programme: “We are good friends, we train well together, and so I really feel for him. We don’t feel like rivals at all in that respect but I know that while I am in the team I will be giving my all to make sure I maintain my place.”

It paid off because Poyet offered him a two-year contract at the end of the season, saying: “Peter has earned his new contract. Initially he came to play and help us out but I expected he would prove he was worth a longer deal and he has done that.

“He has been a very important part of our turnaround since Christmas and now his challenge is to make the position his own for next season and beyond.”

And the ‘keeper told the Argus: “Together with my girlfriend, I’ve really settled here. I think that Brighton is the nicest city in England and we’re really happy here.

“I owe a lot to the manager because he brought me to the club and I’m glad he wants me to stay. That’s why it was so easy to sign the deal. The manager will no doubt bring in more good players in the summer so it’s going to be an exciting season.”

He was right about the excitement because Albion went on to win the League One championship title; what he might not have anticipated was that because he was nursing a wrist injury on the eve of the season opener against his old club Swindon, Poyet moved quickly to sign another ‘keeper who he’d worked with at a previous club: Casper Ankergren.

The Dane, released by Leeds, instantly became first choice ‘keeper and Brezovan spent most of the season watching from the bench, making just seven starts in the FA Cup (the first and second round matches both went to replays). Close to the end of the season he went on as a sub for the injured Ankergren in the 18th minute of the 25 April league game at Colchester United, making important saves from Ian Henderson and David Mooney as the Albion salvaged a point in a 1-1 draw.

Brezovan was also in goal for the penultimate game of the season, and the last ever played at the Withdean, when Huddersfield won 3-2. A defensive gaffe by Inigo Calderon, who left Brezovan stranded by chesting the ball down inside the area, let in Benik Afobe to put Town 2-1 ahead; sub Matt Sparrow equalised for the Seagulls and, although Brezovan twice made excellent saves to deny defender Jamie McCombe, sub Danny Ward scored a last-minute winner.

Brezovan resumed his place on the bench as 2011-12 got under way with Ankergren once again Poyet’s first choice no.1, although, after he’d shipped 13 goals in eight games in the autumn, the manager brought experienced Newcastle custodian Steve Harper on loan for five games.

Brezovan preferred to see the positive side of it, though, telling the matchday programme: “That was a good experience for all the goalkeepers. He is a vastly experienced ‘keeper and we have learned from his time here.”

After Albion went through a four-game losing streak in December, Brezovan got the call to take over from Ankergren in the new year match at home to Southampton when an injury-hit Albion sprung a surprise, winning 3-0 with a memorable brace from midfielder Sparrow.

It was only after the game that Poyet revealed how his plan to change ‘keepers nearly didn’t come to fruition. “For the last week Peter has been waiting for his wife to have a baby, every day,” Poyet told the Argus. “I needed to wait until 1.30 to tell him he was playing. The baby was due three or four days ago, so we were all thinking ‘come on girl, go on’!”

Later the same month, Brezovan was hailed a hero when he saved a crucial spot-kick in a penalty shoot-out in a third round FA Cup replay at Wrexham and he told Brian Owen of the Argus: “I enjoyed it. The pressure is all on the strikers at penalties because they can just mess it up. You have nothing to lose, you are practically without pressure.

“I knew one player and where he goes and I saved his penalty so we could have a laugh in the end.”

Nevertheless, Poyet was obviously still unsure about the goalkeeping situation. He let third choice Michael Poke go on loan to Bristol Rovers but brought in Columbian David Gonzalez, who’d been with Man City for two years, to put pressure on Brezovan and Ankergren.

“The gaffer wanted to bring in another keeper. You have to face it, with Casper, and keep working to keep our positions,” said Brezovan.“I’ve got another year. If you want to stay at a club for a long time, you have to play. You can’t be just like a useless second or third choice. This is my opportunity and I am going to do everything to stay in goal.”

He did indeed stay in goal but on two occasions let in six! The first drubbing was handed out by Liverpool in the fifth round of the FA Cup at Anfield (with Albion famously conceding three own goals in a 6-1 defeat).

After Brezovan shipped another six against West Ham at the Boleyn Ground, Poyet had seen enough. The patient Gonzalez replaced Brezovan in goal for the following game, one of six changes to the side that capitulated to the Hammers.

Come the new season, Brezovan and Ankergren had even more of a challenge on their hands when experienced Polish international and former Manchester United ‘keeper Tomasz Kuszczak arrived at the Amex.

It pushed Brezovan down the pecking order to third choice ‘keeper and he played only once all season, in a 2-1 win at Huddersfield when Kuszczak had a finger infection that ruled him out and Ankergren picked up an injury in training two days before the game.

Brezovan stayed at the club as no.3 ‘keeper for the 2013-14 season and once again injuries to the first and second choices in Oscar Garcia’s side presented him with a rare opportunity. He ended up playing eight games, four in the league and four in the FA Cup.

He made his first appearance for 13 months in the 7 December 3-1 win at home to Leicester after Kuszczak pulled out in the warm-up with a stomach muscle strain, with Ankergren already sidelined with a wrist injury. In an interview with the Argus, on his 34th birthday, Brezovan spoke openly about possibly moving on to get more games.

“It’s hard because Brighton is a beautiful place and I love the people around here. It’s not easy to go.

“If there was an offer from the same level, I would probably try it. Going to a lower division, getting injured and then to be there on the bench is risky.”

And of his sudden chance back in the Albion goal, he reflected: “That’s football. Things can happen quickly and it’s beautiful. It shows how everyone is important. When you don’t play for a long time, even in training, you start to think it’s hard to motivate yourself.

“That’s why you need good lads around you. I love the guys here. They always help you to be motivated. When you play and your contract is running out you need to find that motivation.”

His appearance in the fifth round FA Cup replay defeat (1-2) at Hull City on 24 February turned out to be his last first team game and he was released at the end of his contract that summer having featured 62 times for the Seagulls.

He trained with Oxford United during pre-season and at the start of the next season joined Portsmouth for a month as cover for Paul Jones. On transfer deadline day, he signed a one-year contract with Tranmere Rovers.

Although he played seven games for Rovers, he lost his place to regular ‘keeper Owain Fon Williams. He had a loan stint at Southport in early 2015 but at the end of the season, following Rovers’ relegation from League Two, he was released.

Interviewed by the Argus in December 2015, Brezovan had returned to Brno in the Czech Republic, quit football and turned to publishing music online.

“I lost a little bit of motivation,” he said. “The football wasn’t going anywhere and I’d had enough. I’m focusing on this now.”

Teenage debutant ‘keeper Forster forever just a back-up

A GOALKEEPER who held a ‘youngest ever’ record for 58 years played second fiddle between the sticks for Charlton Athletic and Brighton.

Derek Forster had started out at Sunderland and was only FIFTEEN when he played in goal in front of a 45,000 Roker Park crowd in the opening game of the 1964-65 season.

The youngster let in three – but so did his opposite number, Gordon Banks, the England international who was in goal for opponents Leicester City.

“Derek’s a wonderful prospect. From what I could see, he didn’t make a single mistake,” said Banks after the game.

Forster had played in front of an even bigger crowd a few months’ earlier when 95,000 at Wembley saw him keep goal for England Schools against West Germany.

But those early tests of nerves were of little consequence because Forster’s career didn’t pan out quite as he might have wanted.

Sunderland’s first choice ‘keeper, Jim Montgomery, was one of the country’s top goalkeepers, best known for a match-winning double-save for the Wearsiders in the 1973 FA Cup Final at Wembley when second tier Sunderland beat high-flying Leeds United 1-0.

Montgomery remained largely injury-free – and made a record 627 appearances for Sunderland – meaning over the course of eight years the 5’9” Forster only got to play 30 league and cup games for the Mackems.

It was only after that amazing FA Cup win in 1973 that Forster finally left his home in the north-east and tried his luck in London. He joined third tier Charlton who were managed by Theo Foley, a former Eire international teammate of his old Sunderland playing colleague, Charlie Hurley.

Forster was soon in action for the Addicks, ironically playing against Brighton twice within 18 days at the Goldstone (they won 2-1 in the League Cup and in the League). Below left in a collision with Lammie Robertson.

But he was not able to dislodge the experienced John Dunn permanently from the no.1 spot and was limited to nine appearances. He moved during the close season to the Albion, where Brian Clough and Peter Taylor had dispensed with the services of long-serving Brian Powney as part of a 13-player clear-out.

Forster actually joined Albion on the very day that it was announced Taylor was staying at Brighton to take sole charge after his managerial mate Clough quit to join Leeds United.

At the Goldstone, though, Forster found the holder of the no.1 jersey, Peter Grummitt, was another in the same ilk as Montgomery. Grummitt, who’d been one of the pair’s first signings not long after they’d arrived at the Goldstone in the autumn of 1973, had played more than 350 games at the highest level for Nottingham Forest and won three caps for England’s under 23 side, where he vied for the goalkeeper position with Chelsea’s Peter Bonetti.

Arguably one of the best Albion goalkeepers ever, it was perhaps no surprise Grummitt’s form restricted Forster to only three appearances. Ironically, when Forster did get his first team break, he conceded six in his first match.

In spite of pre-season optimism from Taylor, Albion had only three wins on the board from their first 13 games, and when the side went to Fellows Park, Walsall, on 1 October, Forster was like a sitting duck as the Saddlers thumped Albion 6-0. Grummitt was back between the sticks for the following five matches.

No stranger to strong disciplinary measures when he deemed it right, in October Taylor made six first teamers who’d lost 3-2 at Grimsby the previous evening play for the reserves at home to Millwall the following day.

Forster was the last line  of defence in that experienced line-up, and made some important stops on three occasions, but still conceded three. However, the involvement of the first team contingent saw Albion win 5-3: Ian Mellor scoring all five Brighton goals.

Three weeks later, after player-manager Bobby Charlton’s visiting Preston North End side won 4-0 at the Goldstone, Forster stepped in for Grummitt for the second time – and once again was on the losing side: 2-1 at Gillingham.

His one and only winning experience in an Albion shirt came the following week at Prenton Park when Albion beat Tranmere Rovers 2-1. In front of just 2,134 supporters, that win proved to be Forster’s third and last first team appearance.

Taylor obviously wasn’t wholly convinced by his back-up ‘keeper that autumn because he took a look in the reserves at triallist Jim Inger, from assistant manager Brian Daykin’s old club, Long Eaton.

Nevertheless, Forster remained the back-up ‘keeper, a role he continued throughout the 1975-76 season without being called on for the first team because Grummitt was ever-present. The disillusioned Forster departed, admitting he was “cheesed off at Brighton”.

In fact, he quit the professional game, returned to the north-east and played local league football while taking on a job at Washington Leisure Centre (run by Sunderland city council’s leisure department), where he worked for 30 years.

He was in the news in 2010 when it was revealed that three years earlier he had lost the sight in his left eye through cancer.

“It changes your whole life,” he told the Northern Echo. “You either jump off the bridge or you tell yourself to get on with it.

“It makes you realise that it doesn’t matter how hard you train, or how careful you are about what you eat, it’s someone else who’s calling the shots.”

Forster, who retired from the city council, added: “We presumed that we’d do all sorts when we retired and then I realised that I mightn’t even have got that far.

“Now we don’t presume anything. I’ve changed a lot; if that tumour had spread I was a goner. Now every day is a Sunday.” Forster fought on for a few more years before he died aged 75 on 2 May 2024.

Born in the Walker suburb of Newcastle on 19 February 1949, Forster went to Manor Park School in the east end of the city: actor Jimmy Nail and Sunderland and England footballer Dennis Tueart were other alumni.

As a promising centre forward, Forster had trials with the city’s under-11s. “One of the goalies didn’t turn up, so they asked me to play there,” Forster recalled.

“I’d honestly never kept goal in my life, not even in the back street, but I had a blinder. Caught every ball. After that, I never played anywhere else.”

The young Forster’s prowess earned him selection for the England Schools side on nine occasions, in a squad that included future stars Trevor Brooking, Colin Todd,  Colin Suggett and Joe Royle.

Sixty years on, it seems extraordinary to discover crowds of 95,000 would fill Wembley to watch the cream of England’s schoolboys, but vintage black and white film footage available on YouTube confirms it.

The all-things-Sunderland website rokerreport.sbnation.comisa detailed source of how Forster made history, and it is certainly a rather curious tale.

Initially signed as an amateur by Sunderland, he was then taken on as an apprentice but for two weeks of the 1964-65 pre-season month he’d been on a family holiday in Blackpool.

He’d trained for just a week and had never seen his new teammates play competitively. Then regular goalkeeper Montgomery sustained a hairline fracture of his left arm in training.

The opening game of the season – Sunderland’s first game back in the top flight after winning promotion – was only a matter of days away and they were without a manager because Alan Brown had left in acrimonious circumstances to take charge of Sheffield Wednesday.

Brown was temporarily replaced by a ‘selection committee’ of club officials and team captain Charlie Hurley.

The assumption was that the 20-year-old reserve goalkeeper, Derek Kirby, would deputise for Montgomery but, instead, they turned to Forster, who’d had that experience of playing in front of a huge crowd at Wembley.

After being called into club secretary George Crow’s office on the Thursday morning to be told he’d be starting, he said: “This is the greatest moment of my life. I had no idea that I would get my chance so soon, even after Monty’s unfortunate injury.

“I only hope I will justify the confidence shown in me and don’t let anyone down.

“I expect I shall be a little bit nervous, but it will be wonderful – and inspiring – playing behind Charlie Hurley and company.”

Even though he let in three, not only did he have the praise of Banks ringing in his ears, but his captain Hurley said: “A great game. If he goes on like this, he’ll have an exceptional future.”

The following Monday’s Echo said the young ‘keeper had “the agility of a panther” and was “bursting at the seams with talent”.

While The Journal’s Alf Greenley reported: “The crowd were with him to a man, even, I suspect, the not inconsiderable contingent of Leicester followers who had made the trip and the reception accorded to him when he turned out was only exceeded by that at the end.

“It was a truly remarkable performance for one so young.

“He handled the ball in the swirling wind with the confidence of a veteran, positioned well and stood up to the onslaught of the Leicester forwards like one far in advance of his years.”

Forster was just 15 years and 185 days old on the day of the match and he remained the youngest-ever top-flight footballer until 18 September 2022 when Arsenal’s Ethan Nwaneri rewrote the record books coming off the bench in the 89th minute of the Gunners’ 3-0 win at Brentford yesterday. He was aged just 15 years and 181 days.

It remains to be seen what sort of future Nwaneri might have in the game. For Forster, although he played the next few games, Montgomery returned and the teenager was left to hold a watching brief although he was still young enough to play a key role in Sunderland’s successful youth team of the mid-1960s.

In 1965, Sunderland lost the two-legged FA Youth Cup semi-final 5-0 to Everton for whom two goals in the Goodison first leg 4-0 win were scored by Jimmy Husband, who’d been a schoolmate of Forster’s in Newcastle.

Sunderland lost the 1966 final 5-3 on aggregate to Arsenal (who included Pat Rice and Sammy Nelson), when Forster’s teammates included the future Cup Final side captain Bobby Kerr, Billy Hughes, Suggett and Todd, who went on to win the league with Derby County and play for England.

Forster was still the last line of defence when the Wearsiders (above) finally won the trophy in 1967, a 2-0 aggregate scoreline seeing off a Birmingham City side that had future England international Bob Latchford at centre forward.

Less than 48 hours after the game, Forster, Hughes and Suggett travelled to North America as part of a squad selected by manager Ian McColl to represent the club in the United Soccer Association, where they played seven matches under the guise of the Vancouver Royal Canadians.

Retrospectively, Forster regretted not moving on sooner from Sunderland. But he told the Northern Echo: “Sunderland were one of the top youth clubs and they were very good to me. I should have left much earlier, seen the signs, but in those days players were genuinely loyal.

“You didn’t just ask to leave as soon as you were dropped. I decided to stay. It was my mistake. Monty never got injured again for five years, though I tried hard to kick him in training. He was an exceptional goalkeeper.”

Forster likened his situation to Newcastle’s Shay Given and Steve Harper. “Both very good goalkeepers, but maybe one a bit better than the other.”

Duffy had Burleigh pal for company on his Albion arrival

HISTORY has seen a whole string of goalkeepers play for both Newcastle United and Brighton. Dutchman Tim Krul was the most recent and others stretching back over the years – Eric Steele, Dave Beasant, and Steve Harper – have featured in this blog at various times.

My post this time, though, centres on Martin Burleigh, for many years an understudy to Northern Irish international Iam McFaul.

When stocky striker Alan Duffy travelled 350 miles from home to join Brighton in early 1970, it was with some relief that he found the familiar face of Burleigh amongst his new teammates.

How Albion’s matchday programme reported Duffy’s delight in meeting up with a familiar face

The goalkeeper, who was only 18, was on loan at the Albion at the time. The previous year he and Duffy had been in the same Newcastle United youth team.

Not only did that side do the Northern Intermediate League and cup double, 10 days before the first team won the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, the youth team brought even more silverware to Tyneside – winning a prestigious international youth tournament at Feyenoord’s ground in Rotterdam.

Toon’s trophy-winning youth team of 1969

Unlike Albion’s new £10,000 permanent signing, though, Burleigh was to have only a short-lived stay in Sussex. Manager Freddie Goodwin had brought in the Toon no.3 ‘keeper (Iam McFaul was first choice and John Hope his deputy) as cover while Albion were reduced to only one fit goalkeeper (Brian Powney) following a serious head injury to Geoff Sidebottom in the first match of a marathon second round FA Cup tie against Walsall (it took four games to decide it; those were the days before penalty shoot-outs).

Thankfully Powney avoided injury so young Burleigh was not called into match action, and he returned to the north east still waiting to make his league debut. Indeed, he had to wait until Boxing Day 1970 for that chance. Although Toon went down 3-0 at Leeds United, opposition manager Don Revie praised the youngster, saying: “I thought he had a fine game. He had no chance with the goals. Some of the saves he made showed he has a fine future ahead of him.”

It would seem Toon boss Joe Harvey wasn’t so sure and it was more than a year before Burleigh got his next chance to shine, making his home debut in a 4-2 win over Coventry City on 8 January 1972.

Once again it was to be his only first team appearance of the season, but in the 1972-73 season he finally got a run of games when McFaul was injured. He played in 11 matches but then had the misfortune to fracture a finger in a collision with Mick Channon during a 1-1 draw at Southampton, and McFaul returned.

The Toon 1892.com website recalls Burleigh then having a struggle with weight issues and he had a public dispute with manager Harvey which saw him walk out of the club saying he was going to join the RAF. But Newcastle retained his registration and when the dust settled on the dispute he was sent on loan to Darlington before making the move permanent in October 1974 for a fee of £8,000.

He was only at Darlington for a season before switching across country to Carlisle United, where he spent two seasons.

When Burleigh died at the age of 70 on 27 September 2021, Carlisle chairman Andrew Jenkins said: “Martin was a big character who was a pleasure to have around. He was tall and strong in stature and very stylish in the way he kept goal.

“We used to talk about how he very much had the manner of how the goalkeepers in Europe used to do things, with flair and a bit of theatre.

“I remember that Alan Ashman was really keen to get him signed and over here to join us. When he was speaking to the board about him, he said that the fans would be queuing along Warwick Road to watch him – he felt he was that good.”

His death was mourned by former Newcastle teammates too and several ‘Toon Legends’ remembered him at a gathering at the Tyneside Irish Centre.

Tribute on Twitter following Burleigh’s death

“Martin was a great friend and a lot of players who played alongside him at Newcastle from junior to first team level want to pay their respects to a real character,” Toon Legends official Chris Emmerson told Chronicle Live.

After his spell at Carlisle, where he also had to bide his time behind first choice Allan Ross, Burleigh returned to Fourth Division Darlington for two more seasons, during which time (in October 1978) he kept goal when the north east minnows only narrowly lost (1-0) to First Division Everton in a third round League Cup tie.

Burleigh went on to spend three seasons in goal for Hartlepool, ending his league career with a total of 222 appearances.

He then became a painter and decorator but continued playing for non-league sides in the area, appearing for Bishop Auckland, Spennymoor and Langley Park until packing up playing in 1984.

Born in Willington, County Durham, on 2 February 1951, Burleigh was playing for his hometown team at 17 when Newcastle signed him in 1968, initially as an amateur.

Kenneth Scott, in The Toon1892 Chronicles, wrote: “He displayed within the junior and reserve teams that he was more than capable between the posts and it was not long before he turned professional.”

That happened in December 1968 and before the end of the season he was in goal for the Newcastle youth team under coach Keith Burkinshaw (who later managed Spurs) when they won the international tournament in Holland, beating an Arsenal side containing the likes of Ray Kennedy, Sammy Nelson, Charlie George, Eddie Kelly, and Pat Rice.

The achievement was somewhat overshadowed by the first team’s triumph in the old Inter-Cities Fairs Cup when Toon beat Hungarian side Ujpest in the two-legged final, skipper Bobby Moncur lifting the trophy in Budapest.

Although Burleigh managed to edge out McFaul’s deputy Hope to become the no.2 at St James’s Park (Hope joined Sheffield United along with David Ford in exchange for John Tudor in 1971), the form and fitness of the Northern Irish international (who later spent three years as manager of Newcastle) always kept him on the sidelines.

• Incidentally, in line with the tradition of Albion ‘sharing’ goalkeepers over several decades, when McFaul was in the manager’s chair in January 1988 he took Albion’s long-serving Perry Digweed on a month’s loan with the Magpies. He played in their reserves but didn’t appear in the first team. The following month he went on loan to relegation-threatened Chelsea where he featured in three matches: a 3-3 draw away to Coventry City, a 0-0 home draw v Everton and a 4-4 draw at Oxford United.

Casper Ankergren – the ‘Great Dane’ between the sticks

DANISH goalkeeper Casper Ankergren earned the League One player of the month award four times – twice with Leeds United and twice with Brighton.

When the Yorkshire club dumped him after he’d played 143 games for them, Gus Poyet, his former assistant manager at Elland Road, gave him the chance to revive his English football career. He spent seven years as a player at Brighton and between 2017 and 2021 assisted Ben Roberts with coaching Albion’s goalkeepers.

The Dane was only truly Albion no.1 for a season and a half, and fans were often divided about his capabilities. But his ability with the ball at his feet suited the way Poyet wanted the Albion to play, and as a coach chimes perfectly with the expectations placed on today’s Albion goalkeepers.

“He really is key to the way we pass it out from the back,” observed ‘Murraymint’ on North Stand Chat, noting his ball playing and vision for a pass as “excellent”.

Ankergren himself explained in a podcast on the club website in 2020: “I was always quite comfortable with the ball at my feet, probably because I played outfield as a kid.

“At Leeds I wasn’t supposed to play it to the centre backs but under Gus you had to play it short; he would go mental if you didn’t. That was his philosophy. I’ve always been a big fan of possession-based football.”

On the eve of the 2010-11 season, Poyet’s goalkeeping options were narrowed when first-choice Peter Brezovan was nursing a wrist injury and he wasn’t happy to start the campaign with either of the inexperienced understudies, Michael Poke or Mitch Walker.

Poyet told the club’s official website: “Goalkeeper is a key position in the team, and with Brezovan injured, we wanted to bring some experience to that position.

“Casper brings that experience and has played at this level and higher. I have worked with him at Leeds United, and know exactly what he is capable of, he also knows what it takes to get promoted from League One.”

Ankergren hadn’t even had time to get to know his new teammates when he made his Albion debut in a 2-1 win in the season-opener away to Swindon Town the day after signing.

Unfortunately, he didn’t cover himself in glory on his home debut when a mistimed punch helped Rochdale to get a last-gasp equaliser in a 2-2 draw at Withdean.

The ’keeper admitted he later hid himself away in his Jury’s Inn hotel feeling dreadful about the mistake. “I was devastated, but that’s football. As a keeper you can do well for 90 minutes but if you cock up in the 91st minute that’s all people remember you for,” he said in a matchday programme article. “It’s part of the game as a goalkeeper and you have to accept it.”

He certainly made up for it to the extent that he won the first of two nPower League One Player of the Month awards that season for his displays the following month, when he only conceded once in five matches as Albion secured 13 out of 15 points.

Ankergren won the award again in March 2011 when the Seagulls won eight matches out of eight – with six clean sheets for Ankergren – to consolidate their gallop towards the League One title.

In April 2011, Ankergren, speaking at the PFA awards in London, said: “He [Gus] was asking us to be perfect and although there’s no such thing in football, we were close, the way we did it, the way we played – he’s very, very pleased. He couldn’t ask for much more, I think.

“At the beginning of the season I had a chat with him and he said he thought a top six finish would be possible. But no, we finished first – an amazing season.”

The promotion with Brighton was more personally satisfying for Ankergren because he was involved from the beginning to the end of the season.

“I played a lot of games for Leeds last season when we went up but I didn’t play the last eight or nine games and that was a big blow for me,” he said. “I’ve played every game in the league this season and obviously it’s great, that’s what you want to do as a footballer; you want to play every game and win and achieve something.”

He was in goal for the memorable first Amex league fixture against Doncaster and kept the shirt for the first 15 games of the 2011-12 Championship season. But after a seven-game winless run, Steve Harper came in on loan from Newcastle United.

When Harper returned to the North East, he got back in the side for seven more matches, but after four successive defeats in December, Poyet rang the changes for the New Year’s Day match at home to Southampton. Brezovan started in Albion’s surprise 3-0 win and stayed in goal through to the end of the season.

Fan Bradley Stratton later observed: “Brighton’s return to the Championship at the Amex highlighted the need for another change in goal. Ankergren and Brezovan, whilst competent in League One, were regularly found out at the higher level.

“They inspired little confidence in fans, and there was no doubt Poyet would use the summer window in 2012 to bring in a new man who could galvanise the Albion back line and restore confidence to a defence that had conceded six goals at both West Ham and Liverpool that year.”

After Tomasz Kuszczak arrived to become the senior goalkeeper, Ankergren’s first team action in 2012-13 was limited to four starts plus one as a sub.

Two of those were in the FA Cup against Premier League opposition. The third round FA Cup win over Newcastle United was his first appearance in the first team for 13 months and he said: “Although I have not been playing for the first team, I’ve always trained as hard as ever because you never know what’s round the corner and you want to push the other keepers hard, so I was ready. It’s still hard to be thrown straight back into action because you need to play regularly to get into the rhythm of things, but I was pretty happy with my performance against Newcastle.”

And there was nothing he could do to prevent Theo Walcott’s late deflected winner as Arsenal won the fourth round tie 3-2 at the Amex, when Leo Ulloa scored on his debut.

As if to emphasise his point about memorable howlers, one of his two league games that season was at Nottingham Forest, when he fumbled a last-minute equaliser at the City Ground, allowing Henri Lansbury’s long-range effort to earn the home side a point in a 2-2 draw.

Poyet was quick to sympathise with the goalkeeper and said: “To begin with I thought the shot must have taken a deflection but when I’ve seen it again I nearly killed myself!

“When you are a keeper you pay the price and Casper has done that today. He was having a very, very good game, making two or three good saves, coming for crosses and kicking very well. And in training he will save 1,000 shots like that, but we wanted him to save it today.

“Goalkeeper is a terrible position to play but we lose together and we win together – at least we got a point.”

In Oscar Garcia’s only season in charge, Ankergren played only two first team matches but he was kept on under Sami Hyypia and, with the arrival of David Stockdale and the emergence of youngster Christian Walton limiting his likely involvement even further, he made just the one appearance in the 2014-15 season, in Albion’s 4-2 League Cup win away to Swindon Town.

He confessed on the podcast that he struggled to get his head round the situation and contemplated quitting the game but was talked out of it by goalkeeping coach Andy Beasley.

With the arrival of Niki Maenpaa as back-up to Stockdale, Ankergren could have been forgiven for thinking his chances of ever playing first team football again had gone, but in a bizarre set of circumstances during a FA Cup tie at Lincoln City on 28 January 2017, Ankergren had to come off the bench in the 56th minute when Maenpaa went off injured.

The Finn had injured his shoulder in the melee that resulted after Glenn Murray had committed a foul in the penalty area and the first thing Ankergren had to do was to face the resultant penalty, which was scored.

Five minutes later he was picking the ball out of the back of the net again after inexperienced Chelsea loanee Fikayo Tomori had skewed a shot past the beleaguered ‘keeper. To rub salt in the wound, Albion lost 3-1, enabling City to reach the last 16 of the competition for the first time in their 115-year history. The consolation for Albion, of course, was that they were able to concentrate on the league, and they went on finally to win promotion to the elite level they’d left in 1983.

That promotion signalled the end of Ankergren’s playing days but the start of a career as a goalkeeping coach which he admitted in the podcast he’s enjoying immensely.

Born in the Danish coastal seaport of Køge on 9 November 1979, Ankergren played football with his mates from an early age on a pitch close to his home. He also played handball in the winter – it’s a big sport in Denmark – and it got to the point where he had to decide which one to pursue seriously because his parents said he couldn’t do both. He chose football because he enjoyed it a bit more, although he reckoned the hand-eye coordination involved in handball was an asset as he pursued his career as a goalkeeper.

When he started out playing organised football with Solrød FC, he switched from centre half to midfielder to striker and only went in goal when their keeper got injured.

He was only 12 when he was signed by his hometown’s local professional club, HB Køge. Before he became a full professional, he worked for a pizzeria delivering pizzas and at an after-school club. After leaving school, he continued his education at college for a further two years because he wanted to be a policeman if football didn’t work out.

But having broken into the Køge first team, he caught the attention of Brondby, who were probably the biggest club in Denmark at the time.

He joined them in May 2000 and started full-time the following January. “It was a big, big step for me,” he told the podcast. “I didn’t really enjoy it at first. It was a bigger step than I expected it to be.”

Their first-choice keeper, Morgens Krogh, had won Euro ‘92 with the national team so it was tough to compete with him. But the youngster made his debut when Krogh was injured and eventually took the no.1 spot. As well as winning one championship, he topped it by winning the league and cup double in 2005-06.

Ankergren also gained experience playing in the Europa League against teams like Locomotiv Moscow, Espanol and Palermo.

Shortly after he signed a new three-year contract with Brondby, unbeknown to him they signed Stephan Andersen from Charlton Athletic, and Ankergren wasn’t assured he’d still be first choice. “I’d had enough and wanted to try something different so while I was away with the national team (the B side) in Asia, I got a call from my agent saying Leeds were interested.”

Ankergren just missed out on a full international cap, although he was on the bench for games against Luxembourg and the Czech Repubic. He did win a handful of under 21 caps, and he said: “I’ve represented my country at various junior levels and remember making my under 16 debut against England. On the other side that days was Wes Brown and Michael Owen – you could tell both would have successful careers. Owen looked something special and he scored against me in a 4-1 defeat. I didn’t have my best game.”

Ankergren joined Leeds on loan initially, making his debut aged 27 in a 2-1 home win over Crystal Palace on 19 February 2007. Although it panned out to be one of the most turbulent times in the club’s history, Ankergren found life at Leeds more relaxed under Dennis Wise and Poyet than he had in Denmark.

His 14 games at the bottom of the Championship couldn’t halt the slide towards relegation which was confirmed emphatically with a points deduction when the club went into administration.

“I saved a couple of penalties early on, which won over the fans, including an important one against fellow strugglers Luton,” he said. He denied Dean Morgan from 12 yards with only four minutes left of a tense afternoon, and he told a supporter’s blog: “There were a few minutes, plus stoppage time to go against Luton so I had to stay focused as they were down there with us, so the win was vital.

“I had also saved a penalty away at Cardiff City but unfortunately we still lost the game.”

After signing on permanently, Ankergren was first choice as Leeds acclimatised to third tier football in 2007-08. He made 54 appearances in all competitions and, having conceded only one goal in five league games in September 2007, won his first League One Player of the Month award.

It wasn’t always plain sailing at Elland Road, though, and he was sad to see Poyet depart to become assistant manager to Juande Ramos at Spurs in November 2007, followed early in the new year by Wise, who became director of football at Newcastle.

“Gus was really, really respected up in Leeds. It was a big loss when he went to Tottenham – we really missed him, but I kept in touch after he left,” said Ankergren.

“I liked his style. If you do well, he’ll let you know – but if you don’t do well, he’ll also let you know. There’s none of this going behind your back; he’ll say it to your face, which is what I like.”

He also felt a sense of loss with Wise’s departure. “It was a massive disappointment for me personally,” he said. “Wisey is a good man, he had given me the chance to play in England and I will always be grateful to him.”

In March 2008, the goalkeeper faced an “improper conduct” charge brought by the FA for allegedly throwing a missile into the crowd at the County Ground, Swindon. He was fined £750 but not banned.

Gary McAllister was installed as manager and steered the club to the end of season play-offs against Doncaster Rovers and, despite some important saves by Ankergren, they lost. “I don’t know why but we never turned up at Wembley,” said Ankergren. “It was a strange feeling which let me flat, and it took a long time to get over that. We came so near, yet so far.”

Ankergren admitted to sheridan-dictates.com that he did not particularly enjoy the 2008-09 season. “It appeared that McAllister didn’t know his best team. I was in the side one week then the next he would pick Dave Lucas. Goalkeepers need games to stay sharp and focused and the thought of being dropped played on me and I did not perform to the standards I expected from myself.

“McAllister had been an outstanding midfielder but he was a League One manager with a League One squad. I think he expected too much from a group who didn’t have the ability that he had been blessed with as a player.

“The atmosphere was not great around the club and I thought that McAllister made some very strange decisions.

“Although I did not have any real issues with the manager, I have to be honest and say that I was not too disappointed when he was sacked and Simon Grayson was brought in.”

Grayson’s reign started on Boxing Day 2008 and he put Ankergren back into his team to play Leicester City. Leeds had fallen into mid-table but turned things around to earn a place in the play offs against Millwall who won the two-legged semi-final.

“Looking back, could we handle the favourites tag?” Ankergren asked. “It was another horrible feeling, but we were all determined to come back for pre-season training and go one better.”

However, although Lucas had left the club, Ankergren faced new competition in Shane Higgs and Grayson went with him at the start of the 2009-10 season.

But when Higgs was injured at MK Dons on 26 September 2009, Ankergren appeared as a substitute and eventually won his place back, even though United brought in Frank Fielding and David Martin as loan goalkeepers, and he had the feeling Grayson didn’t really rate him.

Ankergren re-established himself with a string of impressive performances and clean sheets and was the last line of defence in a memorable 1-0 FA Cup third round win for Leeds at Old Trafford in January 2010, including pulling off a terrific save to deny Danny Welbeck.

He was also in goal against Spurs in the next round when it took a replay at Elland Road before the north London club finally won through.

However, the beginning of the end of his time at Elland Road came when he made a mistake in a 2-0 home defeat against Millwall on 22 March 2010, and he didn’t return to the side for the remaining nine games as they went on to win promotion to the Championship as runners up behind Norwich City.

“I remember sitting with Paul Dickov in the dressing room having a beer and reflecting on what we had achieved,” Ankergren told sheridan-dictates.com. “We went over to the Centenary Pavilion for the end of season dinner and on to a nightclub, It was a great night but deep down I knew that I had played my last game for the club as my contract was up.”

Ironically, his replacement at Leeds was fellow Dane, Kasper Schmeichel, son of Ankergren’s goalkeeping idol, Peter, who also played for Brondby before going on to achieve fame at Manchester United.

Ankergren’s 11-year association with the Seagulls came to an end in September 2021 when he returned to his home country as head goalkeeping coach at Brondby.

Pictures from various online sources, matchday programmes and the Argus

Krul luck as Ryan kept Dutch penalty ‘master’ at bay

AN international goalkeeper whose prowess at saving penalties took his country through to the World Cup semi-finals barely got a look-in between the sticks for Brighton.

Experienced Dutchman Tim Krul, who played 184 games for Newcastle United over 12 years, kept goal for the Seagulls on only five occasions during the 2017-18 season.

The form of Mat Ryan, himself an Australian international, meant Krul’s involvement was restricted to cup matches and a watching brief from the substitute’s bench.

Krul initially signed on a season-long loan deal on deadline day in August 2017 but the move was made permanent the day after he made his Albion first team debut in a 1-0 League Cup defeat at Bournemouth.

Manager Chris Hughton said: “I know Tim from my time at Newcastle and he is an excellent professional that has a vast amount of experience at both club and international level.

“He’s played an extensive amount of games in the Premier League, as well as playing in the Europa League and his experience will also help benefit the other keepers in the squad.”

Having experienced some in and out spells during his time on Tyneside, Krul understood the situation when interviewed by The Argus in November 2017.

“I’m working hard every day to push Mat Ryan. He’s done great so far and we’re picking up points, that’s what it’s all about.

“If the gaffer needs us or Mat got injured, I need to be ready and literally it can happen any second.”

Krul admitted: “It’s a different position for myself, because I’m used to playing week in, week out.”

The move to Albion had been the chance to reignite his career after a long spell on the sidelines having suffered a cruciate knee ligament injury on international duty in 2015.

Krul is powerless to stop Romelu Lukaku’s winning goal for Manchester United in Brighton’s FA Cup fifth round tie at Old Trafford

Before he made the move, he consulted Steve Harper, who’d been on loan at Brighton during the Gus Poyet era. Harper told the matchday programme: “I told him it woud be a great move for him and it will also be a great signing for the club. He was outstanding in the season Newcastle finished fifth in the Premier League and he’s an international ‘keeper for the Netherlands who has played at the World Cup.”

After he’d played in Albion’s FA Cup fifth round defeat to Manchester United at Old Trafford, Krul told The Argus: “Obviously when I came, I was hoping to get a bit more (game time) maybe, but at the time I walked through the door Maty’s performances went up a level, so that is testament to him.

“The level we are training at with Ben Roberts every day is really high. He has been showing that in the games. I’ve been around long enough to see when a goalkeeper is playing well you take that. I’m 29, I’m back fit, I’m feeling better than I’ve ever done so I’m ready to play. I just have to be patient again.

“I had to be patient at the start of my career and you have to do that again now. But my chance will come. There’s a lot of years left.”

Krul finally got regular playing time again when he moved to Norwich City

Unfortunately, that didn’t happen with the Albion but Krul certainly resurrected his career with Norwich City and, after signing an initial two-and-a-half-year deal in the summer of 2018, earned a further three-and-a-half-year contract in December 2020.

He then contracted Covid-19, announcing it on Twitter, where he has a huge following of more than 349,000. “I feel under the weather and fatigued,” he wrote. “It’s an important reminder to stay safe, this virus is not a hoax.”

Thankfully, by the end of January, he had recovered and returned to the side to clock up 100 appearances for the Canaries.

Born in The Hague, Holland, on 3 April 1988, from a young age Krul played for his hometown club RAS and was with ADO Den Haag between the ages of 12 and 17. Graeme Souness was still boss when Krul joined Newcastle in the summer of 2005. Shay Given and Steve Harper were the established ‘keepers in those days.

Shortly after making his debut in a UEFA Cup match in November 2006, he suffered injuries which ruled him out of action for six months. After returning to playing in the spring of 2007, he earned a new four-year deal with Newcastle.

An eventful loan spell in Scotland followed as Krul sought to gain league experience at Falkirk. He conceded 11 goals in two games early on (four to Celtic, seven to Rangers), he was sent off in a game on 2 January 2008, and then dislocated a shoulder in a cup match against Aberdeen, bringing the loan to a premature end.

When Given left St James’ Park for Manchester City, Krul was no.2 behind Harper in Newcastle’s 2009-10 season in the Championship. He deputised if Harper was injured and was given starts in cup matches. By the season’s end, when the Toon had won promotion back to the Premier League, Krul was awarded a new four-year deal and made his debut at that level when replacing the injured Harper in a 1-0 win away at Everton in September 2010.

He ended that campaign having played 25 first team matches, and the following season, established himself as the no.1, with Rob Elliot as his deputy. Out-in-the-cold Harper was allowed to spend a month on loan with the Albion.

Under Alan Pardew, Krul was the preferred first choice ‘keeper, and he signed a five-year contract with the Magpies in 2012. Several different injuries in 2012-13 restricted him to 30 appearances.

Another six-week injury lay-off over Christmas 2014 interrupted a period when there was yet another managerial change on Tyneside and the 2015-16 season under Steve McLaren was only a couple of months old before Krul was ruled out for the remainder of the season when he ruptured an anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee playing in the Netherlands’ 2-1 European Qualifiers win in Kazakhstan.

McLaren was sacked in March 2016 and his replacement Rafa Benitez couldn’t prevent them from being relegated. Krul signed a one-year contract extension in the summer of 2016 but, with Elliot and Karl Darlow ahead of him, he was sent on loan to Ajax as Newcastle successfully bounced back to the elite, pipping Albion to the Championship title.

Meanwhile, things didn’t work out as planned for Krul. He only got a handful of games for the Ajax reserve side and he spent the second half of the season at AZ Alkmaar instead.

Krul has played for his country at every age level and made his full international debut in a friendly against Brazil in 2011. Maarten Stekelenburg and Jasper Cillessen have normally been ahead of him but he has won 11 caps, including three in 2020 after a five-year absence from the side. However, it was what happened at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil that most fans will remember.

Head coach Louis van Gaal took off Cillessen in the final seconds of extra time with the Dutch still drawing 0-0 with Costa Rica and sent Krul on because of his reputation for saving penalties. Sure enough, he made two saves in the subsequent shoot-out and Holland went through to the semi-finals (where they went out 4-2 on penalties to Argentina).

The story behind the decision emerged in an article by Michael Bailey for The Athletic on 5 March 2020. The Dutch goalkeeping coach at the tournament, Frans Hoek, explained how Krul had responded best of the three ‘keepers to special training he put them through.

“When we came together with the national team, the three goalkeepers were more or less at the same level in stopping penalties. And that level was low,” Hoek told The Athletic. “We decided to do things in a different way and when you do that you have to believe in it, practice it and then show it. Basically, Tim responded best to that.

“He had some advantages. He’s very big, he has an enormous reach. He is impressive when you’re standing the other side of him and maybe because he’s from Den Haag area, he can be a little bit provocative. Michel Vorm is too nice a guy, so is Cillessen. But Tim can get away with it. It’s just something he has.”

A look back through the archives reveals Krul was displaying his prowess saving penalties as far back as his youth playing days. In an FA Youth Cup match for Newcastle against Brighton, he made saves from Tommy Fraser and Scott Chamberlain as Toon edged it 3-2 on penalties.

Albion goalkeeper coach Roberts was full of praise when asked about the big Dutch ‘keeper. “He has an aura about him and the self-belief to think he will save everything,” said Roberts. “I’m delighted for him as lots wrote him off when he had his bad knee injury. He’s since shown how much his hard work and dedication has paid off.”

After putting pen to paper on his new Norwich contract, Krul told the club website: “Proud is the big word. I’m excited to commit my future to Norwich and have had an amazing two and a half years already at this club, so I’m excited to add another three and a half years to that.

“The plan the club has got for the next few years is exciting and there’s some young, exciting talent coming through the ranks as well. From top to bottom, it’s a club I want to be at; one that’s run really well from Michael and Delia to the kitman. It’s an exciting time for the club, for sure.

“As a player, you want to be loved and I’ve got a great relationship with the fans. The club giving me this three-and-a-half-year contract shows the belief they’ve still got in me.”

Manager Daniel Farke added: “It’s fantastic news for us to have a player of Tim’s quality and personality. He’s by far the best goalkeeper in this league and was impressive in the Premier League.

“He’s still in a really good age for a goalkeeper and can play many more years. It’s good news he was willing to sign a long-term contract because there is lots of interest in a player of his quality and experience.”

Krul was a key part of Norwich’s Championship-winning sides of 2018-19 (when he was ever-present) and 2020-21. But in August 2023 he returned to the Premier League when he was signed by newly-promoted Luton Town.

Town boss Rob Edwards said: “Tim’s a leader and a top goalkeeper who is still very and ambitious and very hungry. He wants to play.

“It’s great to have someone of his level in the group with that ambition and to be that driven, and it’s going to add great competition to the goalkeeper department, which is what we’ve wanted.”

Pictures from online sources and matchday programmes.

Respected Rosenior a dedicated student of the game

LIAM ROSENIOR is one of the most articulate footballers to pull on Brighton’s stripes.

He wasn’t a bad player, either, making nearly 450 appearances for seven clubs in a 17-year career, usually as a full-back.

The son of former Fulham, QPR and West Ham striker Leroy, Liam joined Albion in the summer of 2015, brought in as one of Chris Hughton’s first signings of that transfer window, and went on to make 51 appearances for the Seagulls.

Arguably his best days were behind him when Hughton signed him on a free transfer from Hull City, but he quickly endeared himself to the Albion faithful, bringing his top-level experience to a squad looking to rise to the Premier League and appreciated for his passion, best demonstrated by his chin-up gesture as the Seagulls came close but narrowly missed out on promotion.

A year later, Rosenior was part of the Albion squad which celebrated the club’s promotion to the Premier League.

Rosenior could talk a good game as well as play it so it was no surprise he was in demand as a football pundit on TV and radio, and in the final year of his playing career he wrote a weekly column for The Guardian. His views on the politics of the game and wider issues – such as racial abuse – have been sought by many news outlets.

Rosenior flanked by Darren Bent and Keith Andrews, both of whom also played for the Albion

As a student of the game, he didn’t waste time in getting his coaching badges and, when his playing career at Brighton came to a close in 2018, he was appointed to assist under 23s coach Simon Rusk, although he’d already been involved on an informal basis.

Hughton told the Argus: “Liam has played a huge part in our achievements over these few seasons. Unfortunately, over that time, he’s had a couple of injuries that kept him out for periods but at this moment he is in good shape.

“His value has not only been on the pitch but also off the pitch. He has also made a small contribution to the success of the under-23s. Because he wants eventually to be a coach and a manager, he’s had an involvement with them. That has been great for them and for us as a club.”

It seemed only a matter of time before he would step up to first team management but, in 2019, just such an opportunity was presented first by Derby County, and he left to become part of the small group supporting Phillip Cocu.

Rosenior’s contribution to the Seagulls was recognised in glowing terms by chairman Tony Bloom, who thanked him for “his superb service and consummate professionalism as both player and coach” and remarked: “Liam has become a firm favourite here at the club since he joined us from Hull City.

“He played a crucial role in our promotion to the Premier League and was an important part of the squad during our first-ever season at that level.”

Bloom continued: “Liam has made no secret of his desire to coach at first-team level, and so, while we are very sorry to see Liam leave the club, we fully understand the opportunity which is available to him and the reasoning behind why he has chosen to join Derby County.”

Rosenior told the Derby Telegraph: “I have always wanted to coach, and coach at the highest level.

“I gained my pro-licence when I had just turned 32. It is something I have always been interested in and something I have always done,” he said.

“My dad was a manager and a coach. I used to go with him to games, and to training sessions, and I think that is why at a relatively young age in terms of coaching I have got quite a lot of experience.

“I was working with soccer schools when I was 11 years old, taking sessions.”

After becoming caretaker co-manager of Derby with Wayne Rooney last November, Rosenior explained in an extended interview with The Athletic’s Dominic Fifield how he always saw becoming a manager as his destiny.

 “I’d be with my dad while he prepared his team-talk, in the dressing-room as he delivered it, and in the dug-out during the game. You see old pictures of Brian Clough on the bench with his son, Nigel. Well, it was the same with me. I’d be shouting at the players from the sidelines when I was 10. It’s always been in my blood.”

As a child, he even drew a picture of himself on the touchline as a manager. “That’s why, to me, it feels like my calling, my goal in life. And not just to be a manager, but a successful manager.

“I’ve studied for 26 years to ensure I’m the best coach I can be, to understand people as well as I possibly can. If I was injured or out of the team at Hull or Brighton, I’d annoy the stewards by watching the game from the mouth of the tunnel so I could practise making snapshot decisions from the touchline.”

Rosenior declared: “I want to show that a young black coach — and I want to do it young — can be successful in a position of authority at the very highest level.”

On 15 January 2021, Rosenior was appointed as assistant manager when Rooney was confirmed as the new Derby boss.

Born in Wandsworth on 9 July 1984, Rosenior started out in the youth team at Bristol City (another of his dad’s former clubs) and became a professional in April 2002. In 19 months at City, he made only four starts but was a sub on 24 occasions.

The most memorable of those was when he entered the action at the 2003 Football League Trophy Final in the 62nd minute, with Danny Wilson’s City a goal to the good against Carlisle in front of a 50,000 crowd at the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff. Rosenior scored a decisive second goal for the Robins in the 89th minute.

Premier League Fulham paid £55,000 to sign him in November 2003 but it was 10 months before he made his first team debut. Still only 19, he went on loan between March and May 2004 to Third Division Torquay United, a side his dad was managing, making nine starts plus one as a sub.

Rosenior’s first full season at Fulham was quite an eye-opener: an ignominious start under Chris Coleman saw him sent off on his debut (in a Carling Cup game against Boston United in September 2004), then awarded Sky Man of the Match when he made his league debut aged 20 in a 1-1 draw with Manchester United three months later. He also saw red in the last game of that season.

Rosenior made 86 appearances (plus five as a sub) for Fulham during his time there and despite signing a new four-year deal in 2006, moved on to Reading for £1.5m on August deadline day in 2007.

Rosenior signed a three-year contract with Steve Coppell’s Royals but in his final year he joined Ipswich Town on a season-long loan, making 28 starts plus three substitute appearances in what was Roy Keane’s first season in charge at Portman Road.

Released by Reading in the summer of 2010, Rosenior eventually linked up with Hull City where he spent five years, making the largest number of appearances (128 + 33 as sub) across his various different clubs.

They included starting in the 2014 FA Cup Final alongside former Albion loanee Paul McShane when Hull lost narrowly (3-2) to Arsenal at Wembley.

Rosenior in action in the 2014 FA Cup Final

At the end of the following season, after City had been relegated from the Premier League, Rosenior was one of six players let go by Steve Bruce (McShane and goalkeeper Steve Harper were also released).

His experience in winning promotion from the Championship with Hull in 2013 was seen as a key ingredient in Hughton’s decision to sign him.

In May 2020, Rosenior took on another responsibility when he was appointed tothe FA’s Inclusion Advisory Board (IAB), set up in 2013 to increase diversity within the game.

After parting company from Derby in September 2022, Rosenior was not out of work long because two months later he returned to Hull City as head coach.

He was in charge for 18 months and only narrrowly missed out on the Championship play-off places in 2024, but falling short cost him his job.

Once again, though, he was not unemployed for long. In July 2024, he was appointed head coach of French Ligue 1 side Strasbourg, replacing the departing Patrick Vieira. At the end of his first season with Strasbourg, he steered them to UEFA Conference League qualification.

Among the young players in his side was Albion loanee Valentin Barco, who subsequently made the move permanent.

Northern Irish legend Aaron Hughes was talk of the Toon

AH red blackVETERAN Northern Irishman Aaron Hughes only brought down the curtain on his lengthy playing career in June 2019 at the age of 39.

On 12 June he finally confirmed his playing days were over in an emotional speech to his Northern Ireland team-mates in the Borisov Arena after the country’s 1-0 victory over Belarus.

Remarkably, Hughes had first been called up to the Northern Ireland squad at the age of 17, before he’d even broken through at Newcastle United.

“Having known Aaron Hughes for nearly 25 years, it was an honour to be present to witness his typically classy speech to all of the Northern Ireland players and staff to announce his retirement from the game after an amazing career,” former Newcastle keeper and current Northern Ireland coach Steve Harper told the Belfast Telegraph.

Amongst many others paying tribute, former international Paddy McCourt added: “Without doubt the best professional I encountered during my football career. I was fortunate enough to play alongside Aaron Hughes at Brighton and we also spent many years together with Northern Ireland. A true gentleman and brilliant player.”

He had just the one season with Brighton & Hove Albion – in 2014-15. Mainly a central defender, Hughes could also play comfortably in either full-back position or midfield.

He was the first Brighton signing of Sami Hyypia’s ill-fated spell as manager, and Hyypia told the club website: “We wanted to bring another experienced defender, and Aaron fits the bill – having played at Premier League, Champions League and international level.

“I have played against Aaron a few times during my time at Liverpool and also for Finland, and I know his qualities and what he will give us.

“He has a very good footballing pedigree, is an intelligent player, and he has a great mentality and good approach to the game.

“He has that experience I wanted to bring into the squad, which alongside our other senior players, will help our younger players continue to develop and progress in the first-team squad.”

As it turned out, Hughes was only used as cover and during his season with the Seagulls made only 13 appearances.

Nevertheless, Hughes’ stay on the south coast clearly left an impression and fellow Northern Ireland international Oliver Norwood described how Hughes played a part in persuading him to join the Seagulls in 2016.

“I spoke to Hughesy about his time here and he spoke so highly of the club, mentioning the facilities, the stadium and that it’s set up to go to the Premier League,” Norwood told the club website. “He’s a wonderful person that’s achieved so much.

“I know he didn’t get the game time he would have liked here, but if I have half the career he has, then I’ll be very happy.”

Born in Cookstown, County Tyrone, on 8 November 1979, Hughes joined Newcastle United’s youth ranks at 17 and, over eight years, he made 279 appearances for the Magpies.

A Hughes superb footy picsEyebrows were raised when former Northern Ireland manager Bryan Hamilton took Hughes to Portugal for a World Cup qualifier in October 1997, when he was still only 17, but Hamilton told the Belfast Telegraph: “There was something special in him, even at a young age, and I wanted him in the squad. I felt he could be an outstanding player for Northern Ireland and I knew that coming in early wouldn’t affect or faze him.”

Hughes had to wait until Lawrie McMenemy succeeded Hamilton to make his international debut the following March, and by then he’d made a memorable debut for Newcastle in November 1997 against Barcelona at the Nou Camp. Selected by manager Kenny Dalglish, despite the 1-0 defeat, the 18-year-old showed tremendous promise against the likes of Figo, Ronaldo and Stoichkov. He eventually held down a regular first team place under Dalglish’s successor Ruud Gullitt before Bobby Robson took the helm.

Hughes made his name at St James’s Park in the centre of Newcastle’s defence, playing alongside Sylvain Distin in a side also featuring Craig Bellamy, Gary Speed and Alan Shearer. He spoke about his time playing under Dalglish and Robson in an interview with the Guardian.

Discerning followers of Toon were quick to join in the tributes paid to Hughes when he announced his retirement. Elsewhere they have vented their spleen at the decision Graeme Souness took to sell him to Aston Villa.

Hughes had three seasons at Villa, having been signed by David O’Leary in the 2005-06 season. But Villa fans are a tough lot to please and, despite his previous success at Newcastle, it seems they expected more. “Hughes, despite filling his role admirably as a centre back, never felt integral to our defence as he found himself chopped and changed with (Olof) Melberg, and fellow signing Wilfried Bouma,” declared readastonvilla.com.

Eventually with injury-hit defender Martin Laursen returning to the side under new manager Martin O’Neill, Hughes became more of a squad player at Villa Park. He was allowed to leave to join Fulham and was signed by a former Northern Irish international teammate, Lawrie Sanchez.

hughes fulhamAt Fulham, he formed a formidable defensive partnership with Brede Hangeland and fulhamfc.com said: “The pair worked brilliantly together, with the fans soon referring to them as our very own Thames Barrier. Their styles complemented each other perfectly, and while Hughes wasn’t the tallest of centre-backs, his leap and reading of the game more than made up for it.”

Hughes was one of three ever-presents – with Mark Schwarzer and Danny Murphy – when Fulham finished seventh in the Premier League in 2008-09, which led to European qualification.

He was part of the side captained by Murphy, with Bobby Zamora up front, who went on a gloriously unexpected UEFA Cup journey in 2010, only to be pipped to the trophy in extra time by Atletico Madrid.

“The way we lost, right at the end of extra-time, still grates with me, so the final is a bitter-sweet memory,” Hughes reflected in a 2014 interview for Albion’s matchday programme. “The Juventus game stands out more, where we came back from 3-1 down from the first leg in Italy to win 4-1 at Craven Cottage.”

On transfer deadline day in January 2014, Hughes signed a short-term deal for Harry Redknapp’s Queens Park Rangers for whom he made 11 Championship appearances.

After his season with Brighton, even at the age of 36 Hughes had no intention of packing up playing. Instead, he headed to Australia and played for Melbourne City and then linked up with India’s Kerala Blasters before he joined Hearts for his final two seasons.

His last club game saw Hearts bring him on in the 68th minute of their final league game of the season, a 2-1 defeat to Celtic at Celtic Park. Upon replacing John Souttar, the 39-year-old Hughes took the captain’s armband for the final few minutes of a career stretching across an impressive 22 years.

Hughes won an amazing 112 caps for his country across 20 years – a record for an outfield player. He was second only to the legendary Pat Jennings as most-capped player and was captain of his country for eight years. Small wonder, then, that he should be so grateful to so many at the Irish FA for the longevity of his international career.

hughes NI

  • Pictures from various online sources.