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The loan of Ali Al Habsi to Wigan Athletic was seen as beneficial to all parties.  It gave the player a chance of first team football, eased the load on Bolton’s wage bill and provided Wigan with a goalkeeper who wasn’t:

a)    Always injured
b)    Crap

Yes, Chris Kirkland, that’s you we’re talking about.

However, there have been a couple of snags.  After being roundly thrashed by Blackpool and Chelsea, Roberto Martinez’s side were expected to go the same way at Spurs.  Instead they scored an unlikely victory and the big Omani stopper performed heroically to keep a clean sheet for the second time in five days.

Wigan.  Clean sheet.  Same paragraph.  Doesn’t compute does it?

Agent Al-Habsi appears to have misunderstood his instructions.  He was supposed to keep the result respectable, not stop the other lot scoring altogether.

Secondly, events at the Reebok on Sunday, have got some fans in a panic, frantically calling for Bolton’s reserve ‘keeper to be recalled.  Jussi Jaaskelainen will receive a three match ban for violent conduct after giving Roger Johnson what John McGinlay might have described as a ‘wee push’, albeit in a somewhat girly fashion.

Owen Coyle doesn’t agree and has already pledged his faith in Adam Bogdan.

‘I have belief in the lad, that is why we were able to let Ali Al-Habsi out on loan because I knew Adam was competent and ready to go in goal and he showed his qualities in this match,’  he said after Bogdan’s debut at Southampton.  It’s a view that was re-iterated in his Birmingham post-match interview.

Bogdan faces a tough time.  His first league start will be at Arsenal, followed by a visit to Aston Villa, where Bolton have conceded thirteen times in three matches.  Then there’s  a trip to Burnley, which may well be a feisty affair, with the town still mired in bitterness after Owen Coyle’s perceived treachery.  The young Hungarian has the ability to cope, provided nerves don’t kick in.

This is how to slap someone around on a football field

The problem will arise if something happens to Bogdan.  His understudy for those three games will be Rob Lainton, who is well regarded amongst the backroom staff, but completely untested at first team level.

In that eventuality the only option will be to recall Al-Habsi, which can’t happen if his move becomes permanent.  Jaaskelainen’s reaction on Sunday was viewed as a rush of blood to the gloves, but it may well have cost Bolton a sum in the region of £3 million.

So is this.

Click here to view the embedded video.

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It’s a disturbing thought isn’t it?  A ginger manager at the Reebok Stadium again.  Fortunately it’s not that ginger one, but another with thinning copper locks, namely Alex McLeish, whose Birmingham City side take on Bolton Wanderers this afternoon.

There’s another tenuous link with the Whites provided by bean-pole striker Nikola Zigic who signed for McLeish recently.  Sam Allardyce and Harry Redknapp watched the Serb as he played for Crvena Zvezda against Cork City back in 2006, with the possibility of recruiting him.  Sam’s thoughts aren’t recorded, but ‘Arry wasn’t impressed.

Not a Pretty Sight

‘I don’t think five million will buy him,’ advised Zigic’s agent after the game.

‘I know, I’m one of them,’ replied Bagpuss.

Birmingham were last season’s surprise package.  They were expected to struggle but survived comfortably, thanks to some stout organization and occasional last ditch defending.

So far the two sides have identical results, one draw, two wins and entrance to the next round of the Carling Cup.  The performances of Owen Coyle’s side have been patchy.  They were disjointed against Fulham and overrun in the first half at West Ham, before finishing as comfortable victors.  Yet the points tally so far is satisfactory.

Coyle has an almost full squad to pick from, bar Ivan Klasnic and Sean Davis, who was only kept on to keep the medical staff busy now that Ricardo Vaz Te has transferred to the treatment room at another club.

The defence is a worry and the midfield hasn’t gelled yet, although individually there seems to be potential there.  The most encouraging thing so far has been the improvement in Johan Elmander.  Let’s hope it’s not another false dawn.

The last game at the Reebok between these two ended in a 2-1 victory for the Whites, but as all parties involved had already booked their summer holidays, it has limited relevance.  Expect a tightly fought encounter with (optimistic hat on) Bolton running out the eventual winners.

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Supporters of Bolton Wanderers will be alarmed to hear of a gruesome event that’s happening on Sunday 15th August.  Sky are prepared for a mass cancellation of subscriptions from the BL postcode area, and local TV repair shops are expecting to do a brisk trade when they re-open on Monday.

Police have also warned householders not to be alarmed if they find the normally placid man next door shinning up the drain pipe in order to rip down his satellite dish. On a positive note, housewives may find their other halves keener than usual to take the kids to the park or wash the car.

Not even a fellow ginge is pleased at the news

The reason for these bizarre happenings?  It’s down to the man who refuses to go away, or as a poster on another Wanderers site succinctly put it,  ‘the turd that won’t flush.’   At 11am, former boss Gary Megson will take to the screen on Goals On Sunday in order to ‘lift the lid on life at the Reebok’, as the publicity blurb has it

Megson will explain that Bolton were bottom of league below Derby when he joined, that he took them the furthest they’d ever been in Europe and how he rescued the club from relegation, not once, but twice.  He’ll also mention that the players were a great group of lads, but the fans were mean to him.  Not that it mattered, as they were pathetic, made mountains out of molehills and the criticism was like water off a duck’s back.

There.  Now you don’t need to put yourself through the trauma of watching it.

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Things couldn’t be more different.  This time last year there was a collective gloom amongst Bolton fans.  The previous season had ended with one win in eleven games, the summer signings were uninspiring and Gary Megson was still in charge.

There was an inevitability about the opening day defeat to Sunderland, which was far worse than the 1-0 score line suggested.  That Steve Bruce’s men won only once more on their travels said it all.

St Owen of Lostock Acknowledges the Throng

This time round there’s a quiet optimism and it’s all due to one man.  Owen Coyle arrived in January on a tidal wave of approval that’s yet to subside.   Where Megson was dull and uninspiring, Coyle has the energetic enthusiasm of a new puppy.  So much so, that you want to slap him sometimes.  Putting so much faith in a manager with precisely one year’s top flight experience might not be the wisest thing, but what the hell, football supporters need hope.

Not many clubs have splashed money about in the transfer window.  Bolton certainly haven’t.  That’s because they haven’t got any.   The much desired prolific goal scorer hasn’t arrived, but then only Nicolas Anelka and a pre-blubber Michael Ricketts, qualified for that description in the last decade, so it was always a forlorn hope.

Instead, there’s Robbie Blake, late of the unwashed hordes in Burnley.  Blake’s a capable operator. It’s just a pity he’s older than God.  But he may be a useful player to have on the bench, providing he doesn’t succumb to arthritis or senile dementia. Or have his zimmer frame nicked when the scallies from Liverpool come to visit.

Concessions have already been made to combat the advancing years.  Drinks bottles for the other players contain Lucozade, laced with electrolytes.  Robbie has Sanatogen in his.

Other than that, there’s Kevin Davies, who may feature less, and the almost always disappointing Johan Elmander.  At least Ivan Klasnic has returned – the best in the box poacher since Stelios.  Some athletes use the phrase ‘staying healthy’ in relation to avoiding injuries.  With Klasnic, it has an altogether more basic meaning.

Phil Gartside's Flatulence is Still Causing Problems

In defence, things look a tad worrying.   Marcos Alonso is unlikely to start in early season, so that leaves Paul Robinson at left-back.  The Angry Dwarf wasn’t the disaster that everyone feared he’d be, but he lacks pace and still has a tendency to tackle with the whole of his body, thereby removing himself from play.

On the other side of the pitch there is little to choose between Sam Ricketts and Gretar Steinsson.  Both look good going forward, but not so good at defending (ie their primary job function.)

It is to be hoped that Gary Cahill has fully recovered from losing a part of his skeleton and that he returns from the England camp unscathed and without having acquired John Terry’s taste for shagging anything with a pulse.

Then there’s Zat Knight.  All together now:

‘Big Titus Bramble.  You’re just a big Titus Bramble.’

It’s in the middle of the park where things look interesting.  Bolton have more midfielders than you can blow a Vuvuzela at.  The Whites were a disorganised mess in that area in Megson’s latter days.  Coyle improved things in that respect, but the downside was that the Whites created very few chances from January onward.

Can Bolton’s new man forge a cohesive unit from Fabrice Muamba, Sean Davis, Mark Davies, Joey O’Brien, Stuart Holden, Matt Taylor, Tamir Cohen, Martin Petrov, Lee Chung-Yong and Ricardo Gardner?

Resist the temptation to say ‘only he plays them all at the same time’.

The visit of Fulham isn’t an enticing one.  The Cottagers (they really need to do something about that nickname) arrive with a new and competent manager, and with tails still up after a splendid European run.  Bolton scored three consecutive home wins against them under Sam Allarydce, but other than that there have been two defeats and four draws, all of them 0-0, including last season’s result when Mark Clattenburg took his vendetta against Kevin Davies to new and ridiculous heights by disallowing a legitimate goal.

But enough of the naysaying.  It’s a new start and we’re feeling chipper.  Well, at least until September.

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In reality, we do not have an outstanding list of candidates for our greatest ever manager. We’ve only had 23 full-time managers. Of these, you can pretty much discount dismiss Tom Mather, who was manager throughout WWI, and the short spells of Jimmy Meadows and Sammy Lee and even shorter (in duration) reign of Jimmy McIlroy.

I'll blow all my rivals out the water......!

We can also discount the fledgling tenure of current manager Owen Coyle, and Roy McFarland’s strange half-season spell as co-manager.

This leaves seventeen full-time managers who held the position for a season or more, but includes short-ish unsuccessful spells for Nat Lofthouse, Stan Anderson, George Mulhall, and Charlie Wright, all of less than two years.

Taking these out, we are now down to thirteen contenders.

Of these thirteen, I would immediately dismiss six as candidates.

John Somerville and Will Settle managed us in the early part of the twentieth century, and during their tenures we were the 17^th best and 14^th best team in England respectively. Given that there were only two divisions and forty league clubs by the end of Settle’s tenure, the fact that we were in the top half of the Football League does little to enhance either manager’s claim to greatness. Additionally, Somerville managed to get us relegated four times between 1899 and 1910.

Settle in fairness did gain promotion in his first season, kept us in the First Division for his remaining four seasons in charge, achieved a top placed finish of 4^th in 1912, and enjoyed a win ratio of 43%. On the other hand, he didn’t win anything, I know bugger all about him, and he’s been dead for donkey’s years, so I don’t think he’ll mind me discounting him. I would probably have included him in a top ten, but I’d have had to find two other half decent managers, which is where the plan fell over.

Walter Rowley managed us for four years after the end of WWII. All four seasons were spent in the bottom half of the First Division, with a best finish of 14^th.

John McGovern joined the club as player manager in 1982, taking over a team that had narrowly avoided relegation from the Second Division the previous season. McGovern went one better, getting us relegated at the first attempt, rooted to the foot of the table. Whilst selling off our assets at rock bottom prices, and replacing them largely with non-league stars, McGovern managed to consolidate our position in the lower leagues over the next year or two before being mercifully put out of his misery in January 1985. He had accrued a miserable 31% win ratio mostly in the Third Division. If only Pele had said “yes”.

Phil Neal basically left us where he found us after six and a half miserable years of aimless clog-ball. His greatest achievement was an unprecedented relegation to the Fourth Division, although in fairness we were only there for a year. He managed a win ratio of 37% in the bottom two divisions in a period that saw us as statistically the 56^th best team in England – our worst performance under any manager. After his abject failure to display any managerial talent at Bolton, his rehabilitation included spells as manager of Coventry and as assistant England manager.

I will dismiss Gary Megson from the list of candidates – something I dearly wish I could have done in October 2007 – for obvious reasons. Megson’s attempts to build a team of negative hoofers in his own image, squeeze four defensive midfielders into the same side, and stubbornly refuse to give us anything to get excited about make his tenure the most mind-numbingly miserable since Phil Neal’s. Megson achieved a win ratio of 28% in his two and a half years of relegation battles, with his finest moment coming in the second half against Hull, which finally ended our agony. Was it really only two and a half years?

We are now down to seven candidates…

Also-rans…

There are one or two managers that couldn’t be seriously considered as our greatest ever manager, but will undoubtedly inspire fond memories in most Bolton fans for various reasons.

#7 Colin Todd enjoyed a title success in the second tier in English football, and probably one of our most exciting seasons, with a brand of football that swept all before it.

Ignoring the farcical half-season with Todd and McFarland as joint managers, Todd took the reins in January 1996 with Bolton rooted to the foot of the table and nine points from safety. He could do little to prevent relegation, and we finished the season sixteen games later in exactly the same position – rooted to the bottom and nine points from safety. The following season was our (almost) record-breaking title success. This was the zenith of Todd’s tenure. Some strange transfers and odd team selections were partly masked by the unfortunate nature of our relegation on goal difference to Everton on the final day.

In reality, it was for the most part a poor season, and a run of twelve games without a win between December and March, including a 5-1 home defeat to Coventry, ultimately helped to seal our fate. The following year saw a disappointing 6^th place finish, and a tepid defeat to Watford in the play-off finals. After a disappointing start to the following season, Todd left the club in September 1999 with a win ratio of 43% and one glorious season spoiled by much disappointment.

#6 Jimmy Armfield is another manager held in high regard due to his 1973 Third Division Championship winning effort, setting us on the road to recovery (first time around) and to laying the building blocks for Ian Greaves’ exciting young team of the 1970’s. Armfield took over a side that had just finished bottom of the Second Division, and finished 7^th in the third in his first season. The following year, Bolton went up as champions, and followed this up with an 11^th place finish in Division Two in 1974. Armfield’s claim is weaker than Bruce Rioch’s primarily because he took over the club at what was at that stage it’s lowest ever point with a realistic expectation that he would bounce straight back. The fact that it took two years to get out of the Third Division and Armfield left the club mid-table in the Second Division, coupled with the fact that we were comfortably outside the top echelons of the game throughout his three year tenure (we were the 45^th best team during this period) means that Armfield is not a realistic possibility, despite a respectable 44% win ratio.

#5 Ian Greaves presided over a five-year spell at the club that saw an exciting blend of young home-grown talent, with the likes of Peter Reid, Paul Jones, Sam Allardyce, Neil Whatmore etc, and experienced stars such as Peter Thompson, Willie Morgan, and Frank Worthington.

Greaves’ first season saw him improve one place on predecessor Armfield’s 11^th place finish, but then followed three years in which we narrowly missed out on promotion twice before finally winning the Second Division championship in 1978 and returning us to the top flight for the first time in fourteen years.

After consolidating the following year with a 17^th place finish in a season that saw us beat Manchester United home and away and Frank Worthington finish as First Division top scorer, hopes were high for the start of the 1979-80 season, particularly as Greaves was given funds to invest in the team.

Unfortunately, this is where the wheels came off, and Greaves was sacked in January with Bolton adrift at the foot of the table, eight points from safety and with only one win from twenty four league games.

Greaves built a fantastic young side, but then saw it largely fall apart, left us well on the way to relegation and set the seeds for a decline that would ultimately take us all the way to football’s basement. Two near misses and one Second Division title, with a fairly healthy 39% win record, can’t mask the fact that he left us more or less in the same – or potentially worse – position than he found us.

#4 Bruce Rioch took over a side that had just finished 13^th in the Third Division, built an attractive footballing side including ‘legends’ such as John McGinlay, and dragged us from the lower leagues to the Premier League in three thrilling seasons. Add the giant killing cup runs, including knocking out the holders in replays on their own grounds in successive seasons, plus a League Cup final appearance, and Rioch could be considered a credible candidate.

However, despite gaining promotion from the third in his first season and – dramatically – promotion to the Prem two years later, Rioch left before testing his team in the top flight. Choosing an ill-fated move to Highbury rather than finishing the job at Burnden leaves Rioch open to the accusation that he had taken us as far as he could.

Despite an impressive win record of 48% and the dramatic rise under his tenure, the fact that Rioch didn’t manage us in the top tier and that we were statistically only the 36^th best club in England in his time here rules Rioch out of the running, but does not diminish the respect most fans have for his achievements at the club.

The Top Three

We’re now down to three, and with the exception of the romanticism of the Bruce Rioch era, we’ve yet to set the world alight with managerial talent.

Our top three managers (or my top three, at any rate) are: Charles Foweraker (July 1919 – August 1944), Bill Ridding (October 1950 – August 1968), and Sam Allardyce (October 1999 – April 2007).

#3 Sam Allardyce

Despite delivering our most successful spell since the 1950’s, Allardyce still manages to split opinion amongst Bolton fans. There are obvious plus points: four consecutive top eight finishes, qualifying for Europe twice, bringing the likes of Djorkaeff, Okocha, Hierro and Campo to the Reebok, and a League Cup final appearance stand out a mile.

His league performance is a story of almost uninterrupted success. Taking over from Colin Todd after a poor start to the season, we somehow managed to pip Huddersfield for the last play-off spot despite being seven points behind them with four games to play. The disappointment of the controversial semi-final defeat to Ipswich was eclipsed by our fury at referee Barry Knight, who sent of our entire team three times, booked most of the Bolton fans, and awarded Ipswich a couple of dozen penalties (although in fairness, we were awarded a free-kick – for offside – mid-way through the second half).

A year later we secured third place and promotion via the play-offs, then got off to a flyer in the Prem, topping the table for the first four games. Inevitably, we still ended up battling relegation, and may well have gone down but for the introduction of Djorkaeff and Fredi Bobic.

The following season saw another relegation battle sweetened hugely by the arrival of Jay Jay Okocha and Ivan Campo, followed by four consecutive top eight finishes (8^th, 6^th, 8^th and 7^th respectively).

Over his entire tenure, including the two seasons in the second tier, we were the 11^th best team in the country, an achievement the likes of which we hadn’t seen for fifty years. Add to this the repeated successes over the Sky Four – including back-to-back wins at Old Trafford and regular sulk-inducing victories over Arsenal – and a League Cup Final appearance, and Big Sam’s reign looks like a golden era in the history of the club.

Against all this, Allardyce’s reign is tainted in some fans’ eyes. The case for the prosecution may well be helped by the disingenuous nature of his departure “to take a break from football”. He promptly tipped up as Newcastle boss a few weeks later, although to be fair his break from football was not long delayed (most Newcastle fans believe it started long before he became their manager). The fact that he was followed to Newcastle by members of his backroom staff and pinched Abdoulaye Faye off us for peanuts also left a sour taste for some.

Even if he’d left under better circumstances and still sent us all Christmas cards, Allardyce would have plenty critics amongst Bolton fans, due in part to his cynical brand of anti-football (diving was encouraged, shooting from outside the box strictly prohibited), and in part to his blatant attempts to talk himself into a “better” job throughout his entire reign. After a couple of years, you start to get a bit blasé about the success, and crave the occasional bit of excitement, particularly in the last couple of years. There was a time under Allardyce when I would almost hope that the opposition would score early, because we only seemed to come out of our shell once we were behind.

Allardyce has not exactly been kind to the club’s hierarchy since he left, claiming that the club’s ambition did not match his own, and that a few bob in the January transfer window would have brought us Champions League football (despite our lofty position at the time, in truth we had a poor side that had over-achieved in the first half of the season and were blatantly on the verge of being found out). Partly due to Allardyce’s comments, and partly due to those of chairman Phil Gartside upon Allardyce’s departure, Big Sam’s most vocal supporters are often Gartside’s most vociferous opponents.

This is one of the conundrums of the Allardyce reign: without the support of the club’s hierarchy, Allardyce could not have achieved the same level of success.

By giving Allardyce a ten-year contract early in his reign, Gartside effectively made him too expensive to sack, thereby immediately giving him absolute authority in the dressing room. On the verge of relegation in 2001-02, the board put together a financial package the likes of which we’d never seen to lure both Djorkaeff and Bobic to the Reebok. At the start of Big Sam’s final season we smashed our transfer record to bring Anelka to the club, only to be accused by Allardyce of lack of ambition a few months later.

Although Gartside didn’t have his finest hour upon Allardyce’s departure (for the record, Little Sam is not a better manager than Big Sam, and the less said about Megson, the better) the relationship between Big Sam and the Chairman prior to that point was strong and fruitful, and the club played a huge part in supporting Allardyce’s success.

In truth, Allardyce started to lose interest and look for a bigger stage once the England job had passed him by, but probably the thing that drags down Allardyce’s achievements the most – apart from his failure to win a trophy – is the state that he left the club in.

Throughout his reign, Big Sam was a short-term manager, consistently patching the team up with loanees or older players at the end of their career. Before the foreign superstars, we had the likes of Ian Marshall, Colin Hendry, Michael Bridges etc. Despite the ten year contract and the claims that he had a long term plan for the club, only Kevin Nolan – who was already at the club when Allardyce arrived – ever came through the ranks to make a real impression. I’ve deliberately ignored Nicky Hunt. We consistently brought in “promising” young players, introduced as “one for the future”, and consistently watched them disappear without trace.

In the end, Allardyce’s legacy was a team well past it’s sell-by date that needed a complete overhaul to prevent disaster, and a youth structure that had little potential to uncover future stars. Allardyce undoubtedly got the best out of some of his signings, but it is highly doubtful that he could have dragged this on for another season without an investment in the team that would have been way beyond our means. Sam is undoubtedly a canny operator, and he displayed this to the end, getting out at the right time before he ran the risk of ending up back where he started.

#2 Bill Ridding

Manager for eighteen years until 1968, Ridding presided over our second most successful decade, the 1950’s, in which we were the country’s 7^th best side. Under Ridding’s tenure, we enjoyed seven top ten finishes, one FA Cup win and one losing FA Cup final. The 1958 cup final success was achieved with a team that hadn’t cost a penny in transfer fees.

Over the entirety of Ridding’s reign, we were the 12^th best club in England – one place worse than under Allardyce. He also had a worse win ratio than Allardyce – 38% compared with 41% – and left us in a worse position than he found us, having finished 12^th in the Second Division in his final season. This was, at the time, our worst ever league placing.

Having said this, it would have been difficult if not impossible for any Bolton manager to have maintained our position at the top table given the changing financial climate in football, and specifically the removal of the maximum wage which meant that clubs like Bolton could no longer compete with big city clubs over players’ wages.

It may well also be the case that Ridding had had his day, but it is also notable that the club struggled following his departure, wallowing at the bottom end of the table for two seasons and then rock bottom in 1970. It would take a further six years and four managers to get back to where we were when he left.

Ridding pips Allardyce to second place despite the last few years of his tenure because of what he achieved in his first decade or so, with more top half finishes and higher league positions than Allardyce managed, including one 4^th place, and two FA Cup final appearances including one success. I suppose you could throw the Charity Shield in there for good measure if you really wanted to.

#1 Charles Foweraker

Charles Foweraker is still our longest serving and most successful manager.

English league football did not begin with the Premier League, it began a good few years (a hundred plus) beforehand, and the fact that Foweraker has been dead since 1950, or the fact that all the games were in black and white, does not diminish his achievements at the club.

Over the entirety of his 25 year tenure as manager, Bolton were the 6^th best team in the country. He managed us through our most successful spell in the 1920’s, when we were the 3^rd best team in the country overall. He achieved ten top-ten finishes, including twice finishing 3^rd, and won the FA Cup three times, in 1923, 1926, and 1929.

The only blot on his copybook was our relegation in 1933, but we bounced back two years later, having narrowly missed out on promotion in 1934, and went on the finish the 1930’s with a couple of seasons in the top eight.

Although his win ratio is slightly less than Allardyce’s, a far greater proportion of his tenure was in the top flight (23 out of 25 years, compared with 6 out of 8 for Allardyce), and his combination of cup success and relative league success make Foweraker an absolute shoe-in for our greatest ever manager.

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BWFCforum’s Wakey continues with part three of the decade-by-decade review of the league history of Bolton and Sunday’s visitors Birmingham, covering the modern period: 1990 to present.

1990-1999

another close encounter....

The 1990’s are a strange decade for Bolton fans. Whilst they only spent two seasons in the top flight and four in the third, and had their second worst ranking of any decade, most of us look back on the decade with a great deal of fondness. It was undoubtedly the decade that started the revival in the club’s fortunes after the misery of the 1980’s; that brought Bruce Rioch’s free-flowing football to the club; that saw great giant killing acts, including knocking cup holders Liverpool out of the competition in a replay at Anfield, before repeating the feat the following season at Highbury against then cup-holders Arsenal. It was the decade that saw a return to the top flight for the first time in fifteen years, a record breaking promotion campaign under Colin Todd, the move to the Reebok, and local legends like John McGinlay, David Lee, and even commentator Dave Higson.

The 1990’s started for Bolton with a 6th place finish and a play-off semi-final defeat to Notts County. The following season saw a 4th place finish, and this time a trip to Wembley in the play-off final, again ending in disappointment with defeat to Tranmere.

The following year was a disappointment, with Bolton finishing 13th, heralding the departure of manager Phil Neal and the appointment of Bruce Rioch. Rioch’s first season saw promotion from the third tier – by now the Division Two – at his first attempt, finishing runners-up to Stoke.

After consolidating their place in Division One with a 14th place finish, Bolton gained promotion to the Premier League in 1995 after a memorable play-off final win against Reading. Rioch departed for Arsenal, and Roy McFarland was brought in as joint manager with Colin Todd. The Wanderers spent most of the season rooted to the foot of the table, before their inevitable relegation, nine points adrift of safety.

The following season saw the Trotters win the First Division by eighteen clear points from second-placed Barnsley, and only missing out on becoming the first team to amass 100 points and 100 league goals in the same season due to a Tranmere equaliser on the last day of the season.

Again the stay was short-lived, with relegation on goal difference to Everton on the final day of the 1997-98 season. The following season, Bolton again made the play-off final, this time losing to Watford.

Birmingham spent the first three years of the decade in the third tier alongside Bolton, finishing 7th (one place behind the Trotters) and 12th before gaining promotion in 1992 as runners up to Brentford. The following season saw them finish 19th, but they were relegated the year after, losing out on goal difference to West Brom.

As Bolton were gaining promotion to the top flight in 1995, Birmingham were gaining promotion as champions of Division Two, with Brentford as runners up.

The next four years saw steady progress but no promotion, finishing 15th, 10th, 7th, and 4th respectively, and losing out to Watford in the play-off semi-finals in 1999.

The 1990’s had seen Bolton recover from a third tier club to one with genuine Premiership aspirations, but their overall ranking of 33rd was the second worst in the club’s history. Birmingham were the 24th best team in a decade which had also seen them climb from the third tier to the upper reaches of the second.

Manchester United were the team of the decade, winning the title five times, followed by Liverpool and Arsenal with Aston Villa in 4th, enjoying their best decade since 1919.

2000-2009

The first decade of the new millennium was to prove Bolton’s best since the 1950’s, although it started in yet more play-off disappointment in a season that was to see the Wanderers fail in three semi-finals: to Tranmere in the League Cup, to Aston Villa on penalties in the FA Cup, and to Ipswich after extra time in a controversial play-off semi-final which saw Ipswich awarded three penalties and referee Barry Knight hand out twelve yellow cards and two red to Bolton players. The same season saw Sam Allardyce replace Colin Todd as manager.

The following season, the Trotters put their disappointment aside and returned to the top flight once more after play-off victory against Preston. They had finished the season in third place behind Fulham and Blackburn. All three teams remained in the Premiership for the remainder of the decade.

Despite leading the table briefly at the start of the season, 2002 saw Bolton in a relegation scrap, eventually finishing 16th and avoiding relegation by four points. A year later, they needed 44 points to retain their Premier League status, a home win on the last day against Middlesboro securing safety and condemning West Ham to relegation on 42 points.

The next four years saw top eight finishes for the Wanderers, enjoying a best place of 6th and securing European football on two occasions.

The end of the 2006-07 season saw the departure of manager Sam Allardyce and the ill-fated appointment of his assistant Sammy Lee. Lee was sacked shortly (no pun intended) into the following season, leaving Bolton bottom of the table with five points from ten games when Gary Megson took over. Having seemed to put themselves in a comfortable position, a poor run of form at the start of 2008, following the departure of Nicholas Anelka, saw the Trotters facing relegation, until a run of eleven points from the last five games saw them avoid relegation by a point.

They flirted vaguely with relegation at times the following season, but helped by a run of four wins in five matches in November, finished comfortably in 13th, seven points clear of relegation to end the decade in the top flight.

Birmingham started the decade with three 5th place finishes, losing out in the play-off semi-finals to Barnsley and Preston before beating Norwich on penalties in the 2002 final. They also reached the final of the League Cup in 2001, losing on a penalty shoot-out to Liverpool.

They went on to enjoy three comfortable seasons in the Premier League under manager Steve Bruce, finishing 13th, 10th, and 12th respectively, but 2006 saw them relegated along with West Brom and Sunderland after a late rally from Portsmouth.

Bruce remained in charge, and Birmingham achieved an immediate return as runners-up to Sunderland. However, after a disappointing start to the following season, and amidst speculation about a possible takeover and its implications for Bruce’s position, he left the club to join Wigan in November 2007 and was replaced by Alex McLeish. Ironically a month earlier, Bruce had been a target for Bolton, but the Trotters were refused permission to speak to him.

McLeish couldn’t keep Birmingham up, and despite looking well placed going into the later stages, a run of five points from the last six games, combined with the late-season form of both Bolton and Fulham, saw the Blues relegated, one point behind Fulham but with a superior goal difference.

Again, the Blues bounced back up immediately, finishing runners-up to Wolves and ensuring that they would start the new decade in the top flight.

The decade was Bolton’s fourth best ever, with eight seasons in the top flight, including four top eight finishes, helping them to a ranking of 11th. Birmingham split their time equally between the top two divisions, with three promotions and two relegations, and finished with a ranking of 17th, also their best rating since the 1950’s.

Unsurprisingly, Manchester United were top dogs, with six league titles helping them to top spot (and a ludicrously low average league position of 1.7), followed by Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, and Aston Villa.

Whatever happens on Sunday, Birmingham will finish above Bolton for the 38th time, and the first time since 2003, and both teams will meet again in the Premier League next season.

Summary Table

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Another instalment from bwfc forum’s resident Stat man – Wakey – who over the next 3 days leading up to our final premier league game this season, gives us a very interesting insight into previous encounters and shows the history and rivalry of the two clubs are closer than you would think….

On face value, Bolton and Birmingham don’t have a great deal in common. Bolton have always struggled to compete against local big-city clubs, whereas Birmingham are based in England’s second city. Birmingham have enjoyed several high-profile- and sometimes controversial – owners, whilst Bolton have been quietly run by the local bakers for much

Wakey in manny road stand watching Wanderers v Birmingham 1922

of their history.

Scratch the surface (and clutch a few straws) and you can find the odd similarity. Both were formed within a year or so of each other, initially as church sides. Both have lived largely in the shadow of more successful local rivals. Both would see their rightful place as mid-table (ish) in the Premier League, although there are probably at least twenty other clubs with similar aspirations.

Scratch even deeper, and there’s a much closer similarity between the two.

Bolton fans would probably claim that the Trotters are the more successful of the two clubs. Founder members of the Football League, they have four FA Cup wins plus three losing final appearances to Birmingham’s two losing finals. They have completed – or will have by Sunday evening – 71 seasons in the top flight to Birmingham’s 56. Of the 107 seasons both teams have been league clubs, including this season, Bolton have finished higher than Birmingham 69 times. Bolton even edge the meetings between the two, with 46 wins to Birmingham’s 39.

But it’s in terms of league success that the two clubs share their greatest similarity.

The method we use to measure how successful a team is historically is to take the overall average league position, i.e. ranking every team’s league position each season from the winner of the Premier League (1st), to the bottom of League Two (92nd), or less in seasons with less than 92 league clubs. Follow the same principle from the inception of the league to present and you can give each team an overall average league position.

In this respect, the two clubs couldn’t be closer.

Historically – including this year and working on the basis that professional league football in England began in the late 1880’s, rather than the early 1990’s as Sky would have you believe – Bolton are the 21st most successful league side in England. Birmingham are 22nd.

Incidentally, and annoyingly for Bolton and Birmingham fans respectively, our local rivals Manchester United and Aston Villa are 5th and 6th most successful, although all four teams are one place higher if you ignore founder members Accrington’s five years as a First Division side.

Bolton fans and regular readers of Manny Road will know that Bolton’s “all-time league” position has dramatically worsened since the 1960’s. In 1960 Bolton were England’s 5th most successful team, and despite the club’s decline, didn’t slip out of the all-time top 10 until the early 1970’s. But how do the two teams’ performances compare?

In anticipation of Sunday’s clash, Manny Road takes a decade-by-decade view of the respective league history of both clubs.

1889-1899
Founder members Bolton spent the first decade (and a bit) in the top flight without ever setting the division alight – a third place finish in 1892 being their highest – and ending the century as the 7th most successful side overall. However, 1899 saw the club finish 17th and face relegation from the top flight for the first time.

Birmingham joined the league as founder members of the newly formed Second Division, and won the inaugural title in 1893 but failed to gain promotion, losing a Test Match (a.k.a. play-off) to Newton Heath (a.k.a. Man Utd). The following year they did go up, finishing second but beating Darwen in a Test Match. Incidentally, Liverpool beat Newton Heath via the same system to take their place in the top flight.
Two years later, Birmingham were relegated after a Test Match against Liverpool, and spent the remainder of the decade in the Second Division.

Birmingham ended the period as the 19th best side, one place ahead of Manchester United. Villa were the most successful club, winning the title 4 times and with an overall average of 3.6, well clear of 2nd best Everton’s average position of 4.1.

1900-1909
The first decade of the twentieth century saw both clubs spend six years in the First Division and four in the second.

Bolton bounced back at the first attempt in 1900, but were relegated again two years later. The following year they had their worst finish to date – 7th in the Second Division – before gaining promotion again in 1905. After two 6th place finishes, Bolton were relegated again in 1908, before going back up as champions the following year, ending the decade as the 16th most successful club, a significant drop on the previous decade, but still comfortably above neighbours Manchester United in 23rd.

Birmingham had their own mini yo-yo spell, with promotion in 1901, relegation in 1902, and promotion again in 1903. They then spent five years in the top flight, with best finishes back-to-back 7th place in 1905 and 1906, before being relegated in 1908 and finishing the decade mid-table in Division Two. Over the decade as a whole, Birmingham were the 18th most successful side.

Newcastle were top dogs for the decade, pushing Birmingham’s arch-rivals Villa into 2nd place.

1910-1919
Only six seasons were completed due to the outbreak of WWI, with Birmingham spending all six in the second tier. They started the decade with their worst year, finishing bottom, and had a best finish of 3rd in 1913.

Bolton briefly continued to yo-yo, finishing bottom in 1910 and bouncing stright back, but then spent an extended period mostly in the top half of the First Division, and – apart from a 17th place finish in 1915 – didn’t face a serious relegation threat again until the 1930’s.

For the six completed seasons of the decade, Bolton were the 13th most successful club, with Birmingham 33rd. Local rivals Villa were again 2nd (Blackburn were top dogs), whilst Manchester United had established themselves as a top flight club, and were in 6th place overall.

1920-1929
The 1920’s saw Bolton’s best ever decade, spending the entire period in the top flight – mostly in the top half – with best placed finishes of 3rd in 1921 and 1925. They also won the FA Cup three times in the decade, including the first Wembley final in 1923.

The period also saw an improvement in Birmingham’s fortunes, with promotion in 1921 followed by an extended run in the First Division. Their best finish was 8th in 1925, which was also their only top half finish in the decade.

Bolton were the 3rd best side in the 1920’s with Birmingham 16th. Local rivals Villa and Manchester United were 5th and 17th respectively, with Liverpool top dogs overall.

1930-1939
The ten years up to WWII saw Birmingham’s best ever decade in terms of league performance, spending the whole period in the top flight, albeit mostly in the lower half. Their best performance was 9th in 1932, and they flirted with relegation in 1931 (19th), 1934 (20th), 1935 (19th) and 1938 (18th), before ending the decade – and the break for WWII – with relegation in 1939 in 21st position. The Blues also reached their first FA Cup final in 1931, losing 2-1 to West Brom.

The first four years of the 1930’s saw Bolton struggle in the bottom half of the First Division, finally being relegated in 1933. They narrowly missed out on promotion in 1934, before regaining top-flight status the following season. After finishing mid-table in 1936, they narrowly avoided relegation the following year, finishing 20th. The final two years of the decade saw Bolton finish comfortably in the top half.

The period saw Birmingham enjoy the 14th best average league placing to Bolton’s 16th, the first of three decades in which the Blues would come out on top. Arsenal were top dogs, with Villa 8th and Manchester United – yet to emerge as a major force and spending six of the ten years in the second tier – 26th.

The war was to cut short the 1939-40 season after just three games, and the league programme didn’t resume until the 1946-47 season, so this is as good as any a point to look at the overall average league positions from 1889-1939.

Bolton, having spent 40 of the 47 completed seasons in the top flight, were 7th overall. Birmingham had missed the first four years, and spent 26 years in the top flight and 17 in the second tier, and were 20th best overall, one place above Man United, who had spent almost half of their 43 years in the second tier.

Overall top dogs were Sunderland, who had spent all of their 45 league seasons in the top flight and won the title six times, followed by Villa, who had also won the title six times, but spent two years in the Second Division, and five times champions Everton, who had spent all bar one year in the top division.

Look out for parts 2 and 3 over the next couple of days.

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This weekend sees Bolton travel to White Hart Lane, and a clash between two famous old clubs that have 16 FA Cup

how times have changed

Finals (12 wins) and a combined total of 146 years of top-flight football between them, not to mention Spurs’ 4 League Cup wins, and 4 European trophies.

Recent history has been very different for the two clubs, with Spurs only spending one year out of the top flight since 1950, whilst Bolton have dropped through the leagues and back twice in the same period. However, looking further back in history paints a different picture of the two clubs.

Prior to 1950, Spurs had spent as much time in the Second Division as the First, and their only FA Cup win had come as a non-league club in 1901. Bolton had already won the cup three times, been runners-up twice, and spent the vast majority of their history in the top flight.

The abolition of the maximum wage in 1961 changed the football landscape at the time, and Bolton’s decline from this point onwards was dramatic and prolonged.

By the end of the 1959/60 season, Bolton were historically England’s 5th most successful club, based on average league position. At the same point, despite one league title success, Spurs were the 20th best team.

By the end of 2008, Spurs – by now winners of the FA Cup eight times, the League Cup four times, and four European trophies – had moved up to seventh in the table of overall average league positions, whilst Bolton had failed to add to trophy cabinet, had spent more time out of the top flight than in it, and slipped to 21st in the overall average league table.

In anticipation of the weekend’s clash, bwfcforum’s Statman takes a closer look at the history of the two clubs for Manny Road.

Early years: 1888 – 1914
By the time Spurs were elected to the football league div 2 in 1908, founder members Bolton had completed 20 seasons, mostly in the First Division, but with a best placed finish of 3rd. Tottenham had already become the first – and only – non-league club to win the FA Cup since the formation of the football league in 1888. Bolton had yet to win the trophy, having been losing finalists in 1894 and 1904.
In their first season, Spurs finished runners up to Bolton– who had been relegated the previous season. Spurs stayed up for six seasons before being relegated in 1915, whilst Bolton went straight back down in 1910, only to bounce back at the first attempt and remain in the top flight until 1933.

Spurs’ first spell in the top flight saw them finish 15th, 15th, 12th, 17th, and 17th before finally finishing 20th in 1915.

After promotion again in 1911, Bolton finished 4th, 8th, 6th, and 17th before the league was suspended for WWI.

Between the Wars
When the league resumed in 1919/20, Spurs won the Second Division title and went on to enjoy an 8 year period in the top flight, finishing 6th in 1921 and then runners up in 1922 – their highest league finish at that point – but then spent the next 5 years in the bottom half, finishing between 12th and 15th, before being relegated again in 1928.

From 1919/20, Bolton enjoyed one of their best spells, finishing 8 of the next 9 seasons in the top 8.

The 1920’s also saw the two clubs share 4 FA Cup wins, Spurs winning the trophy in 1921 and Bolton following their 1923 success in the first FA Cup Final at Wembley with wins in 1926 and 1929. The decade also saw the first meeting between the two sides in the cup, with Spurs knocking Bolton out in a second round replay in 1925. The two clubs would go on to meet in the cup in a further 5 seasons, with 4 of the ties needing a replay, and a further tie – in 1948 – decided after extra time. In total, including this year’s clash, Spurs have knocked Bolton out 4 times.

Whilst Spurs spent 5 seasons in Division Two from 1928/29, Bolton had slipped into the bottom half of Division One, with the Trotters finally relegated in 1933, swapping places with Spurs who were promoted as runners up.

Spurs then spent two seasons in the top flight – finishing an impressive 3rd in their first season back, before finishing rock bottom the following year – whilst Bolton spent two years in Division Two, finishing 3rd before being promoted the following year as runners up, with the two teams again swapping places in the top flight.

The following four years leading up to WWII saw both clubs remain in their respective divisions, Bolton narrowly avoiding relegation in 1937 but then finishing in the top half for the following two years, whilst Spurs were mid-table in Div 2.

Post War years: 1946 – 1977
Resumption of the league programme in 1946/47 saw Bolton struggling at the wrong end of Div 1 for the next four years, with Spurs finishing 6th, 8th, and 5th before finally returning as Div 2 champions in 1950.

Spurs followed up their Div 2 success by winning the Div 1 title in their first season back in 1951, then finished runners up in 1952. The following season saw them down to 10th, before struggling at the bottom end for the next 3 seasons. Over the same period, Bolton enjoyed 4 top half finishes out of the 6 seasons, with only 1955 (18th) seeing them flirting with relegation. They were also on the wrong end of Blackpool’s famous 4-3 win in the 1953 FA Cup Final.

The next 20 years saw a period of unprecedented prolonged success for Spurs, with 15 top 8 finishes and only 1959 (18th), and 1975 (19th) out of the top half. The highlights of the period was undoubtedly the double success of 1961, in a spell which saw them finish in the top 3 six seasons out of seven between 1957 and 1963. Although they didn’t enjoy this level of consistent success in the remainder of the period, they managed 3rd place finishes in 1967 and 1971.

Spurs also retained the FA Cup in 1962 and won it again in 1967. They followed up their FA Cup success by winning the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup in 1963, the first European trophy win by an English club, along with League Cup wins in 1971 and 1973, a UEFA Cup win in 1972 and losing final in 1974.

Whilst the 1950’s ended well for Bolton, with the 1958 FA cup win followed up with two top 6 finishes, times were changing for the Lancashire outfit, with the abolition of the maximum wage and the end of Nat Lofthouse’s prolific career, and flirtation with relegation in 1961 and 1963 was merely a brief reprieve, as the Trotters finished 21st in 1964.

For a club that had never spent more than two consecutive years out of the top flight, and had only spent 7 years in the Second Division since the formation of the league in 1888/89, it would have seemed unthinkable at the time that Bolton would not have returned to the top flight for 14 seasons. Having narrowly missed out on an immediate return in 1965, Bolton spent the next couple of years in mid-table, before a gradual decline that saw relegation to Division Three in 1971 for the first time in the club’s history. They finished a disappointing 7th in 1972 before being promoted as Division Three champions in 1973.

After a couple of mid-table finishes, Bolton then narrowly missed out on promotion by a point in 1976 and 1977 (to Brian Clough’s Forest), whilst Spurs’ 19th place finish in 1975 was a warning for what was to come two seasons later, when they finished bottom of Division One.

1977- 2001
1977/78 saw the two clubs in the same division for the first time since Bolton’s relegation in 1964, with the two clubs – favourites for promotion – battling it out at the top all season, Bolton finally finishing champions with Spurs promoted in third place.

The fortunes of the two clubs from that point could not have been more different. Whilst Spurs have enjoyed an unbroken spell in the top flight, Bolton managed a 17th place finish in 1979 before being rooted to the bottom for most of the following season and being relegated by some distance. Bolton’s decline from 1980 was worse than that following their previous relegation in 1964, with the club plummeting through the divisions before spending a season – 1987/88 – in the Fourth Division. Bolton then spent a further 5 seasons in the third division before gaining promotion to the second tier in 1993.

Over the same period, Spurs were mostly a top half team, with 3rd place finishes in 1985, 1987, and 1990, and further FA Cup success in 1981, 1982, and 1991 (plus their only Cup Final defeat in 1987) and a UEFA Cup triumph in 1984.

After 2 years in the second tier, Bolton returned to the top flight after a dramatic play-off win v Reading in 1995, but their stay was short-lived. As Manchester United pipped Keegan’s Newcastle for the title, and Tottenham finished 8th, Bolton finished 4 points adrift at the foot of the table. 1995 also saw Bolton make their first appearance in the League Cup final, finishing runners up to Liverpool.

In 1997 Bolton bounced straight back in style, finishing 18 points clear at the top of Division One, with Spurs finishing mid-table in the Premiership. Again, their stay lasted only a season, going down on goal difference to Everton on the final day. Spurs were briefly involved in the relegation battle, but ultimately pulled away to finish 4 points clear in 14th.

Spurs remained in mid-table for the next three seasons, finishing 11th, 10th and 12th, winning the League Cup again in 1999, whilst Bolton missed out in the play-offs in 1999 and 2000 before finally returning via the same route in 2001.

2001-present
Whilst the next two seasons saw Bolton in relegation battles, finishing 4 points clear in 16th in 2002, before needing 44 points to survive in 17th place the following year (West Ham were relegated on 42 points), Spurs maintained their mid-table position, finishing 9th and 10th respectively.

Bolton finished top 8 in each of the next four seasons, with a best finish of 6th in 2005, 3 points off a Champions League place, and also made their second appearance in the League Cup Final, this time losing to Middlesbrough. Spurs finished 14th and 9th before consecutive 5th place finishes in 2006 and 2007, missing a Champions League spot by just 2 points in 2006.

The following season, with Sammy Lee replacing Sam Allardyce as manager, whilst Bolton were rooted to the foot of the table after 10 games with just 5 points, Martin Jol’s Spurs were just 2 points and two places above, and struggling to repeat the form of the previous two years. Whilst Bolton ultimately survived under Gary Megson, finishing 16th and 1 point clear of relegation, Spurs finished 10 points clear in 11th place after Juande Ramos had replaced Martin Jol, and again won the League Cup.

The following season saw Spurs finish 8th (and League Cup runners up) and Bolton comfortable in 13th, despite spending periods of the season hovering just above the relegation zone.

The two clubs have continued to have different fortunes this season, with Bolton breathing a sigh of relief having secured safety with two games remaining, and Spurs currently holding 4th spot and a Champions League place.

Overall …
It’s probably fitting for two clubs whose greatest successes have been in cup competitions that the biggest wins in meetings between the two have all come in cup competitions, with Tottenham’s 6-0 League Cup win in 2001 trumping Bolton’s 6-1 win in the same competition in 1996. Spurs have also enjoyed 4-0 FA Cup wins in 2002 – the only FA Cup tie between the sides not to go to a replay or extra time – and in this year’s competition.

The two sides have not been lucky for each other in the cup. Despite being drawn against each other nine times in cup competitions, and sharing 25 appearances in domestic finals, neither side has reached a cup final in the seasons that they have met.

Spurs have managed to do the double over Bolton six times – including both of their league title-winning campaigns, and most recently in 1978/79 – whilst Bolton have managed the same feat seven times, including 2003/04 and 2004/05. Results since then have typically gone for the home team.

Overall, of the 90 completed seasons that both clubs have been in the football league, Spurs have finished higher than Bolton 60 times.

The head to head results are somewhat closer. Out of a total of 97 meetings, Spurs have 42 wins to Bolton’s 36 (19 draws), whilst in league meetings, Spurs are ahead 36 to 33 (14 draws).

League meetings at White Hart Lane show a clearer dominance for Spurs, with 25 wins, 7 draws, and 9 defeats, the last in October 2004. Since that win, Bolton have managed just 1 point from the last 5 league trips.

With Spurs in pole position for the 4th Champions League spot, and Bolton now playing for nothing other than pride and Premier League prize money, will Spurs extend their dominance at White Hart Lane, or could Bolton upset the odds and get their first win there in almost six years?

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The support from football fans and ordinary people in the street has been inspirational

Click the link to listen to Mark Halsey’s Exclusive  interview.

http://www.zshare.net/audio/751463426e948768/

Despite hailing from Hertfordshire, Mark Halsey has firmly established himself as one of Bolton’s favourite adopted sons. After spending 12 years playing non-league football for Cambridge City and Hertford Town he began his refereeing career in 1989 and a decade later refereed the famous 1999 Football League One Play-off Final between Gillingham and Manchester City at Wembley. The same year he was promoted to Premier League status and shortly after the FIFA List of referees. He quickly established himself as one of the most popular referees in the League.

Mark was kind enough to take time out of his schedule to speak Exclusively to Manny Road & bwfcforum’s Andi Walton. He started by asking him about his current health:

MH:      Yeah I’m feeling very good, I seem to be getting stronger with every game I do and it’s a bonus for me because I never thought I’d be back refereeing again, so every day is a cup final and it’s really great to be back and the reception I’ve received from the two games I’ve done at Rotherham and Port Vale and Oldham and Bristol Rovers, the fans have been absolutely fantastic and it’s been very emotional and overwhelming for me.

AW:      It must have been the furthest thing from your mind getting out on the football pitch when you were in the midst of your treatment but now you’ve got to that stage, it must be a real thrill.

MH:      For me to come back and, you know, I suppose…for what I’ve gone through with all my chemotherapy and my radiotherapy…I mean if you saw me at Christmas, I was nowhere near the Mark Halsey of old, you know, but I’ve worked hard and a lot of people have helped me and it’s been great.  The support I’ve received from people around the country – just ordinary football fans and ordinary people in the street.  They’ve been inspirational to me and they’ve got to really pat themselves on the back for the way they’ve helped me and it’s down to them that I’m back where I am now.

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Click the link to listen to the interview.

http://www.zshare.net/audio/751463426e948768/

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AW:      Tell us about the club Mark, how have they been helping?

MH:      Oh they’ve been fantastic. I come into remission and Adie the fitness coach and you’ve got Nick Worth in charge of the physios, they’ve been brilliant with me.  Then you’ve got the doc who’s been brilliant with me.  Owen Coyle’s been running with me and Adie’s set me running programmes to do to build my fitness back up and without the club I don’t think I’d be where I am now as well because they’ve been absolutely first class with me, first class.

AW:      Let’s go back a bit earlier in your career. You were a player before you were a ref weren’t you?

MH:      Yeah.  I was a player. I played non-league as a goal keeper down in the Ryman’s league and up until I was about 28 really then I gave up playing and sort of…well 30 I was, and gave up playing and took up refereeing.  I got one or two injuries and took up refereeing.

AW:      Do you think that’s given you an advantage as opposed to somebody…well you know, it’s a decent standard you played at.

MH:      It was yeah. It does help you playing the game. I have empathy for the game, I give players a chance, I love football, I’m a football fan and it’s all about 22 players on the field and the fans, you know, it’s not about the referee.  And I think that’s where sometimes we lose sight.  It doesn’t always mean to say that ex-players make good referees.

AW:      So how did you end up in Bolton then, because obviously we can tell from you voice that you’re not born and bred.

MH:      No born and bread in Welwyn Garden City in Hertfordshire and I married a Bolton lass so obviously that’s when I moved up here and here I am.

AW:      You’ve become an honorary northerner.

MH:      I’m an honorary northerner, yeah and I love being a northerner. I love being a northwester, I wouldn’t move back down south.

AW:      So you’ve talked about the club helping you with your recovery, but how did you come about getting involved with Bolton in the first place?

MH:      When I first moved up here in 2000…Sam Allardyce has been brilliant with me as well.  He was in charge of the Wanderers and I asked if I could come along and train with him and I am and I’ve been there 10 years now, going every day.  I mean the lads have been fantastic with me and over the last 9 months I’ve got to know Joey O’Brien and Sean Davis very well, although Sean’s got on my nerves, in there recovering in the gym because of the long term injuries…but we’ve passed the time away really well and we’ve had a good laugh and he’s a bit of a pain in the backside is Sean!

We’ve had good times.  It’s been great, you know…but that’s why there’s a plus point being in the gym with them two all the time.

AW:            Obviously you arrived in 2000 and that was when the club was just about sort of on the up and up wasn’t it?

MH:      In 2000 first season in the Premier League it was.

AW:      And has the club advanced since you first arrived? I imagine that you’re one of those who have been around for the longest now.

MH:      I think they’ve gone from strength to strength really. You can’t take it away from what Sam Allardyce done.  I mean he’s put the club on the map and he’s done a fantastic job.   And obviously all good things come to an end and you move on.  And we’ve had people come and go and they’ve all done well in their own way and I think now that Owen Coyle’s here.  I mean Owen Coyle…his enthusiasm is second to none.  When I first saw his training session I thought he was absolutely…his enthusiasm was fantastic and he’s got all the lads up there and playing and working for him.

AW:      I suppose you’ll be coming up against Sam now won’t you because obviously you never did while was in charge of Bolton?

MH:      No I don’t referee Sam. He’s at Blackburn and we’re right good friends so they never give me Sam’s club’s.

AW:      Right, so that’s all kind of acknowledged then by the powers-that-be, is it?

MH:      Yeah.

AW:      Who are the best Bolton players that you worked alongside then over the last 10 years Mark?

MH:            Obviously there have been some great players haven’t there? I think Jussi Jaaskelainen  and I’ve trained with Jussi and I think he’s got to be up there, one of the top players, top performers, consistently week-in week-out.  And Ivan Campo was fantastic in the midfield there.  Djorkaeff and Jay Jay Okocha – there are some great names of the past aren’t there.

AW:      I suppose those are the sort of names as well that the fans remember best, particularly those like Campo really had a connection with the fans.

MH:      Oh of course he did.  They were some good days under Sam weren’t they. You know, I think the lads now that have come in are doing well and playing for Owen and if they keep us in the Premier League, which I think they will…I don’t think there’s a problem there…and see if we can kick on and see if they can kick on next season.

AW:      So you’ve said ‘us’ – you said ‘we’ there.  Does that mean that you’re a Wanderers fan? What would you describe yourself as?

MH:      Well you know, obviously being attached to the club you do, don’t you.  But I mean obviously people know I’m a QPR fan but obviously living in Bolton and training in Bolton, you get an affection for the club because as I say, the club have been fantastic with me and, you know, it’s a family run club.  So you do tend to say we, you know what I mean?

I’ve been to most games there this season because of my illness but you do, you use that terminology don’t you?

AW:      I imagine at times that it didn’t make you feel much better with some of the performances

MH:      [laughs]

AW:      Tell us about the rest of the league then.  You talked about Wanderers players.  Any other players that you’ve jut enjoyed being on the same pitch as?

MH:      Oh I mean there’s loads.  I mean there’s some fantastic players around isn’t there?  From refereeing, you just look at the likes of Alan Shearer, Henri, David Beckham. I had the privilege of refereeing Zidane and he was got to be one of the best, you know…it’s great to be on the pitch with players like that.  And you’ve got there some great players now.  You’ve got Rooney, you’ve got John Terry, you’ve got Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard, they’re absolutely fantastic players aren’t they. And it’s one everyone would want to pay to see, whether you’re support for Chelsea or support for Arsenal, cos you’ve got Fabregas who’s outstanding as well, so there’s some fantastic players.  And instead of all the supporters booing and when they come to their grounds, they should be clapping them because you don’t want them players leaving the Premiership and going playing back in Spain and Italy and things like that cos we want to be the best league in the world and we need to keep those players in the Premier league.

AW:      Yeah, there’s the sort of well-known story of Wanderers fans of when Ruud Gullit played at Burnden Park, you know, he just absolutely played us off the park but the fans just clapped him off cos they hadn’t seen a player of that standard for 20 / 30 years on the pitch there.

MH:      But that’s what it should be like every ground…life’s too short.  I know that. You just don’t know what’s round the corner.  And instead of, you know, the fans…yeah of course they get emotional don’t they, with people, so it’s just great to have all these great players gracing our football pitches.

AW:      That brings me onto how you deal with the fans’ reaction to you.  We all know some of the choice language that fans can use about refs if things don’t go the right way.  How hard is it when the whole ground – they question your parentage or whatever it might be?

MH:      [laughs] It’s emotional.  People get emotional.  Football’s emotional.  And I mean 9 times out of 10 you don’t hear it because you’re concentrating and focussing on what you’re doing, so you don’t really pay any attention to it to be honest.

AW:      Do you understand it though?  Say there’s the FA Cup semi final over the weekend and John Terry’s tackle on James Milner has come in for a bit of scrutiny and then there was the penalty in that game as well.  Howard Webb doing that game and obviously someone that you know well.  But can you understand the frustration of the Villa fans there for instance?

MH:      Well obviously I can’t comment.  I honestly haven’t seen any of the incidents, obviously because I was refereeing my game at Oldham, so I’ve not seen.  And I was at Manchester City so I can’t really comment on that because I’ve not seen any of it.

AW:      Well speaking in general, you can understand how…because you know, fans spend a lot of money.  They travel to Wembley for instance in that case and you know, we as Wanderers fans have had loads of decisions, as of course all clubs have over the years, and you do remember them.

MH:      Yeah, it’s just…as I say, these things happen don’t they?  As I say it’s very difficult for referees.  They get a split second, you know, and so it’s very difficult for referees to referee at the top level.  As I said, they get a split second whereas you get all these replays and then you can make your mind up afterwards after watching it two or three times can’t you?  If you look at Fabio Capello, he said the English league’s got the best referees in the world.

But it’s just one of those things.  We all make mistakes.  I make mistakes.  It’s just one of those things.

AW:      Would you appreciate some help from cameras though Mark?

MH:            Obviously that’s not gonna happen because FIFA have said no so that’s the end of the matter so there’s no point, no matter what I say.  It can’t be used and that’s it.  I think we can make good use of them but obviously we cannot…

AW:      What’s the best match you’ve ever reffed at?  The City Gillingham playoff final, I know you did that.  That was an extraordinary match wasn’t it?

MH:      Oh it was fantastic.  Every game I referee is good.  You know, I treat every game the same.  You know, I just love refereeing.  I just love football and I treat every game the same, whether it be at Rotherham, Morecambe, Accrington or wherever it be…at Goodison Park, I treat every game the same.

AW:      You’ve done a league cup final, a charity shield.  Would the FA Cup Final be the dream?

MH:      Oh yeah it would be. I mean with my illness and obviously, you know, being out all season, there’s that carrot there and it would be great if I could come back and referee that FA Cup Final, on merit and not on sentiment.

AW:      How’s the restaurant going on?  You still involved?

MH:      Yeah, it’s not too bad.  It’s been a struggle.  It’s been a massive struggle but you know…it’s been difficult.  But yeah, my wife’s been running that so I’ve not had a lot of involvement with that.

AW:      Where do people go if they… you’ve been good enough to talk to us so we might as well give you a plug.  Where do people go if they want to get involved?

MH:      It’s Ristaurante Sottovento, 69 Worsley Road in Farnworth.  So come along and speak to us or whatever, and support your local restaurant.

AW:      Just a couple of final things then, just on more general reffing issues.  Are players more disrespectful now and does that really affect kids watching them?

MH:      No I don’t think so, no.  To be fair, I think the Respect Programme’s working very well from what I’ve seen of it and, you know, I can only talk for myself and I get the utmost respect from players and I think that the players give the referees the utmost respect as well to be fair.  You know, I think that’s been working well.

AW:      You know when players do surround you though and obviously we’ve talked about the passion that’s involved, and they do get right in your face and, you know, you only have to watch Match of the Day to see that there is some fairly choice stuff being said by the players.  Are you not tempted just to get the yellow card straight out?  That would stop them soon enough, wouldn’t it?

MH:            Well…as I say, football’s a very emotional game and, you know, that’s what it is, it’s very emotional.  And referees manage the occasion, they take that into consideration, so they may just be doing it to themselves and it may look as if it’s at the referee.  I mean the referee on the whole; I think the referees in England do an excellent job.  And the players and the managers do respect that.

AW:      And how’s it different when you’re refereeing an international game or a European game?  Is it more difficult with the language and that kind of thing?

MH:      No they all speak English.

AW:      So you make yourself understood?

MH:      Yeah.

AW:            Refereeing an international game must be a real honour as well.

MH:      It is yeah.  It’s a great honour to represent your country, just like a player, it’s a great honour to represent your country abroad with the three lions and the FIFA badge.  It’s fantastic.  So it’s just the same for a referee as it is for a player representing your country.

AW:      And what’s the future hold Mark?  Obviously you’ll try and keep your recovery on track and get back as a regular Premier League ref next season?

MH:      Yeah, well hopefully I’d like to get a game this season.  But we’ll see how my fitness goes and I’m getting stronger all the time and as I say, it’s not been easy, considering another 2 weeks I wouldn’t be here standing talking to you, it’s been amazing and the Christie  has been a fantastic hospital and my professional team has been brilliant with me and as I say I’ve got a charity dinner on May 7^th at Lancashire Cricket Club, which we’ve got Roberto Mancini, Sir Alex Ferguson, Owen Coyle and Sam Allardyce is guest of honour so it should be a great night.

AW:      Brilliant, how do people find out more about that if they want to?

MH:      They can contact Lancashire County Cricket Club. There’s a Lancashire website and if they want to make a donation, they can text Mark to 78070 to help raise money for the Christie. Or they can visit the Just Giving website…www.justgiving.com/Mark-Halsey

AW:            Fantastic. We wish you all the best with your recovery and it’ll be great to see you back on the pitch in the premier league.

MH:      OK thanks very much.

Click the link to listen to the interview.

http://www.zshare.net/audio/751463426e948768/

As well as battling the illness he is actively fundraising to raise money for The Christie, the leading cancer centre in Manchester. You can help him reach his £50,000 target by visiting www.justgiving.com/mark-halsey or goto http://www.lccc.co.uk/index.php?p=news&id=3495 for details of Mark’s charity dinner on May 7^th at which Sir Alex Ferugson, Owen Coyle, Roberto Mancini and Sam Allardyce will be in attendance.

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