The Kevin Keegan thread

[Thespence]

Simon Bird obviously reckons News Corporation (The Scum & NOTW) papers could be spinning for Ashley.....NEE FUCKING SHIT!!!! At least he has the balls to put something that highlights the spinning. Well played Simon.  Shame he didn't name Allardyces bum boy (S.Custis), cockney wanker (Beasley) & big nose  (Steve Brenner) .

 

[Optimistic Nut]

Simon Bird obviously reckons News Corporation (The Scum & NOTW) papers could be spinning for Ashley.....NEE f***ing s***!!!! At least he has the balls to put something that highlights the spinning. Well played Simon.  Shame he didn't name Allardyces bum boy (S.Custis), cockney w***** (Beasley) & big nose  (Steve Brenner) .

 

 

Or has he still got an agenda himself since he was banned after Kinnear called him a cunt?

[UV]

Good article that. Who does Bird write for?

 

The paper that HATES Newcastle:

 

This being the paper, who, despite more than a DECADE of spiteful digs at this club, including repeated snide attacks this season, some of our more...shall we say GULLIBLE...fans defend the Mirror against their fellow fans (quite loudly and mockingly and as spitefully as the attacks themselves) and believe all the sh*te it spews out. Wally here probably has the same view of their integrity as I. If they say white, I'll believe it to be black.

[Mowen]

Simon Bird obviously reckons News Corporation (The Scum & NOTW) papers could be spinning for Ashley.....NEE f***ing s***!!!! At least he has the balls to put something that highlights the spinning. Well played Simon.  Shame he didn't name Allardyces bum boy (S.Custis), cockney w***** (Beasley) & big nose  (Steve Brenner) .

 

 

Or has he still got an agenda himself since he was banned after Kinnear called him a cunt?

 

I reckon there's definitely an element of that, hence my first reaction to the article Tooj posted. Nice to see a journalist coming at it from a different angle, if a little heavy handedly.

[Thespence]

Simon Bird obviously reckons News Corporation (The Scum & NOTW) papers could be spinning for Ashley.....NEE f***ing s***!!!! At least he has the balls to put something that highlights the spinning. Well played Simon.  Shame he didn't name Allardyces bum boy (S.Custis), cockney w***** (Beasley) & big nose  (Steve Brenner) .

 

 

Or has he still got an agenda himself since he was banned after Kinnear called him a c***?

 

I am pretty sure he did not get banned. He does not have a agenda he is just a run of the mill Newcatle fan who happens to write for the Daily Mirror.

[TRon]

Does anyone know who sits on the abitration panel? This talk of agendas has got me worried that some smug bastards might like to see mighty Newcastle £10m poorer.

[Thespence]

Does anyone know who sits on the abitration panel? This talk of agendas has got me worried that some smug bastards might like to see mighty Newcastle £10m poorer.

 

Shame lack of invesment in Jan meant we are about £50 million+ poorer.

 

Personally I would of preferred a FA hearing or everyone off down to the high court. The Premier League is owned by the 20 clubs in it at that time & we were members when this started,  so Lambias could of influenced this at the time all this started but then is Lambias & antagonise is more his gig.

 

I am sure I read early doors there was a lord & expert in employment law iirc. Dave Whealn of  Wigan offered to sit in

[Tooj]

After he dragged Newcastle off their knees, I loved 1992-93, when the side shimmered with neat, quick, triangular football and were promoted as champions. I loved it because Keegan urged supporters to gaze at the stars and believe anything was possible. I love it even more now, because so much of football feels hemmed in. I loved it that the glorious mania prompted rogue sightings of Roberto Baggio in Wallsend chipshops.

 

I loved it when Keegan opened Newcastle’s training ground to fans and hundreds of them turned up. From a professional point of view, I loved it that he welcomed reporters to Maiden Castle every day, where they could tap players on the shoulder and, if they agreed, talk to them. From a personal point of view, I loved it because one of those players became my best man, even if our friendship lasted longer than my marriage.

 

I loved hearing about Keegan’s powers of persuasion, convincing Robert Lee that Newcastle was closer to London than Middlesbrough and then moulding him into an England international. I didn’t care that his tactical prowess was mocked, because he made players feel like gods and somehow prompted them to overachieve. I loved his unshakeable faith in attacking football.

 

I loved the headlong tilts at the title, the acquisitions of Les Ferdinand, David Ginola and Shearer. I wish that Newcastle had grasped the championship ahead of Manchester United, although I loved that season anyway and never winning anything but singing regardless is now ingrained as a defining feature of those born with a black-and-white lifetime sentence.

 

I didn’t love it when he took his leave of Tyneside in 1997, although I understood it. In the space of five years, the club had been transformed beyond all recognition and in the rush to embrace the City, they would be transformed further. I never loved the Hall or Shepherd families, although like many people, I was blindsided by the ambition, the changes to the ground and convinced myself that the shares, dividends and salaries were forgivable.

 

In the face of widespread bewilderment - including my own - I loved it when Keegan came back to Gallowgate in January 2008. Anybody who was present in the city on that heady day will have felt something similar; a veil lifting, eyes opening, hearts beating. It had not been that way for a very long time and this was a reminder that football could be fun, impetuous, beautiful, mad.

 

For similar reasons, I loved it when Keegan said the following in an interview with this newspaper: “I want people to dream about their football club. They should, we should all be dreamers at heart. Some people are the opposite and say ‘we can’t do that’, but when you ask them why, they can’t give a reason. Well, I say, ‘Why not?’”. He talked about “unfinished business” and I think he believed he could charm and cajole Mike Ashley.

 

I detested the way Keegan was treated. Having embraced Geordie sentimentality and appointed a man who dealt in dreams, Ashley strapped his manager into a straitjacket. He brought in Dennis Wise as executive director (football), roles were not defined with any clarity, Keegan was slapped down in public and ultimately left when - allegedly - players were signed without his approval. It was nonsensical and, this time, not in a good way.

 

The last 12 months have not been kind to Keegan, but that is not his fault. When Sam Allardyce was sacked as manager, his contract was settled within days, but a dispute over whether Keegan resigned or was pushed has meant a long, bitter process. As Newcastle struggled and then suffered relegation, it was natural that some sympathy would swing against him, although he has not been able to speak out. He remained silent in the face of briefings against him.

 

Keegan stood up for principle; managers should manage. The man Ashley hired might have been weathered by his experiences with England - I would term his decision to step down as honest, not weak - but he had always used his power as a bargaining chip (Freddy Shepherd claims to have letters of resignation from him framed on his toilet wall). For better or worse, he then stood up for what he thinks he is owed.

 

What I hate is that a day before the Premier League arbitration panel which has been hearing Keegan’s case was due to break up and consider their verdict, a story leaked that Newcastle would be threatened with administration should their former employer win. Derek Llambias, the managing director, had already stated publicly that such a measure was not being considered and the timing felt both risible and transparent.

 

A source close to the takeover saga at Newcastle (some doubt the veracity of ‘sources’ or ‘insiders’, but there are people who will only speak to journalists on the basis of anonymity - honest), insists that Keegan’s claim is not a concern within Seymour Pierce, the bank charged with handling the club’s sale, and that Barry Moat’s bid is ongoing. But 12 months on - four after their demotion - and suddenly administration is an issue!

 

For all their heartening success on the field since August, Newcastle is still a club being run by men asleep at the wheel, full of contradiction and questions; a club where ‘Malaysian’ businessmen, who Seymour Pierce said had made no contact with them, can be shown around the ground, where Ashley and Llambias can heap praise on Shearer and then let him dangle. And too many other things, whether before or afterwards.

 

I will love Kevin Keegan whatever result the independent panel come to. I will love him for reasons which Ashley and Llambias could never understand, because he gave uplift to Newcastle, hope and inspiration, he made a region sparkle and people smile. I do not, for a single moment, suggest that he is perfect, but his team came close to perfection. If circumstances ever allow it, I would love to think he’ll discuss it all.

 

I love him because of something Robson once wrote. “What is a club in any case? Not the buildings or the directors or the people who are paid to represent it. It’s not the television contracts, get-out clauses or the marketing departments or executive boxes. It’s the noise, the passion, the feeling of belonging, the pride in your city.”

 

He has human flaws. He might, indeed, have material interests. But Keegan always dealt in love.

[Guest n4e]

[biggs]

Great article that Tooj but i wish KK hadnt come back until an owner with integrity,honesty,commitment and a heart was in charge instead of this piece of shit we have now who has imho tarnished Keegans reputation with us the fans who have always loved him .

[Tooj]

Great article that Tooj but i wish KK hadnt come back until an owner with integrity,honesty,commitment and a heart was in charge instead of this piece of shit we have now who has imho tarnished Keegans reputation with us the fans who have always loved him .

 

Agree completely.

[PCW1983]

Tooj 

[Thespence]

2J you could have at least linked it to George Caulkin original article.

[Guest gggg]

Two good articles on the same day. What's going on?

[cp40]

After he dragged Newcastle off their knees, I loved 1992-93, when the side shimmered with neat, quick, triangular football and were promoted as champions. I loved it because Keegan urged supporters to gaze at the stars and believe anything was possible. I love it even more now, because so much of football feels hemmed in. I loved it that the glorious mania prompted rogue sightings of Roberto Baggio in Wallsend chipshops.

 

I loved it when Keegan opened Newcastles training ground to fans and hundreds of them turned up. From a professional point of view, I loved it that he welcomed reporters to Maiden Castle every day, where they could tap players on the shoulder and, if they agreed, talk to them. From a personal point of view, I loved it because one of those players became my best man, even if our friendship lasted longer than my marriage.

 

I loved hearing about Keegans powers of persuasion, convincing Robert Lee that Newcastle was closer to London than Middlesbrough and then moulding him into an England international. I didnt care that his tactical prowess was mocked, because he made players feel like gods and somehow prompted them to overachieve. I loved his unshakeable faith in attacking football.

 

I loved the headlong tilts at the title, the acquisitions of Les Ferdinand, David Ginola and Shearer. I wish that Newcastle had grasped the championship ahead of Manchester United, although I loved that season anyway and never winning anything but singing regardless is now ingrained as a defining feature of those born with a black-and-white lifetime sentence.

 

I didnt love it when he took his leave of Tyneside in 1997, although I understood it. In the space of five years, the club had been transformed beyond all recognition and in the rush to embrace the City, they would be transformed further. I never loved the Hall or Shepherd families, although like many people, I was blindsided by the ambition, the changes to the ground and convinced myself that the shares, dividends and salaries were forgivable.

 

In the face of widespread bewilderment - including my own - I loved it when Keegan came back to Gallowgate in January 2008. Anybody who was present in the city on that heady day will have felt something similar; a veil lifting, eyes opening, hearts beating. It had not been that way for a very long time and this was a reminder that football could be fun, impetuous, beautiful, mad.

 

For similar reasons, I loved it when Keegan said the following in an interview with this newspaper: I want people to dream about their football club. They should, we should all be dreamers at heart. Some people are the opposite and say we cant do that, but when you ask them why, they cant give a reason. Well, I say, Why not?. He talked about unfinished business and I think he believed he could charm and cajole Mike Ashley.

 

I detested the way Keegan was treated. Having embraced Geordie sentimentality and appointed a man who dealt in dreams, Ashley strapped his manager into a straitjacket. He brought in Dennis Wise as executive director (football), roles were not defined with any clarity, Keegan was slapped down in public and ultimately left when - allegedly - players were signed without his approval. It was nonsensical and, this time, not in a good way.

 

The last 12 months have not been kind to Keegan, but that is not his fault. When Sam Allardyce was sacked as manager, his contract was settled within days, but a dispute over whether Keegan resigned or was pushed has meant a long, bitter process. As Newcastle struggled and then suffered relegation, it was natural that some sympathy would swing against him, although he has not been able to speak out. He remained silent in the face of briefings against him.

 

Keegan stood up for principle; managers should manage. The man Ashley hired might have been weathered by his experiences with England - I would term his decision to step down as honest, not weak - but he had always used his power as a bargaining chip (Freddy Shepherd claims to have letters of resignation from him framed on his toilet wall). For better or worse, he then stood up for what he thinks he is owed.

 

What I hate is that a day before the Premier League arbitration panel which has been hearing Keegans case was due to break up and consider their verdict, a story leaked that Newcastle would be threatened with administration should their former employer win. Derek Llambias, the managing director, had already stated publicly that such a measure was not being considered and the timing felt both risible and transparent.

 

A source close to the takeover saga at Newcastle (some doubt the veracity of sources or insiders, but there are people who will only speak to journalists on the basis of anonymity - honest), insists that Keegans claim is not a concern within Seymour Pierce, the bank charged with handling the clubs sale, and that Barry Moats bid is ongoing. But 12 months on - four after their demotion - and suddenly administration is an issue!

 

For all their heartening success on the field since August, Newcastle is still a club being run by men asleep at the wheel, full of contradiction and questions; a club where Malaysian businessmen, who Seymour Pierce said had made no contact with them, can be shown around the ground, where Ashley and Llambias can heap praise on Shearer and then let him dangle. And too many other things, whether before or afterwards.

 

I will love Kevin Keegan whatever result the independent panel come to. I will love him for reasons which Ashley and Llambias could never understand, because he gave uplift to Newcastle, hope and inspiration, he made a region sparkle and people smile. I do not, for a single moment, suggest that he is perfect, but his team came close to perfection. If circumstances ever allow it, I would love to think hell discuss it all.

 

I love him because of something Robson once wrote. What is a club in any case? Not the buildings or the directors or the people who are paid to represent it. Its not the television contracts, get-out clauses or the marketing departments or executive boxes. Its the noise, the passion, the feeling of belonging, the pride in your city.

 

He has human flaws. He might, indeed, have material interests. But Keegan always dealt in love.

 

 

if you cut me open, you will find this sentiment running through my bones.

[Thespence]

Lee make it your sig man!!!

[Rich]

Fucking tremendous article from Caulkin.

[cp40]

Lee make it your sig man!!!

 

i would, but its too long.

[TRon]

Fucking tremendous article from Caulkin.

 

Has Caulkin been banned from St James yet? He's laid into fat mike on a regular basis.

[Tooj]

2J you could have at least linked it to George Caulkin original article.

 

I didn't know it originally came from Culkin when posted.

[UV]

2J you could have at least linked it to George Caulkin original article.

 

I knew it was Caulkin when I got to the bit where he had a completely irrelevant dig at H&S. Used to be his trademark but he's been slacking on it recently.

[JH]

So is Caulkin a Toon fan?

 

I always thought he just had a soft spot for us, but that article reads otherwise.

[Thespence]

Caulkin like Simon Bird is a Newcastle fan.

[TRon]

A source close to the takeover saga at Newcastle (some doubt the veracity of ‘sources’ or ‘insiders’, but there are people who will only speak to journalists on the basis of anonymity - honest), insists that Keegan’s claim is not a concern within Seymour Pierce, the bank charged with handling the club’s sale, and that Barry Moat’s bid is ongoing.

 

That bit's encouraging. If it was clear that the sale isn't affected by the tribunal finding it will give everyone some hope.

 

 

[Skirge]

What an article that is, just make pure sense and sms it all up.