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Search: 'John McDermott'

Stories

Bury

Bury are dropping through the leagues and fast. Chris Bainbridge explains why his club are struggling so badly, and how the somehow managed to avoid relegation to the Conference this term

Bury have had a dramatic decline in the past three years or so. What are the main reasons for this?
Money, money and money – a lack of it. Bury’s surge to Division One was bankrolled by millionaire stockbroker Hugh Eaves, but then he got caught up in a scandal. We were forced to sell a raft of good players (such as Dean Kiely, Paul Butler and David Johnson) just to keep going. Two relegations and a spell in administration later, we’re now well on the way to rebuilding ourselves as a community-based club through the “Forever Bury” supporters’ trust. But we now know through bitter experience the dangers of relying on one person. Chelsea beware…

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Letters, WSC 159

Dear WSC
Jon Harrison is probably correct about Bruce Rioch peaking in the Derby side of 1975 (Letters, WSC 158), but his recollection of Don Masson suggests his memory is as ropey as Ken Gall’s. Masson wasn’t playing for the Rams in 1975. His best season was 75-76 as a pivotal member of the QPR side which came within 14 minutes of the title. His clever passes (usually to Don Givens) were as familiar as the skills of Bowles and Francis and the pace of Dave Thomas. Older Rs fans who have witnessed the Stamford Bridge transformation with dismay can’t see the glory days ever returning to Loftus Road, especially after Bruce Rioch left his mark with Stewart Houston.
Colin Baker, Sutton

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Loss leader

Celtic's chief executive Allan MacDonald has sacked his manager and criticised the team, but he is not a wholly innocent party, says Gary Oliver

On the last weekend in January high winds loosened some of the guttering at Parkhead, causing the Scottish Cup tie against Inverness Caledonian Thistle to be postponed. Ten days later, the entire roof fell in on Celtic: ICT, a club just six years old, strolled to a cataclysmic 3-1 win, prompting a civil war in the home dressing-room during the half-time interval.

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July 1999

Thursday 1 The Department of Employment issue new rules on work permits. Players will be given permits for the length of their contracts rather than having their cases reviewed at the end of each season, and the rule stipulating that non-EU players must be among the top five wage earners at their clubs is scrapped. Forest's search for a manager ends with the appointment of the impressively tanned David Platt, who says: "The two months I had at Sampdoria were a massive learning curve." That's just what Sampdoria fans will have been thinking when they went down. The charges against Sol Camp≠bell for assaulting a steward after the Derby v Spurs match last autumn are dropped. Arsenal spend £3.5 million on a Brazilian full back, Silvinho, who says: "I have been following Arsenal ever since I knew they were watching me."

Friday 2 The PFA's Gordon Taylor criticises the changes to work permit rules. "We already have more foreign players than anywhere else in the world. Removing the wages criteria means you are opening the door to players who are not neccesarily top quality". Terry McDermott joins the Barnes-Dalglish dream team at Celtic as "social manager" – a highly specialised position which involves a lot of shouting and laughing plus the collecting of betting slips.

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“He can’t be worse than…” Alan Hudson

Mike Ticher reminisces about Chelsea's man who turned down the chance to play Brazil

Alan Hudson played his last game for Chelsea in a 1-0 home defeat by Liverpool in December 1973. That match also led to the departure of Peter Osgood as Dave Sexton’s team self-destructed in a welter of bruised egos, booze-ups and squandered talent.

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