Cod Almighty | Diary

Diary - Thursday 16 May 2013

16 May 2013

If the Telegraph has taken to sourcing its stories from the messageboards, what hope has your Middle-Aged Diary got? Pausing only to congratulate Andy Cook on being named by the Non-League Paper as the Young Player of the Year (creating the paradoxical situation that he is officially the best young player outside the Football League but not within his club), let's change the subject.

Lists of great players are usually dominated by those who played in successful teams. Spare a thought for those who stood out against the tide in poor teams. Three occur to me, from different eras.

In the post-McMenemy mid-70s, Town spent two seasons in the bottom half of the third division before they were relegated. Many players from that time we associate with more memorable periods, whether before (Jack Lewis, Harry Wainman...) or after. A fair number of the players you will be remembering tomorrow night at the evening with George Kerr made their Town debuts in the battle against relegation. Mike Czuczman had left by then (to return as a squad player some years later), a solid reassuring presence in central defence, no-nonsense clearances frequently provided by means of ponderous bicycle kicks. That I associate him with the mid-70s lull is maybe a trick of perspective. He joined Town in the 1971-72 championship season. Perhaps defenders come more to the fore when a side is struggling.

The same argument could be made for holding midfielders. Bobby Roberts' 1987-88 side had a lot of damage to undo and couldn't quite undo it. Marc North and Steve Sherwood went on to help in the Buckley revival, but Donal O'Riordan had moved on, leaving Blundell Park in tears when relegation was confirmed on the last day, with the scant consolation of his being named in the divisional team of the year.

By contrast, Jean-Louis Akpa Akpro was a forward, and one who went from strength to strength even as our Football League existence was being snuffed out. Signed by Mike Newell, he made an immediate impact, waned, and then regained his form, adding greater awareness to add to his skill and speed under Neil Woods. Other players from that period we can at least associate with our third Wembley visit. Akpa Akpro deserves far better than to be remembered only as part of the team that lost our League status.

Send us your favourite players who shone in adversity and I'll review them on Monday when I'm back in this seat. See you then.