The Exiled Robin

Firstly apologies for the title of this article.  I don't normally indulge in tabloid style attention grabbers but I simply couldn't resist! The signing of a goalkeeper for City was hardly the biggest of summer surprises, it having been a position manager Derek McInnes had earmarked following the departure of David James, who left in May following his mixed two year pit-stop in BS3. The question really surrounded whether McInnes was after a number two - as cover for Dean Gerken, perhaps a young up-and-coming star - or a more genuine challenge for the number one jersey.  My belief is that Tom Heaton falls firmly into the latter category. The former Manchester united starlet has spent a couple of years across the Severn Bridge at rivals Cardiff City, but has largely had to make do with the occasional appearance as cover for first-choice David Marshall, and was first-choice for their Carling Cup games.  Now if that had been his situation at Ashton G...

My latest article from Bristol City's matchday programme, Red Alert : Millwall, Jan 3rd (Slightly belatedly) At this time of year it seems every publication does some sort of review of the year that was.   To ensure ‘On the Social’ isn’t left out, here is the unofficial review of Twitter and football in 2011. What happened in 2011? 1)       Tweets, tweets and more tweets:   An explosion in users, particularly those who regularly tweet and an ever-increasing number of journalists, players and officials from across the footballing community.   I would hazard a guess that the vast majority of football clubs – if not all – now have an official account, whilst many also have key personnel such as their press officers, media managers and commercial managers tweeting officially. 2)       Ryan Giggs was outed as a love-rat:   This is probably the story more than any other that raised public awareness of how you can ...

When Bristol City were beaten 6-0 at home by Cardiff in January 2010, it was only a matter of time until Gary Johnson’s highly successful reign came to an end.   That result was followed by a number of lacklustre, defensive performances which culminated in an alleged dressing-room bust-up between Johnson and hot-headed winger Ivan Sproule after a defeat at relegation-doomed Plymouth.   A minority of fans had been questioning Johnson’s tactics, signings and ability to get performances back on an upward curve for some months.   By the time Chairman Steve Lansdown reluctantly decided to pick up the phone and invite his friend to what proved their last meeting, the majority of the supporter base probably felt it was about the right time.   Four-and-a-half years of bouncing around the ground (because Johnson told us to), promotion, play-offs and a sniff of the riches of the Premier League had given way to dire home performances, a succession of loanee strikers who co...