May 2008 Archives

The League title last Sunday, manager of the month today.

There's no stopping Tony Mowbray at the moment.

Last night was no different with the Baggies boss scooping an award at the Midlands Football Writers' Association lunch for taking Albion up.

His prize? A gift wrapped box of chocolates. Naturally.

This is what happens when you win titles I guess and when everyone knows that you're teetotal and like chocolate.

Yesterday's guest list included Martin O'Neill, Alex McLeish, Paul Jewell, Ron Atkinson, John Robertson, Graham Turner, Trevor Francis and many more from the world of Midlands' football and local media.

Jewell underlined that football managers do have a sense of humour by taking it on the chin when ribbed about that recent newspaper story, while McLeish blew apart the myth about his fellow countrymen by digging deep into his pockets and getting the rounds in time and again.

And the chocolate? Mowbray didn't let it out of his sight once...

I'm sure you've heard it before. What goes Boing Boing, beep beep?

Answer - The Albion open top bus reversing back into the garage.

It was, of course, a rather lame attempt at humour by fans of a certain other club following Albion's Play Off Final defeat last year.

Yet the open top bus remains parked in a garage gathering dust and, probably, with a somewhat flat battery.

Albion's decision to not bother with an open top bus tour has prompted a mixed response.

The Albion players were today given their end-of-season debrief and packed off for their summer holidays. I happened to be down the training ground as the players filed out - I'm told some of the promotion heroes are already at departure lounges as we speak. Others, who are still at home, will be leaving in the next few days.

Some of those players will be seeing families again for the first time in nearly a year.

And we all know that Albion have had two bus tours in recent history - yet gone onto be relegated within one or two seasons. The Baggies are no Stoke City. The top flight will be a serious business for them, not a patronising media-driven 'Premier League adventure' that is already being attached to Stoke's promotion. Tony Mowbray, as proud as he is, is also a reluctant hero.

However, there is another issue - the Championship title. It's the first time Albion have topped any League since 1920. For that alone the fans deserved a chance to see a magnificent piece of silverware - a trophy which conjures up images of Liverpool's dominance of the 1970 and '80s, Arsenal's dramatic late victory at Anfield in 1989, Leeds' title wins under Don Revie and Brian Clough's successes with Derby and Forest.

It's a trophy to admire.

Only 3000 Albion fans made it to Loftus Road to see the trophy presented. The fans who weren't there WANT to see this trophy. Those who were want to see it again. There is a demand for this, but no supply.

An alternative option would have been to display the trophy at The Hawthorns. Or at least it would have been ordinarily - but not at the moment. The Hawthorns is currently a 'hard hat zone' in most areas due to the revamping of the Halfords Lane and other bits of post-season maintenance work.

That's unfortunate.

So Albion fans will need to rely on pictures, memories from Sunday or TV replays.

Mind you, that's assuming that the TV companies get around to acknowledging that the Baggies have also achieved promotion, not just Stoke City.

In the meantime, I'll leave the final word to Albion fan Paul Hayward - who has produced yet another poetic masterpiece.

The Team of 2008

The history books will testify
This season was one of our best,
When all we have to remember this team
Are memories of how we were blessed,
With a manager's vow to entertain,
With players regarded as great,
The scorers of over a hundred goals,
The team of two thousand and eight.

The champions trophy is blue and white
Once again as in 1920,
Though the subsequent years that have passed since then
Have memories of triumphs aplenty,
Remember this team, the success it brought,
The year and even the date,
And know that you witnessed history this year,
The team of two thousand and eight.

Remember the names of Phillips and Miller,
Of Bednar, Koren and Gera,
Of Greening, Brunt and Robinson
When we pass to a future era,
For these are the players who are champions,
Semi finalists to celebrate,
Who played to the tune of Mowbray's song,
The team of two thousand and eight.

And in years to come as a Baggies fan
Remembering moments to treasure,
Of players you saw and goals that were scored
And achievements that gave you pleasure,
You'll remember a team that shines like a beacon
And a team that you always will rate,
The team that triumphed and entertained,
The team of two thousand and eight.

Paul Hayward (2008)

A few observations from Loftus Road.

1. Superman, Incredible Hulk, Danger Mouse (which, somewhat annoyingly, prompted me to start humming the theme tune during the game), Ice Man, Wonder Woman (two men dressed as), Spiderman, Bananaman, Batman and Robin, Gladiator, Wolverine, Super Kev, Super Sub (Kim), Super Dad (Brunt).

Have I missed any out? Albion fans, once again, were a credit to their club.

2. Good to see Albion players dedicating their promotion to Filipe Teixeira by wearing his no20 shirt before the games.

3. A new dawn, a new era, a new club crest for QPR. But the same old problems with microphones. Flavio Briatore's address to his nation was ruined by a faulty sound system. What's the betting that QPR are looking for a new 'Head of Sound Equipment' by the end of the week.

4. Press officer John Simpson already has a new screensaver ready and waiting to download onto his laptop - a picture of him lifting the trophy in front of the away end. Some of us remember him when he was a humble
tea boy (okay, journalist), working on the Birmingham Mail...

5. Shame on the moronic idiots who heckled and subjected Jonathan Greening to a mouthful of abuse when the Albion skipper was being interviewed by the Birmingham Mail and other journalists after the game. To his credit, Jono showed remarkable restraint. Had it been a Paul Robinson, Sean Gregan or Derek McInnes then the drunken lout might have been heading for an emergency dentist by now. More's the pity it wasn't Robbo being interviewed. Why was Greening so unpopular? For being the VICTIM of a clumsy challenge by Martin Rowlands.

6. I'm not one to talk about height, but Bernie Ecclestone makes me look like Peter Crouch. And it's incredible how many beautiful women were hanging around the Loftus Road directors' box. What on earth could possibly attract them to billionnaire Ecclestone and his F1 buddy Briatore?

7. Good to see Albion players being granted the chance to lift the trophy after the game after other clubs were denied the opportunity last season.

8. Albion's team bus was decked out with a 'Champions' banner and the League title trophy proudly on display in the window as it travelled back up the M40. Now that's what you call travelling in style.

9. To find out what Tony Mowbray had to say about Albion's alleged interest in Heerenveen's Michael Bradley and what the score is regarding right-winger Szymon Pawlowski, of Zaglebie Lubin, (as reported in Polish press) then read Monday's Birmingham Mail. Let's put it this way, I wouldn't get too excited...

Congratulations, once again, to Tony Mowbray and his players.

YOU may have noticed the Birmingham Mail letters page has been looking rather angry of late.

No matter how many happy Albion or content Villa fans write in, we cannot move for all the vitriol coming from Blues.

Blues fans have grown thoroughly fed up with their club, mainly with the perception of how it is being run and the fact that, as a result, they now stand on the verge of relegation.

Albion should not only be watching with interest, but also taking notes.

There are two ways of taking a club forward after promotion.

Take Sunderland, for instance.

Last summer the Black Cats spent £32.4million on new players - £9million on a goalkeeper alone - allowing, among others, Stephen Elliott, Tommy Miller and Stern John to leave for low fees.

A further £10million worth of players came through the Stadium of Light doors during January, taking their overall spending to in excess of £40million. Not all signings have worked, some certainly have.

Roy Keane's men are now nearer to mid-table security than the relegation trap door.

Now, let's return to St Andrew's.

Last summer Blues spent a net total of £7.6million on 12 players after gaining promotion.

During the January window they spent £5million on James McFadden, £1.5million on David Murphy and brought in the talented Mauro Zarate on loan. This was offset by the £3million compensation they received for Steve Bruce from Wigan, plus in excess of £3million brought in by the exits of Rowan Vine, Neil Danns, Mat Sadler and Neil Kilkenny (Danns' and Sadler's figures will rise on further appearances for Palace and Watford respectively).

They failed to sign Gary Cahill for £5million and they simply couldn't afford Tottenham's Teemu Tainio.

Blues are now on the cusp of relegation - they could go this weekend if results go a certain way - and the locals aren't happy.

There were more than 14,000 season ticket holders at St Andrew's this season - yet just 5000 have renewed so far, with many vowing to stay away. How many turn their back on the club for the last time remains to be seen.

Meanwhile, the feel good factor at The Hawthorns is immense. 19,000 have already snapped up season tickets.

But Blues have penned the blueprint for Albion on how NOT to establish themselves in the Premier League. All the progress made by Birmingham, following their initial promotion as play off winners in 2002, stands on the verge of collapse because of a lack of investment since their return to the top flight last year.

The Baggies must not fall over the same trip wires.

Nobody is expecting Jeremy Peace to spend £30-40million net on new players, as per Sunderland, but equally they need somewhat more than the £8million or so spent by their neighbours (and that's not taking wages into account, with Blues known to be fairly competitive on that score).

Albion stand to make £60million from their Premier League venture. That's in the worst-case scenario of being relegated after one year. If they stay up, they get £35million for every year spent in the Premier League, plus in excess of £500,000 per League position (£2million just for finishing 17th).

Tony Mowbray is a hugely talented manager and boasts several players who are rich in ability and experience. But he will need help. The two clubs who join Albion in the top flight will not be as Premier League savvy, in terms of personnel or infrastructure.

Mowbray, as much as he enjoys the challenge, needs to be given the tools to complete the job he has started.

These are exciting times at The Hawthorns and everyone associated with the club deserves credit. But the planning for next season must start now.

Albion may not get a better chance to establish themselves as a top flight club. Yet, as we're seeing just on the other side of the Bullring, it's so easy to squander such an opportunity.