In the fourth part of his look at City in the 1990s, Martin MacBlain looks at the curious tale of three managers, starting with one Martin O’Neill…
Mark Bowen, Rob Newman, Jon Newsome, Darren Eadie, Ashley Ward, Robert Fleck… all names, who for a certain generation, roll off the tongue with ease. All part of the core squad assembled to propel Norwich City straight out of Division One and back to the Premier League in the season 1995/96.
The season began with Martin O’Neill in charge, freshly plucked from Wycombe Wanderers after cutting his managerial teeth. A spritely young Northern Irishman would be given the task of taking us back up. Yet the season would peter out into a 16th-placed finish, a reappointment of Gary Megson, the eventual return of Mike Walker and for this 15-year-old, a season of huge disappointment and frustration.
It was while holidaying in Northern Ireland in the summer of 1995 that I became aware of the rather unspectacular signing of Matthew Rush. The spectre of relegation still looming large over me, wondering who might leave and praying no one did; I was on my daily pilgrimage to the local petrol station for a newspaper and I spotted a small article; ‘Norwich sign Rush for £350,000’.
£350k was peanuts, even back in those days. Closer inspection revealed he came from West Ham and was a midfielder. Days later he ruptured his knee playing against Sunderland and that was that.
Three appearances is all he ever made for the club with none of any note. Money down the drain as the club was following fast…
The 1995/96 season really was a season of anomalies. With the squad (and manager) we had, promotion should have been a near formality. We were out of the blocks fast and sitting in a lofty second-placed position by the time of O’Neill’s departure.
I’ve alluded to ‘ifs buts and maybes’ in a previous article but even with a shock relegation, we should have climbed immediately and swiftly back into the Premier League.
To the exiled schoolboy, on the face of it, things were well set up. The squad was brimming with proven premiership players and a sprinkling of talented youngsters. O’Neill was (and subsequently proved) of Premiership managerial quality and a swift return seemed inevitable. Yet it was behind the scenes that things were slowly starting to fall apart.
It would appear O’Neill had a rather fractious relationship with several players (Jerry Goss mentions this in several interviews) notwithstanding his tempestuous relationship with Robert Chase.
The oft-asked question of should we have signed Windass will long remain. It would appear that enough was enough and we faced the unstoppable wave of O’Neill against the immovable object of Chase. O’Neill walked out on the club hours after a televised game against Leicester City.
I vividly recall the Leicester game as I was listening to it whilst being driven to my Nan’s! The ecstasy of going two up, followed by the agony of hearing if Leicester’s free-kick would go in… it did… and two more goals later (one from Iwan as it would transpire) and we’ve lost. And no more O’Neill.
But I wanted to steer this article away from O’Neill and focus in part on a much less revered manager, Gary Megson. A no-nonsense midfielder signed from Man City, who stepped into the void after John Deehan’s departure yet couldn’t arrest the slide.
To this day, with that squad, I still can’t understand how we slipped from second to sixteenth. We lost Jon Newsome and Ashley Ward. Two big characters, our captain and top goal scorer. Yet we retained the likes of Bryan Gunn, John Polston, Spencer Prior, Robert Ullathorne, Daryl Sutch, Darren Eadie, Ian Crook, Neil Adams, Mike Milligan and Robert Fleck.
Mark Bowen was frozen out by Megson for being critical of his tactics. But even so, how did it all implode so spectacularly?
It was hard to note the difference in playing styles as an exile, from manager to manager, in those days (far easier now) but was the playing style really that bad under Megson? Some of the results were horrendous. Not in terms of the scoreline but in terms of teams we were losing to. Southend?
One can only assume it was tactical naivety on the part of Megson and an inability to motivate players. Subsequent Megson teams have not been renowned for their passing approach, which would have been at odds with the passing style that many of the squad would have been used to.
I’m not sure that the signing of Jan Mølby was worth it. I’ve yet to see a player since who couldn’t stray too far from the centre circle!
With the calibre of players in that squad plus the Premiership experience brimming throughout it, admittedly an automatic spot would have been a bridge too far, yet targeting a play-off spot, or even sitting seventh/eighth and pushing for sixth should and could have been achievable.
We simply had to go up that season. The Premiership riches were appearing fast and the vultures were beginning to circle. The books weren’t balanced and finally, Chase was forced out and rightly so.
It’s hard to assess the toxicity of the Chase era from a bedroom in Glastonbury, but needless to say we in the South West were acutely aware that Chase had been systematically selling off our best players, the relationship had completely broken down with fans and that infamously (and better put in other MFW articles) had used police horses to disperse protesting supporters.
Newspaper coverage was sporadic of the unfurling situation and I think it was the end of Chase’s tenure that heralded in the new beginnings of Delia’s stewardship and the ups and downs that were to follow.
The third manager. Well, one of Delia’s first actions was to bring the return of one silver-haired and very successful master tactician. Mike Walker. But I’ll leave his return for another day.
Hi Martin – a really enjoyable read of times-gone-by – thank you. I remember the signing of Matthew Rush too and particularly the ‘crocked’ part of the equation shortly after. My time as a Norwich fan has been littered with players signed with expectation who unfortunately fell foul of career limiting / ending injuries very early in their Canary careers – John O’Neil, Neil Emblen, Mattieu Luis-Jean, Geatano Giallanza, Alex Notman to name but a few. I also remember being so excited with the loan signing of Jan Molby and managed to along to see one of his games – you were spot-on about not straying too far from the centre circle but boy did he still know how to pick a pass. Perhaps the anti-Molby was one Julian Brellier (aka ‘Le Judge’) who certainly took no prisoners but couldn’t pass the ball more than 10 yards.
Your point about Megson and his squad is an interesting one. Personally, I think it had a lot to do with man-management. Mike Walker just seemed to know how to manage the team to get the best out of them. Megson I’d imagine was a bit more old school and if you loose the likes of Bowen and other senior players in the dressing room then you’ve as good as had it. That said, many of the star players of the Walker-Deehan era had been sold by the time Megson took the reigns. OTBC
Really interesting comment – thank you. Le Judge will have to be considered as one of the worst signings in recent history during an awful period of the club.
I remember Rush, he did not set the world alight for sure but clearly had the potential to do so, he was later after recovery he was loaned out to Northampton I believe. City let him leave later. He then signed for another lower league club until a cruciate ligament ended his career. playing, I do seem to recall he went into some other aspect of the game.. After going back to Uni.
Transfer money and wages were spent, but I am sure the club was insured against this f=to cover themselves.. There were bigger holes money went into with Chase at the helm More of that went down a drain than the peanuts spent of him.
Megson’s style football was from memory a worse time than under the cautious Hughton. I looked his record up winning just 5 of 27 games. this was the time of the Chase Out demo’s and unrest started. Megson was seen as Chase’s Cheap option and very much as his YES man.
Great read.
There’s actually quite a few Canary fans in Glastonbury (the town, not the field). Two years ago, the Mayor, her Chaplain, and the Chair of the Chamber of Commerce were all from Norwich. There’s also some who get together to watch the televised games on the big screen at Tor Leisure. I am in Blue Cedar most days.
OTBC.
Hi Paul. I had no idea! I left Glastonbury in 1998 and have not lived here since, but as I write this I’m currently sitting in my parents back garden – on the Redland estate just behind the Riflemans.
There’s a growing South West Canaries supporters group who get together to attend games. If you’re interested then let me know and I can put you in touch with the organiser.
I used to spend many a drunken Saturday night in Tor Leisure…
Thanks, Martin. I have just joined the SW Canaries Facebook Group. Have a nice weekend in Glastonbury, There’s a lot happening in town this weekend, including a band playing at the Rife’s tonight.
OTBC
Hi Martin.
A good read while waiting for the England Cricket team to come out and try and win a game against the Irish and as usual a middle order collapse.
Mike Walker was a lucky manager in inherited a good squad from Dave Stringer and just got the best out of them and another who had ideas that he should manage a so called top club, going to Everton was a really bad career ending mistake and returning to city with an even poorer squad ended it for once and all.
Martin O’Neill was a strange one, Chase must have known he was a Clough Clone and wouldn’t stand any interference from the board and all he wanted was a yes man.
Many of the squad were Premiership standard by it was an aging stand as Chase had sold all the young Gunns for big money so M O’Neill knew what he was getting, but behind it all Leicester was doing the dirty to get him, left prior to the game and was named manager after the game, it was also closer to his family in Nottingham.
I can also see that some of the players could see what Chase was doing and lost heart in the club, hoping they would be the next ones sold, but few went on to better their career than their time at city.
Onwards and upwards
OTBC
Hi Alex. The lows of losing to Ireland (potentially) but probably a hangover from the World Cup win.
Interesting point about the players losing heart and not something I’d ever considered before, but now I think about it, probably very valid!
Chase would’ve known what he was getting but I guess he saw O’Neill’s quality and hoped he could take us up before the cracks appeared.
Didn’t Megson take us down in 95?
He did indeed. Deehan walked out and Megson was caretaker and still didn’t win a game…
i couldn’t believe his reappointment after O’Neill.
Walker came back to us too late, sadly.
Another great read Martin
And some excellent – and accurate – comments to follow.
The following story must remain apocryphal as I could never prove it but here goes anyway.
I used to know a VERY senior steward at the end of the Megson days and he told me that after the 1995 relegation (Dan is spot on) the Fat Controller told Mr Megson to enjoy his holiday and on his return there would be money available for new signings.
As soon as his plane had departed Mr Megson got a letter crudely shoved through his conservatory letterbox informing him that his services were n0 longer required.
When he returned from wherever he’d been to he was out of a job.
It’s the kind of tale you don’t really want to believe but unfortunately I have every faith in its authenticity, due to the source of origination if nothing else.
Looking forward to your next episode:-)
Hi Martin
Just read in the local Gazette that Blackpool gazumped Fleetwood to sign Husband on Loan, we will never get a penny for him so just wave goodbye
Sadly I can believe every word of it. But I do wonder why Megson would’ve returned given the way he was treated….?
My main memories of Megson were when he was actually here as a player.
I recall that we acquired him on a free (or a minimal fee and he was more or less Walker’s only addition to the Stringer squad in that close season.
Firstly there was the late headed og against 1p5wich – never to be forgotten.
And secondly he once tried to clear a deep ball on the half-volley against a side I cannot recall. He shinned it out for a corner from the edge of his own box.
He put two fingers from both hands to his forehead and pawed the pitch to emulate a donkey. He actually got a huge cheer for it.
As a player he was really quite popular as I remember. Past his prime but still neat and (generally) tidy.