Dean Court Days by Michael Dunne

Author:Michael Dunne
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Pitch Publishing
Published: 2018-07-14T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eleven

Glory

1986/87

BOURNEMOUTH fans may have felt let down by the departure of their best player to local rivals for a price which was significantly less than some of those being bandied about in the press following the World Cup, but, for Redknapp, the deal was exactly what was required. As well as the fee, Southampton threw in striker David Puckett and defender Mark Whitlock. Harry knew the players plus cash was best for his purposes as a straight money deal would have seen more of the fee siphoned off to service the football club’s debts.

Redknapp’s tireless scouting had reaped rich rewards in Colin Clarke’s case, but Bournemouth supporters were hoping their manager’s eye for a player remained as keen when more new recruits joined Whitlock and Puckett at Dean Court during the summer months.

Harry himself was confident he could find the right mix without breaking the Dean Court bank. ‘I didn’t think we needed to spend big money,’ he remembers. ‘I felt there were players around who could do a job.’

Carl Richards, who had scored 35 goals in the Gola League the previous season and gained amateur international recognition, arrived for a fee of £10,000. ‘I took Carl from Enfield,’ recalls Harry. ‘I went to watch on a Bank Holiday weekend. My wife said to me, “Where are you going on such a lovely day?” “I’m going to Nuneaton to watch a player,” I said. I drove down there on my own to watch the England non-league team play the Welsh non-league team because Stuart Morgan, who was my chief scout, had told me about Carl. He said, “He’s quick, he’s strong. You want to go and have a look at him.” I liked what I saw so after the game I hid behind a shed waiting for Carl so I could tap him up. That was how it worked in those days. So he came past and I said, “Carl, can I speak to you?” He walked over and said, “Who are you?” So I told him. Carl said, “Bournemouth? What league are you in? You’re not in the Isthmian are you?” “No, we’re in the Football League,” I said. That was good enough for him, so I did a deal with Enfield’s manager Eddie McCluskey. Carl came in during pre-season and he has the worst pre-season I have ever seen. I thought I’d done my money with him. We had a meeting and I slaughtered him and he just said, “Wait until the real games start.” And he was as good as his word. Carl turned out to be a fantastic player. I loved him.’

Richards’ immense confidence in his own ability meant that when he underperformed, his self-belief was barely bruised. However, the striker’s opinion of his own prowess saw Redknapp miss out on the chance to sign a player who would go on to make a much greater impact on English football. ‘Before the first game of the season, Carl comes to me and says, “Can my

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.