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Monday, October 10, 2011
Keane's homecoming, Tweet justice
Will Tidey
Welcome to The Trawler, your weekly submersion through the teeming waters of life in the Championship, League One and League Two. You might be surprised what you find down there.
Keane favourite for Forest
Nottingham Forest have received over 40 applications for their vacant manager's post, and are hoping to have Steve McClaren's successor in place before Saturday's trip to face Coventry.
Roy Keane looks the man most likely. The former Forest and Manchester United midfielder was backed so heavily last week that bookmakers William Hill suspended the market - having taken a £5,000 wager at odds of 2-1.
Judging by the chatter on web forums Keane would be a popular choice with the fans.
As for other potential candidates, we've already seen three ruled out of the running. MK Dons' Karl Robinson said he was flattered to be linked to the job, but is intent on staying put, while Peterborough chairman MacAnthony confirmed there had been no approach for his manager Darren Ferguson and former Forest boss Paul Hart, currently employed at Charlton, has ruled out a return in the capacity of technical director.
With Forest unable to afford a hefty compensation fee, it seems most likely they will opt for a currently unattached manager - with Keane fitting the bill perfectly.
Jones for Bristol?
Bristol City are also hiring, having sacked manager Keith Millen with the club lying bottom of the Championship.
City say they've received over 50 applications for the post, and are hoping to have a shortlist by the end of the week. Contrary to reports, the club's former Liverpool and England goalkeeper David James has not applied for the job.
Former Cardiff boss Dave Jones appears to be a genuine contender, with speculation also falling on the likes of Mark Robins, John Hughes and Aidy Boothroyd.
Tweet justice
The FA have fined Peterborough chairman Darragh MacAnthony £2,000 for comments he made on Twitter following their defeat to West Ham at the end of September. The game finished 1-0, with West Ham's winner coming from a controversial penalty awarded by referee Tony Bates early in the first half.
"Wouldn't it be nice to get referees with balls the size of melons instead of peanuts sometimes?" MacAnthony tweeted from his @DMAC102 account afterwards. "Another home ref today," he added.
If you're unfamiliar with Peterborough's colourful chairman, it's well worth a visit to his personal website at www.darraghmacanthony.com. Along with a detailed biography and a list of his charitable endeavours, you'll find a blog entry titled, "The Football Chairman: how I deal with extortion, blackmail and media prosecution". MacAnthony is currently seeking applicants to write his biography - which is almost guaranteed to be a firecracker.
As for the FA fine in relation to his Twitter outburst, MacAnthony responded with a follow-up post. "No comment or I'll be charged again.
Re managers and referees: The FA police managers etc, who polices the officials when they make errors or mistakes etc? My comments are private and for friends only so weird how I was charged but haven't got time to fight it to be honest."
Bridge to Brighton?
Brighton fans were getting excited over the weekend as rumours of a loan move for Manchester City's Wayne Bridge circulated online. As Albion fan site 'We are Brighton' pointed out, the arrival of Bridge would be a huge coup for the club, and a win-win for match-going supporters.
"The prospect of us having one of the best left backs in this division excites us," read the blog entry. "But not as much as the prospect of his current WAG coming to watch. Step forward, Frankie Sandford from The Saturdays, and of S Club Juniors fame!!"
A day in the life of Di Canio
The Sun's Justin Allen spent the day with Swindon manager Paolo Di Canio on Saturday, providing us with a delightful window into the Italian's match day routine.
"What shall I have for breakfast?" he writes for his 9am entry. "Three slices of toast, for sure, but what jam? I love apricot, plum or strawberry. I'm going to have strawberry - with no butter. I don't want to get fat!"
As the game against Hereford gets going, Di Canio lets that famous passion come out. "I turn to my assistant Fabrizio Piccareta and do a ballerina impersonation. We are not being nasty enough," he writes for his 3.30pm entry. It's brilliant stuff and well worth a read.
Hot and Rothered
This week's "telling it like it is" award goes to Rotherham manager Andy Scott, who was not best pleased with his defence after a 1-0 home loss to Burton. The result delivered Rotherham's fourth straight defeat in League Two and left Scott fuming.
"We just can't defend. I'm sick of saying the same thing," Scott said after the game. "It just drives me absolutely mad that players aren't prepared to do their jobs and put their bodies on the line to defend."
He was far from finished. "Myself and my staff work hard, we look at the opposition and we've worked on it every day this week, and everyone nods their head and looks at me, but on the match day they either can't do it or are not prepared to do it. People earning money doing a job should be able to do their job properly."