15th February 2000
15th February 2000 ATHLETIC were today facing an anxious wait as injured John Sheridan visited a specialist. The 35-year-old midfield player has missed the last two matches with a neck problem. Manager Andy Ritchie is optimistic that there is no serious trouble, but it has been decided it is best to have Sheridan checked out. Sheridan’s influence has been missed as Athletic have lost against Millwall and Gillingham in his absence. Ritchie would like Sheridan back in the side for Saturday’s important game at Wrexham. Athletic have lost three of their last four league games and the danger is that they could be sucked back into the relegation equation, though they remain 10 points clear of the bottom four.
Ritchie could be back in the market for a loan striker later this week. With Mark Allott injured, Matthew Tipton beginning a four-match ban and Craig Dudley only just returning after a month-long lay off, Athletic remain thin on the ground for front men. Ritchie and his coaching staff will be checking out several players tonight and tomorrow. The Athletic manager said: “I have made tentative inquiries for one player which could be successful. I will be looking to make a quick decision tomorrow night.”
Stuart Thom, Phil Salt and Paul Beavers, who have all had injury-troubled campaigns, are due to play in the reserves on Thursday. Athletic play Manchester City at Boundary Park in the Manchester Senior Cup. Ritchie will also be having a look at 17-year-old trialist Lee Glover. The teenage left wing-back has been on the books of both Tottenham and QPR and has been recommended to Ritchie. Sheffield United have also shown interest in Glover, though he has chosen Athletic ahead of the Yorkshire side.
Weekend flop was a one-off, insists boss
ANDY RITCHIE believes Athletic still have everything to play for — and can use Saturday’s disappointing slump as an incentive to aim for the play-offs. The home defeat against Gillingham was one of the low points of Athletic’s season, leaving them 15th in the table and closer to the bottom than the top. Five distinct tiers have formed in the second division and Ritchie’s side are among those who might still be in trouble, could just reach the top, but are more likely to finish in mid-table. Despite three losses in four games, Ritchie — who insists he never looks at the league standings — still hasn’t ruled out a late charge to the top six.
He said: “I don’t know how many points short we are but, if we go on another run, you never know where we might finish up. “The second half against Gillingham was terrible, but we’ll be going out to win every game we’ve got left until the end of the season. “I don’t look above us, below us, or anywhere. I just see what happens and hope we play as well as we can. “We’d be a lot closer if we hadn’t made that bad start in August, but when you start thinking you’re a good side, that’s when you start to have problems. “We said all along that this season was all about consolidation. “We wanted to get in a good position where we weren’t relying on other people and where we couldn’t do ourselves any harm. “We haven’t got there yet, but I think the Gillingham game was no more than a collective blip. “We haven’t had a game where everyone played so badly for a long time, and that says we’ve come a hell of a long way. “There were a lot of disappointed players on Saturday because they knew they had under-achieved. “I can’t see us switching off so badly again. We’ve got more progress to make and the lads will make sure we don’t have another day like that.”
Athletic, with 37 points, are 10 points clear of danger but require another four or five wins to be sure of safety. They are 14 points short of the play-offs and would probably need a dozen victories in their last 16 games — a minor miracle, in other words — to break into that elusive top six. Gaps have formed throughout the second division, suggesting that the important issues could be settled earlier than usual. At the top, there is a six-point gap between second place and fourth. The leading eight have broken away to such an extent that a gulf exists between themselves and the chasing pack. Athletic are in the middle group, which has a further five points in hand on the bottom eight. And down in the basement, Chesterfield and Cambridge are already looking down the barrel of the relegation rifle.
Young guns shooting towards top-three place
ATHLETIC’S youngsters are on target for a top-three finish after beating Wigan in the Football League Youth Alliance. The under-19s are aiming to qualify for the top merit division, which would pit them against the Alliance’s elite teams, and they did well to win 3-1 away. In their latest fixture in the North-West Conference, Athletic fell behind to a well-taken Wigan breakaway after 10 minutes. But Ben Smith levelled from close range and Alun Oliver put Athletic in front before half-time when his 30-yard drive was fumbled by the home goalkeeper. Athletic continued to work hard in difficult conditions and, after 70 minutes, defender Ben Futcher nodded in an inswinging corner from Glen Roberts. Athletic, who have lost only three league games out of 13, continued their campaign today with a rescheduled match at Carlisle.
Burnley legend Jimmy McIlroy believes the club's signing of Ian Wright is a massive gamble - but hopes the move pays off as the Clarets look to gain promotion back to the First Division. The former Arsenal and England striker, who is expected to retire at the end of the season, shocked the footballing world when deciding to see out his playing career at the Second Division club after leaving Celtic on Monday. But the former Northern Ireland international, who led the Lancashire side to the First Division title back in their halcyon days in the 1960s, believes Wright could be in for something of a culture shock when he plies his trade back in the lower reaches of the Nationwide League. "It's a big gamble. Wright has been a prolific goalscorer in the top grade but that's no guarantee that this will continue in the Second Division," McIlroy said. "When I joined Oldham, who were in the equivalent to today's Second Division, after I left Burnley, I found it the most frustrating period of my career. "Players weren't responding in that division like they do in the Premier League. They think a little bit slower - the players in the Premiership are more aware." McIlroy cited former England and Manchester United star Sir Bobby Charlton as another player who experienced similar frustrations after he left Old Trafford and became player-manager at Preston, and hopes Wright is not expecting too much. "I think Bobby thought the same when he was player-manager at Preston. I feel sure he experienced the same. I was expecting too much and I hope it doesn't work out the same for Wright. "He is a natural goalscorer and if the rest of the team lay on chances for him then he'll put them away but I hope he doesn't find it frustrating."
Sporting Life
Maric has rarely come anywhere near justifying the £3.5million Gullit spent to bring him to Tyneside from Croatia Zagreb in February last year and his desire to leave Newcastle has been well-documented. The Croatian international scored his first goal for the club in Zurich in the UEFA Cup second round first leg on October 21, and although he added a second in the return leg he has made just one brief appearance as a substitute since the beginning of December. Robson, who has little cash to spend on bringing new players into the club, will be desperate to recoup a large proportion of Maric's fee, but he is experienced enough to know he may have to take a cut-price offer.
Another Gullit buy on the list is goalkeeper John Karelse, who joined the club for £750,000 from NAC Breda in August. Gullit stunned Steve Harper and Shay Given by recruiting the 29-year-old Dutchman and he has played just one game - the 0-0 draw at Arsenal on October 30 last year - since conceding seven goals in his first two games. Former Sunderland keeper Lionel Perez, who has never actually started a competitive game for the club, and youngster Ian Martin are also among the 13, but several of those made available have first-team experience.
Carl Serrant, signed from Oldham for £500,000 in July 1998, started two of his side's first three games this season while Garry Brady, who cost £650,000 from Tottenham during the same month, made 12 appearances last season.
Midfielder Des Hamilton was Dalglish's first signing as he moved from Bradford for £1.5million in March 1997. But after loan spells at Sheffield United and Huddersfield last season he has made just one appearance as a substitute during the current campaign. The remainder of the list is made up of reserve-team players James Coppinger, Steve Caldwell - whose brother Gary remains on the books - Paul Talbot, Paul Arnison and Stuart Elliott.