ONE Of Our Dinosaurs Is Missing!
What has happened to Ray Parlour? The Romford Pele has been out injured for ever. He last played in the Premiership against Bolton at the back end of last season, one of only 10 starst. Since then he has disappeared off the first team radar. He has vanished without trace. Quick, someone call the bobbies.
Actually he hasn't vanished at all. He played in pre-season at Sheffield United but missed out on the Dutch trip with an ankle knock. He has played a reserve game away at Sheffield United .
He is sometimes seen in the directors box on matchdays. He is still around.
He is on the injured list but can be seen joining in with gusto in full training. The Dimmockalike is spotted regularly by Gazette staff at Hurworth looking dishevelled and sweaty. "Maybe he's working on a lovely water feature," a cynic quipped.
But even if he is still visible it appears to be only as a spectoral presence. Some still believe in his existance despite the scientific evidence to the contrary. Normally when a first teamer is out injured we get regular updates on progress. "Ugo has stepped up physically and is just a few weeks away from a reserve game". "Mark Viduka has started running and could return to ball work within a fortnight". "Stuart Parnaby will be back in full contact training soon and has pencilled in December's Manchester United clash for his comeback."
But with Parlour there has been none of that. No updates, no return date predictions, no citing his absence in mitigation after a defeat, no inane quotes about him being "like a new signing" or how "he is raring to go and buzzing in the changies". It is as if he is a non-person. He is the elephant in the room. There is an unspoken recognition that he will never feature again. To come back to a Dimmockism, it is as if he is on gardening leave.
In truth that is probably pretty close to the truth. He will turn up and put the work in, maybe feature in a few reserve games as he works back to match fitness but is unlikely to play for the first team again unless bubonic plague sweeps Hurworth. The entire club appear to be treading water until the day he can be shuffled silently off the wage bill.
******
There was an interesting piece by David Ornstein on the Guardian Sports Blog today about one time Boro heavyweight hitman Michael Rickett's in which some former coaches offer opinions on his abilities and attitude that are both generous and damning.
Ray Graydon, his manager at Crewe said: "Michael may say he's earned good money and done well, and he may be satisfied with that. I knew what he needed football wise but I'm not sure Michael feels football is his major importance."
"Michael had almost every quality to make himself a top player," Graydon added. "I thought he could go a long way in the game but there was something missing in Michael's makeup and that was a deep-down ambition."
And Kevin Blackwell, the former Leeds United manager who took Ricketts to Elland Road in 2004. "I think Michael has to ask himself whether he loves football enough"
It is worth reading.
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