FOR ME, CHRISTY Fagan is the best all-round striker in the SSE Airtricity League at the moment.
I think the St Patrick’s Athletic man is an excellent player and not just because of the 13 league goals he has got this season.
I mentioned before that his goalscoring was something he needed to work on and he has certainly stepped up to the plate in that regard. This is his third season at St Patrick’s Athletic and it was important for him to embrace the fact that he is the main man now.
Anto Flood left the club but Mark Quigley came in, which will have added some pressure on him. But he has upped his game and added goals to his excellent overall play. He has great awareness, his touch and control are excellent and he is also very comfortable dropping into deep areas and being that link man.
I watched the game against Derry on Friday and it is probably as good a performance from Pat’s as I’ve seen all season. Killian Brennan came into the team and they just looked to have an extra sharpness about them.
Fagan wasn’t as involved in the overall play as you would normally expect but what he did do very well was find the back of the net… three times in fact. It was an out-and-out goalscorers performances more than anything else.
It is great to see he can mix and match his type of performances now and play almost any type of striker’s role. He has 13 goals in the league so far and we’re not even halfway.
Pats’ official account tweeted the other day that it is 50 years since a player last scored 20 league goals for the club in one season but he will definitely break that if he continues the way he is going.
He is a huge asset to the Saints and definitely the best around at the moment.
There does seem to be a generational gap between the likes of established strikers like Jason Byrne, Glen Crowe (who has retired from the LOI) and the next batch of strikers coming through. Those guys went out and did it and Jason isn’t far off breaking the all-time goalscoring record.
You look at Dundalk and they’ve got young players like Paddy Hoban and Kurtis Byrne. It is about learning your craft and developing as a player season on season and Stephen Kenny is a hugely important factor for them.
I could list a whole rake of strikers that everybody talks about in the league but potential counts for nothing. Look at Mark Quigley, who has barely kicked a ball this year. It is a long road ahead for those lads to get anywhere near Jason.
Evolving
I feel the traditional striker has had to evolve over the years. When teams played traditional 4-4-2, with two guys up front – one out-and-out striker and the link up man who would create opportunities.
With the changes in formations, a lot of teams are preferring a 4-3-3 and the frontmen have had to adapt. Centre forwards tend to me be much more involved in the link-up play meaning they drop deeper and deeper and as a result don’t get many chances in games.
There has been a bit of a gap but in the likes of Fagan we’re seeing players who are now able to a number of roles and it makes for better footballers all-round in my opinion.
As a Leeds supporter and a massive fan of the book, I have to say this film is a huge letdown. There are some brilliant aspects to it; the performances of Michael Sheen as Clough, Timothy Spall as Taylor, and Jim Broadbent as Sam Longson are brilliant.
However, the idea that the rivalry between Clough and Revie is down to Revie snubbing him at Elland Road is laughable and takes away from the drama of what really happened and indeed the well fleshed out, fictionalized account in David Peace’s novel. A far more interesting film could have been made from focusing on the darker aspects of Clough’s character, and David Peace himself has suggested in could be remade in a style more akin to the Richard Harris film “This Sporting Life”
Really enjoyed the film Michael sheen was majestic !!!! Being a forest fan loved Clough !!!
Really great film, but having read the book it feels like there was a bit of an effort to not upset the Clough family in the same way the book did, which is arguably the best part of the novel seeing the darker sides of Clough’s personality and really ramping up the turmoil that he went through in that time period
I’m a Huddersfield town supporter but I think the book was one of the best sports books I’ve ever read. Brilliantly written.
I really enjoyed the film and the makers deliberately moved away from many aspects of the book. I disliked the book as did the Clough Family and indeed our own J. Giles who sued the author, Peace, successfully.
As a Liverpool supporter, Clough was the biggest thorn in our side. He was, and still is, the greatest manager ever in England. Yes, even above Paisley !
His achievements will never be matched. Taking unfashionable teams to heights they could never have imagined. Derby, winning the old Second and then First Division titles. They were very close getting to the final of the European Cup !
Then Notts Forest ! Who did it all !
Where are these teams now !
All with Peter Taylor, the other genius, at his side.
My favourite sports book, “Provided You Don’t Kiss Me: 20 Years With Brian Clough”, by Duncan Hamilton charts it all !
Cloughie you are missed !
That’s a class book alright … I’d say Duncan had some craic writing it !!!