Celebrity Deaths 2023

And Brady lost Ray Wilkins too who was another very close friend.

That from the 70’s?

Be Jaysus.

My recollection is Walker and Sinton were bad signings.

Francis did four years as Sheffield Wednesday manager from 1991 to 1995. In my mind his first two seasons were very good and the second two were a disappointment. I think he might have been still registered as a player in 91/92, he’d been with them for a year or two anyway by that stage. They’d just been promoted under Ron Atkinson and had won the very prestigious Rumbelows Cup. Aston Villa made an approach for Atkinson and Atkinson made a big play of rejecting the approach, saying words to the effect “how could I leave this place, how could I let this team and the supporters down?” Then Atkinson changed his mind and left for Villa. So Francis was appointed.

His first two years were excellent. 3rd place in 1992 and then the two Cup finals in 1993. John Sheridan and oiiii Caaaarlton Palmer were controlling the midfield and David Hirst and Mark Bright were prolific up front. John Harkes, Roland Nilsson, Viv Anderson, the doughty Nigel Worthington (whistle) and Nigel Pearson (you are an ostrich, are you flexible enough to get your head in the sand?) were at least competent at the back. Chris Waddle was an inspired signing, yet they didn’t do as well in the league after he signed. Then there was the Warhurst experiment, which made a deep and lasting impact on anybody who remembers it and is still regularly referenced in trivial pub conversation by a cohort of single, borderline alcoholic Irish men between the ages of 40 and 50.

Then in the summer of 1993, Sheffield Wednesday switched kit suppliers from Umbro to Puma and switched from black shorts and blue socks to blue shorts and white socks and everything turned to shit. They signed Des Walker, who was done as a top level player after his time in Italy, and Andy Sinton and got thumped by Graeme Souness’s Liverpool at Anfield on the first day of the 93/94 season, with shrewd new signing Nigel Clough scoring twice. In my memory that was pretty much that for Trevor Francis’s Sheffield Wednesday team - though apparently they finished 7th with 64 points from 42 matches, which actually seems not too bad on reflection.

That famous penalty shoot out against Graham Taylor’s Wolves in the 1995 FA Cup pretty much did for him.

Was Francis one of those injured England players at the 1982 World Cup? Half the England squad seemed to be injured in that and brought on for the last 20 minutes against an already eliminated Spain in that three team round robin group, a match which eliminated and unbeaten England team.

4 Likes

Sinton maybe but Walker did alright.

It was more the fact that Sheffield Wednesday were buying such players that gave a romantic feeling to it. I thought that those two were bought around the time they reached the two cup finals but I was off by a season.

Waddle was a cracking player in his day but was reaching the end around 1993/1994.

Around 74 or 75 i reckon

1 Like

It was Brooking and Keegan warming up at same time who were injured afaik

Always got the impression he despised Liverpool or that was the vibe he gave off anytime he was co-commentating on their matches.

Bob Shankly wouldn’t sign him and he had to go to Nottingham

1 Like

Chris Bart-Williams, :flushed::flushed:

49 - Bloody hell.

Played under Trevor Francis at Sheffield Wednesday.

@Little_Lord_Fauntleroy or @thedancingbaby

Not sure which of you are the Owls fan?

You must be devastated by the goings on of the last day?

@thedancingbaby - he is in a bad way

real snappy, overly aggressive on whatsapp, sending me tweets to deny climate change or have a pop at the greens, very curt in general

8 Likes

Ah Jaysus. He’s literally our age!!

1 Like

Speak for yourself.

How dare you question @Locke 's pronouns!

speak for yourself grandad

1 Like

There goes old man Locke.

He literally is not.

3 Likes
1 Like

An icon.

Probably the best voice I’ve ever heard.

Incredible.

Bed of heaven to her.

6 Likes

May she rest in peace had a tough life but what a beautiful voice :cry: