10th October 2000   

Whitehall wants out

ATHLETIC have shelved their interest in signing Chris Lightfoot when the defender’s loan spell expires next week. Lightfoot (30) has failed to keep his place in Andy Ritchie’s side and is being released back to Crewe Alexandra. Rejection will come as a disappointment for the experienced centre-back, who was keen to make a new start at Boundary Park. But the writing was on the wall at Rotherham on Sunday when he was axed from the starting line-up. He is also unlikely to make the team for Saturday’s home game against Swindon. 

Ritchie explained: “Although we will monitor his situation, we aren’t going to take it any further. “We have Shaun Garnett back in that position, and Chris’s fitness isn’t what it should be at the moment.” Lightfoot answered Athletic’s crisis call last month when Garnett was injured and both Mark Hotte and Paul Jones were struggling. He started four games but, despite showing reasonable form, couldn’t stem the flow of goals. Athletic’s other on-loan player, Burnley midfielder Paul Smith, has three more games in which to impress his temporary employers. Smith was also left on the bench at Rotherham, but he had missed midweek training for family reasons. 

Meanwhile, Scott McNiven has been given the all-clear after hospital checks on a cheekbone injury. McNiven was caught by an elbow on Sunday and feared he may have suffered a second fracture in three months. But X-rays found nothing more serious than bruising, and the transfer-listed 22-year-old should be available for crucial visit of Swindon. Ritchie said: “It’s a relief for everyone, but especially for Scott as you don’t know what problems another break could have led to. “It might also give him more confidence because, at the back of your mind, you always wonder how these things will stand up to another knock.” 

Carlo Corazzin should also be back for weekend after helping Canada to a 1-0 World Cup qualifying victory over Panama yesterday. Corazzin played for 80 minutes and had the honour of winning his 50th international cap. Last night’s reserve-team match at Barnsley was postponed due to a waterlogged pitch. Tonight’s Lancashire FA Youth Cup tie against Preston, which was due to be held at Boundary Park, has also fallen victim to the weather. 

AS Athletic have stumbled from one bad result to another in the last two months, the men in charge at Boundary Park have come under increasingly heavy fire. Many supporters blame chairman David Brierley and his board, others believe the management team of Andy Ritchie and Bill Urmson should carry the can. It is almost 12 months since Mr Brierley, along with fellow directors Derek Taylor (now vice-chairman) and Peter Chadwick, bought a 48-per-cent shareholding in Athletic from JW Lees. Here, he gives his views on the club’s plight, both on and off the field in a question and answer session with Michael Yarwood.

* Athletic are next to bottom of the second division. Is Andy Ritchie’s job safe?

There has been no board meeting to discuss Andy’s position and neither is anything planned. It’s as simple and straightforward as that.

* What is your reaction to the team’s current problems?

It goes without saying that I’m very disappointed. They are basically the same squad of players as last year and I’m sure Andy will be as concerned as I am about what is happening.

It’s also very disappointing for the fans who, rightly, expect better. They have made their feelings clear, as they are quite entitled to do.

Like Andy, I and the rest of the board are very concerned about results, performances and our present position in the league. They all need to improve.

* What is being done about it?

Andy and his coaching team need to look at the current situation and let us know two things — firstly, what they consider to be the problems and, secondly, whether they have the answers.

I’m sure Andy is addressing that as we speak and that he will be in touch very soon.

* Does that mean money is available for team strengthening?

You have to keep an open mind and review the situation all the time.

We have never said there are no funds at all, but it’s important to look at things as a whole and the club is in a far better financial position than it has been for some time.

We have been concentrating on steadying the ship, which we have managed to an extent. I think the annual report reflects that.

* Should you not speculate to accumulate?

You can only speculate with what you have. The fact is that, financially, no-one here comes remotely close to being a Jack Walker figure.

We are supporters first and foremost — myself, Derek Taylor, Peter Chadwick and everyone else. But we just don’t have that kind of money.

* When you bought the shares from JW Lees, you said you were open to offers for them. Is that still the case?

The shares are always up for sale. We only took over because they had been on the market for so long.

As I’ve said before, there was no knight in shining armour waiting in the wings, so we thought it was better to stabilise from within and that’s why it happened.

We aren’t looking for big bucks and we aren’t trying to make a quick profit. Whoever comes in has to have the best interests of the club at heart — that’s paramount.

* Has anyone shown an interest?

There was a general enquiry from someone, but that was quite a few weeks ago and nothing came of it. That’s all we’ve heard.

* Are you advertising the fact the majority shareholding in a football club is up for sale?

Not actively advertising it, no. But that doesn’t mean someone won’t come along and put the right offer forward.

It would then be our responsibility to listen to what they had to say and think about it.

We would hope they had the right pedigree and could answer the right questions because we won’t just consider anybody.

If they could show they had the club at heart then, without question, we would be willing to sell.

STEVE WHITEHALL hopes to complete a full-time transfer to Chester this week after being told he has no future at Boundary Park. The veteran striker — Athletic’s joint leading scorer last season — has fallen rapidly out of favour and wants to move on as quickly as possible. Athletic transfer-listed Whitehall (pictured) in August, with manager Andy Ritchie explaining he wanted a “quicker and younger” front line. Ironically, the 33-year-old has been a huge hit on loan at the Deva Stadium, hitting five goals in four games to lift them up to fourth in the Nationwide Conference. Whitehall said: “I have spoken to Oldham and they made it clear to me that, for one reason or another, they don’t want me there. “Now I’m waiting to speak to Chester. And if nothing happens there, we’ll see what happens elsewhere. “When I first came to Chester, Graham Barrow (the manager) was keen to sign me straight away. “But I wasn’t entirely sure what was happening with Oldham at the time and I harboured hopes of getting back in the side. “It has since been made clear that that isn’t going to happen and basically I’m looking for a new club.”

Whitehall, a former civil servant who entered the professional ranks in his mid-20s, played under Barrow at Rochdale. He had a fine goalscoring record both at Spotland and Mansfield, from where he joined Athletic for £40,000. The Scouser was Ritchie’s first signing as manager — and, along with Stuart Thom, is still the most expensive. He scored four goals in his first season and 11 last term, but was then squeezed out by Carlo Corazzin’s summer arrival. Chester were quick to sign Whitehall for an initial one-month spell and have been delighted with his impact. They are hoping for an immediate return to the Football League this season and, provided they can meet his terms, will sign the player before his loan period runs out on Friday. Whitehall added: “Andy Ritchie has got the forwards he wants and there’s no point me going back because, no matter what happens, I won’t be playing. “I’d like to think I’ve done well enough to stay at Chester. The club is in a good location for me, they are a great set of lads and I’m quite happy here.”

Manchester Evening News

Oldham's AGM tonight promises to be one of the liveliest for years. The Latics are without a win in 10 league games and boss Andy Ritchie has come under fire from frustrated fans. But at least the balance sheet shows some plus points. Shareholders will be told that although the Latics still owe more than £700,000 they made a profit of £95,421. The club also paid off an outstanding bank loan of £688,000 to avoid crippling interest rates. Their overdraft is also down from a massive £1.76m to just £58,000. The wage bill stands at just over £2m, a cut of a quarter of a million. The Latics were previously £3.2m in the red but £2.5m of debt was wiped out by the sale of their Boundary Park ground - they now pay a rent of £240,000 a year.

Teamtalk Oldham

 Andy Ritchie has insisted he will not walk out on the club despite coming under fire for the club's poor start to the season.
The Latics boss has insisted: "I came here to do a job and I aim to see it through." Ritchie has come under increasing pressure after his strugglers have failed to win a game in their last 10 league outings. They have plunged to next to bottom with just three points from a possible 20 and angry fans hurled abuse at the players in Sunday's latest defeat at Rotherham, but Ritchie is determined to ride out the storm. He said: "Of course I feel under pressure but Billy Urmson and I are both determined to turn things round and I believe we can do it. But if the board don't want me, all they have to do is tell me. "If I thought they could bring in someone who could do a better job then I would stand aside."

Ritchie believes his side may have got themselves into a hole and mentally are finding it tough to get out off. Frustrated fans have also attacked the 5-3-2 formation, but the Latics chief firmly defends the way he wants to play, adding: "Our league position has nothing to do with the system. We played the same way last season and were just one goal away from finishing in tenth place.
"I am not asking the players to do anything differently, but they are lacking passion. I just wish some of the fans could see how hard we work in training and how promising things can look before a game."

Andy Ritchie has still not been able to run the rule over trialist Colin Pluck after the Latics reserve clash with Barnsley was called off. Pluck was pencilled in for a reserve team game at Barnsley on Tuesday night but it was called off because of a waterlogged pitch. Pluck, a former Watford defender will now be given another chance to impress on Thursday night when the Latics second string take on Manchester United in the Manchester Senior Cup at Bury's Gigg Lane ground (kick-off 7pm).
That fixture - weather permitting - will see the return of Paul Rickers as the hard-working midfielder starts his comeback after recovering from a nasty gash in his thigh caused by an opponent's boot. Another casualty of the stormy conditions is Tuesday night's Lancashire FA Youth Cup game against Preston North End. It was called off because the Boundary Park pitch is under water and no new date has yet been fixed.

Steve Whitehall has become the scoring sensation of the Nationwide Conference and something of a lucky charm for Chester City. The veteran 33-year-old couldn't find the net for the Latics for love nor money - but all that has changed since he went out on a month's loan to Chester. Since he joined the Deva outfit they haven't lost and it is all down to Whitehall who has found the net five times in four games. His goals have taken Chester from mid-table obscurity to fourth from top and their fans are already believing they can make it back to the Football League at the first attempt being relegated last season. Whitehall is being allowed to leave Boundary Park on a free transfer following the arrival of Canadian international striker Carlo Corazzin. It now looks almost certain that Whitehall's move will become permanent if Chester can agree to his personal demands.

Swindon Evening Advertiser

COLIN TODD believes his youngsters are maturing with every performance. The early season disappointment is slowly giving way to a feeling of hope for the future as Town continue to grow from strength to strength. One defeat in five league games tells the tale as inexperienced players like David Duke, Danny Invincible, Gary Alexander and Keith O'Halloran start to come of age. "I think the pace and aggression of Division Two took a few of the lads by surprise at the start of the season," he said. "They had done well in pre-season and expected things to carry on like that, but life has proved much tougher for them. "It was football in terms of eleven against eleven, but things were more intense for them in real action. They had not experienced Division Two before. Some of them had not even played in a first team before. "People have expected it to just happen and I am afraid things do not work out like that in football. They are a young side who have not been together for long and a lot of people were disappointed early doors, as I was. We did not produce the results but now things are beginning to take shape and we are seeing big improvements on a game to game basis."

The victory was Colin Todd's first taste of success in a league game at the County Ground and he was pleased to have finally broken the duck. "This was an excellent win, and it is added spice that the win was against Oxford United," he said "Don't be fooled by their league position. Derby games are real levellers. "I think you can see that we are going in the right direction and it is important for us to get our first win at home this season. "I thought we dominated the first half and scored a tremendous first goal through Reevesy. You have to accept that somewhere in the game the opposition will come into the match. They did in the second half, but our character and ability saw us through." Todd was unhappy with three decisions from referee Eddie Wolstenholme.

He disallowed two Town goals for offside and did not award Danny Invincible a penalty after the Australian went down under a challenge in the second half. "Things could have gone our way as regards the referee," he said. "I did not think Martin Williams was off-side and I don't believe Danny Invincible was either in the second half. "We should also have had a penalty when Danny was brought down but those are refereeing decisions and they don't always go your way. "However, I always felt that we could win the game and when I made the two changes things turned out well for us. "I am very pleased for the players and supporters that we have got this home win but now we need to be ready for the battle at Oldham next week." Todd says his side must now build on their recent good form if they are to march up the table. "We have got to maintain that and keep pushing forward to get the next result now which is away at Oldham," said Todd. "The signs have been very encouraging, even before this game, now we have to make sure that we don't throw it all away and let things slip."

Chairman Terry Brady also enjoyed the derby victory. He said: "It was unbelievable wasn't it? You won't get many better derbies than this one. Both teams battled really well but the right result came our way. "It was the kind of atmosphere to lift any club. The supporters were a credit to Swindon Town and were behind the team all the way." Mr Brady revealed he was a bag of nerves watching from the Arkell's Stand. "I get carried away with it all. I don't know how Colin stands there so calm," he said. "I'm afraid I haven't got the patience he has got. I was jumping up and down throughout the game. "The lads were under big pressure and they did really well to get the first home win under their belts." 

The early running was all done by Canada who made lots of scoring opportunities. Corazzin's action:
First Half
15 min. - A good chance of a header but the goalkeeper gathered the ball comfortably
20th. min - A chance on the post but a bad bounce on the hard surface allowed the ball to run dead
23rd. min. - A difficult back header from 15 yds. which went over the net
30th. min. - A powerful header this time from a corner which went just wide
40th. min. - In a free position Carlo glanced a header past the far post
H.T. 0-0

Second Half
A bit stale till the 65th. minute when Canada took the initiative. Corazzin's action (continued):
65th. min. - Another header which again goes wide
68th. min. - Now desperately trying to get on the scoresheet he chases a bouncing ball into the penalty area where the
goalkeeper gathered the ball. Frustrated, Carlo whacks at the ball in the goalkeeper's hands. A deliberate handball
which escaped unpunished
80th. Min. - After some good ballwork on the centre spot Carlo get fouled in the back. He is immediately substituted.
81st. min. - Following a great run by Martin Nash the ball is laid into the path of Jim Brennan who coolly slotted
Canada's first goal since 4th. June. The matchwinner.
F.T. Canada 1 Panama 0