With looking at Pompey and Rangers struggling and Rangers having to let people go because they wont agree to a substantial pay cut it go me thinking back to when we had our troubles. Nicky Summerbee and Billy McKinlay was the only players we signed all season on free transfer who both agreed to play for nothing because we couldnt afford to offer them wages. Despite us losing alot of very good players in Matt Piper, Robbie Savage, Gary Rowett, Dean Sturridge, the arsehole Dennis Wise and the useless Lee Marshall. When we enter administration the players refused to take pay cuts until McKinlay and Summerbee stepped in and said if we can play for nothing you can play for less. Back then we had big earners like Muzzy Izzet, Frank Sinclair, Ian Walker, Matt Elliott, Gerry Taggart. While they was worth big wages we could afford to keep them unless they agreed to take pay cuts. We had Middlesbrough, Leeds and Celtic after Muzzy Izzet but we held onto them. Building the Walkers Stadium and the collapse of ITV Digital was the reason for the money troubles and getting relegated also didnt help. But that season our first at the Walkers Stadium was a great year for us and one I will always remember. On saturday against Cov on the TV's before the game they show a classic match between the clubs and they showed the Cov game from that season. Cov went ahead only for Gerry Taggart to equalise and in the last minute a Brian Deane header won us the game. Highlight of the season was when we played Forest at home when we had no fit strikers so academy striker Tommy Wright went up front and scored the winner. Being 2-0 down at Crystal Palace and coming back to win with Jordan Stewart scoring a cracker towards the end. I also remember when we played Wimbledon at home and won 4-0 with Paul Dickov getting a hat trick and at half time the fans did a vote of weather we wanted to to remain as Leicester City or return to Leicester Fosse. But off the pitch it seemed like the whole world was against us. Dennis Wise wanted to sue us for unfair dismissal which if successful would have probaly sent us under, the football league wouldnt let us loan players even when we got out of administration. Everyone rallied around and we developed a siege mentality. We had Gary Lineker heading a consortium buying the football club and saving it. We had former players like Emile Heskey donating 100K of his own money to the club to help save it. In the end despite all the odds we managed to get promoted and save our club. That season will always stick with me and when ever we think we have it bad now with us spending loads of money and under performing, just think of what we had against us back then.
The part Mickey Adams played in all of the above is often underrated & undervalued. To Me, Mickey will always be a legend.
Since O'Neill left i think only Micky Adams and Nigel Pearson have done well here Micky worked wonders with no money at all and got the best out of what he had
I work with a 'Gers' fan & even he says the SPL is totally ****ed now it´s always going to be a ONE horse race. I mean is there any point in the SPL carrying on ? 10 years (or more) of Celtic winning the lge by about 20 pts or so ??? Don´t start asking if you can join the EPL, cut ties with England & build a wall, pleeeeeeeease, oh & enjoy your football. The race is on to finish 2nd, what a goal
THAT game against Forest (up there with the best the new ground has seen) was brilliant. When Tommy Wright scored... I had a Forest supporting mate with me (I know, what was I thinking) and we were in the home end and when Wright got the winner I just didn't stop celebrating until the whistle
