Tony Currie - England’s greatest footballer?

[sitwell]

Here is what I put in here last year. Only Le Tissier can take corners like Woody. Beckham used his instep but didnt use the outside of his foot when taking dead balls

It is interesting to read what great managers and players said about Woodward. Peter Howard wrote in the Green ‘Un on February 19th 1972; “Malcolm Allison, extrovert, talkative boss of Manchester City knows who is to blame for City's loss of a point at Bramall Lane last Saturday. Allison blames ...himself! He said, ‘It's my fault. I take full responsibility. I boobed. I should have told Joe Corrigan to stand in the middle of the line for Alan Woodward's corner kicks. Woodward is the best in Britain in these situations. He hits the ball with the outside of his foot and although he can get tremendous accuracy this way, the power is lessened. So it was pointless Corrigan standing at the far post. He wasn't to know this. This is my job and I should have covered it. I watched Sheffield United just before the game and Woodward did not have a right wing corner. I meant to come to the Dynamo Kiev match but I was ill and missed it. If I had been there, I would have spotted Woodward's trick and it could have saved a point.’”
Bobby Robson said after the Blades’ scoreless draw against Ipswich at the Lane in August 1972, "We came here with a little trepidation after losing 7-0 last season and we knew we mustn't lose an early goal. But in the end our worst problems were created by corners. That fellow Woodward is the best taker of corners I've ever known.”
Rodney Marsh said after a match against Fulham, "Nobody hits 'em better than Woody."
People say David Beckham is the best dead-ball specialist in the world but his right wing corners were very disappointing (his left wing corners were excellent) during the 2002 World Cup and I was thinking, "If only Woody were taking the right wing corners". I think Matt Le Tissier is the only other British player I’ve seen who was as good as Woody at taking corners.

But Woody never played for England. One of the reasons Im really not arsed about England.

 

[Sheffsteel]

It's almost impossible to compare footballers from different eras.

Realistically speaking today's players are definitely better because they are all supreme athletes.
However players from yesterday year were more skilful because there were less distractions for kids
With skill, flair and diving headers being the fashion in those days.

I've mentioned this before but I have 3 memories of Curry as a kid.

1: It always used to fascinate me how he'd get the ball in the centre circle and ping a pass towards the corner flag. It always looked like he'd over hit it but then amazingly the ball would almost stop dead for Woodward to run down the wing and cross it in. Like a golfer he was able to loft a cross/ pass and put an amazing amount of back spin on the ball. Never seen anyone else do it so well (Glen Hoddle,could do it a bit but not as well as Currie).

2: Another skill Currie used to do was when he was about to take a throw in instead of bending down and picking up the ball (like a normal player) he used to stamp on the ball and it would just just gently pop up into his hands.

3: As a kid always assumed Currie was Sheffield through and through. Imagine my shock when I heard him talk for the first time with his strong North Landan accent. I always assumed he'd have a Sheffield accent ha ha.

For the young uns the modern day players that always used to reminded me of Currie was
Robert Prosinecki of Barcelona/ Portsmouth and more recent a Luca Modrich of Spurs and Real Madrid.

Although the great thing about Currie was he had a swagger. He knew he was often the best player on the pitch and wasn't afraid to let the oppositions and the fans know.

 

[Silent Blade]

But Woody never played for England. One of the reasons Im really not arsed about England.

I was saying that only Le Tissier could take more variable dead balls like Woody did. Beckhams corner were good only from the left wing. Le Tissier did play for England but didnt play many times for them as he didnt have Beckham's fitness and workrate

 

[10-0 win]

...there's also a fact, from own experience, boots , balls and surface are way different from late 60's/70's till now. Wet heavy balls and stiff hard boots on a muddy pitches were the tools of yesteryear. Some of todays players would struggle.
Always loved TC, a genuine entertainer , could win us games singlehanded when at it. Woodward never picked for England was a shame.

 

[Shalalalafenoughty]

One of my fave TC goals was one he got in the 71 3-2 home defeat against Stoke ?. On the goaline and some distance toward the corner flag he placed the ball into the net like Steve Davies sinking a long red.

It was disallowed, SBT. Currie's goal in that game was a shot from just outside the box into the top right-hand corner. A brilliant goal. The one from near the corner flag beat Gordon Banks at his near post but was ruled out as the ball had gone out of play in the build-up. Silent and I posted on the subject a bit back but I can't locate the posts. TC was superb that day - took Stoke on single-handed when the rest of the team was off colour.

 

[Silent Blade]

It was disallowed, SBT. Currie's goal in that game was a shot from just outside the box into the top right-hand corner. A brilliant goal. The one from near the corner flag beat Gordon Banks at his near post but was ruled out as the ball had gone out of play in the build-up. Silent and I posted on the subject a bit back but I can't locate the posts. TC was superb that day - took Stoke on single-handed when the rest of the team was off colour.

Early in the game Woody put us ahead with a penalty. We all thought we were going to stay at the top of the League.

Not long before half time, ex-Wendy, John Ritchie levelled the scores slotting in a half cleared corner.

Not long after half time Dennis Smith headed the visitors into the lead

TC equalised with a lovely shot that curled past Gordon Banks and into the top of the net

Soon after that came the disallowed goal as you had described even though the ref had at first pointed to the spot but the Stoke players pointed at the linesman who put his flag up indicating that the ball had gone out of play. So the ref awarded a corner to us (I think) and disallowed the goal. We all protested at the decision but deep down I have to say that the linesman was correct about the ball going out of play before TC pulled it back in and shot from a tight angle

Near the end Terry Conroy (who looked offside) broke away to net Stoke's winner. We lost our place at the top of the league and for me it still hurts!

 

[Barney Rubble]

It was disallowed, SBT. Currie's goal in that game was a shot from just outside the box into the top right-hand corner. A brilliant goal. The one from near the corner flag beat Gordon Banks at his near post but was ruled out as the ball had gone out of play in the build-up. Silent and I posted on the subject a bit back but I can't locate the posts. TC was superb that day - took Stoke on single-handed when the rest of the team was off colour.

You're right it was disallowed. At that time I had a season ticket in the Bramall Lane Stand and the referee was fucking wrong, the balldidn't go out of play.. (May have been the lino that gave it and we had a better view than him because TC was between him and the ball,)

I think this was also part of a sequence of 4 successive defeats that began with the game at Old Trafford when Best scored and saw us lose our position at the top of the table. And things might have turned out differently if we'd won that day.

Edit : ( @Silent posted at the same time as your reply, but I have to disagree with you that the ball ever went ut of play)

 

[bornablade]

I've a really strange memory of that game against Stoke. The grass was very moist and far too long. It really didn't suit our passing game. Pretty sure there'll be no record of this but it sticks clearly in my memory.

The result was very disappointing after what was a great start to the season.

 

[Barney Rubble]

Really set me thinking about this goal and I think that Stoke tried to put the ball out of play and given the position that the ball was in were expecting TC to let the ball run out of play happy to get a corner. When he made the decision to keep the ball in play they were taken by surprise, which allowed him to slot the ball home from the narrow angle.

 

[Silent Blade]

The disallowed goal. Notice Banks and the defenders not playing to the whistle

 

[Deleted member 1486]

Steven Gerrard won, thus proving internet polls are about as reliable as a Ford Cortina.

 

[BushBlade]

Talking about him again today on Talksport. The cockney pundit (not sure if it's Groves, Parlour or Cas) said he'd played against him when TC was at Torquay and he made Molby look a little anorexic but could still dribble round the opposition. He did a step over that sent the defenders the wrong way and the opposition supporters applauded him.
It's good he's getting some of the recognition he deserves as I've always felt he was a bit underrated outside Yorkshire.

 

[Silent Blade]

Talking about him again today on Talksport. The cockney pundit (not sure if it's Groves, Parlour or Cas) said he'd played against him when TC was at Torquay and he made Molby look a little anorexic but could still dribble round the opposition. He did a step over that sent the defenders the wrong way and the opposition supporters applauded him.
It's good he's getting some of the recognition he deserves as I've always felt he was a bit underrated outside Yorkshire.

It would have been Perry Groves. Played for Colchester before joining Arsenal

 

[coaxingstar71]

Steven Gerrard won, thus proving internet polls are about as reliable as a Ford Cortina.

Fucking Steven fucking Gerrard!

The amount of times I've seen him try to play a 40 yard glory ball that has either gone to the opposition or flown out of play. The biggest crime in international football is giving the ball away cheaply which is one reason why England will never prosper.

 

[coaxingstar71]

Little bit off topic but only in England would Gerrard have over 100 caps and Scholes, the best midfielder of his generation, constantly frustrated by being played out of position ends up with 63 caps.

Other badly underused players....

Currie
Hudson
Worthington
Hoddle

and many many more

 

[itsinyerblood]

Little bit off topic but only in England would Gerrard have over 100 caps and Scholes, the best midfielder of his generation, constantly frustrated by being played out of position ends up with 63 caps.

Other badly underused players....

Currie
Hudson
Worthington
Hoddle

and many many more

Completely agree, Currie's career was cut short for no other reason than he offered the type of flair that didn't sit easily with the style of unadventurous football that's become synonymous with our national game. No doubt if we'd had an Iniesta or Messi they'd have been shuffled off to play their football at domestic level, never to find their talents recognised at international level, and all because the dullards in control can't accept the possibility that great footballers actually know what they're doing.