Here's why.
You're an obviously talented midfield player who has moved to a demanding, wanting-out-of-this-division-thank-you-very-much team with a collection of fans who are nobody's fools and frankly sick tot he back teeth of underperforming players of merit, the chicanery of the board and the never ending conveyer belt of managers stretching back forty years which belies the supporters faith and devotion.
You continue to 50-70% every game you play in and at times score some fabulous goals but more often drift in and out of game after disappointing game when in reality, lacking speed or not like your past contemporaries (like Stuart McCall, Carl Bradshaw, Trevor Hockey, Michael Brown, and a few others) your appearances haven't exactly set the stadium on fire and generally you watch the game bypass you.
Then comes the moment when you use your experience in one of those scenarios all us footballers (from Chelsea at Stamford Bridge to Cutlers Arms in Herdings Park) make a snap decision when a fifty-fifty ball is there for the taking. Admittedly the result back in Herdings Park from a fiercely contested tackle that would make any touchline dad wince may be a bit different and any victim may be verbally encouraged to get up and get back in the game, but in the professional game you very much know that if you go in, studs up, clumsy or not, going for the ball ref or not, the recipient whether grazed by the soft outstep leather of your upperworks of your boot with 0.000562 x 10 ^-2 pico Newtons of force will roll about like you have leapt from a step ladder with Billy Foulke on your shoulders onto his naked shin, wearing ice skating boots.
So here's the summation to the answer to 'why so?' Because at that level, you know that as soon as your contact has been made and the percipient has started act one scene one of Shakespeare's
Much Ado About Nothing and his supporters and players have begun their massive overreaction to elicit a response from the referee he knows he will have to execute or else in the post match interview the manager concerned will say lass charitable things resulting in a press shit storm and obvious FA censure resulting in him reffing Cutlers Arms versus Brunsmeer Celtic in Herdings Park next week ... you just know that going through the official's mind right there right then is 'I only caught half of that, but by the way everyone's chimping on, I'll have to red card the fat cunt.'
If Baxter had have mistimed his frankly outstanding tackle right in front of goal in the Spurs match and legged their player over getting himself sent off and them a penner, I'd have been disappointed, but satisfied. But for him to go in like a cunt in nowhere land for a ball that had he hesitated, stayed on his feet and marshalled the opponent would have resulted in us maybe retaining some sort of advantage is unforgivable.
SUFC 2 - 2 Coventry + Baxter
I hope he doesn't play for us again and we blood a youngster in his place. Adams maybe?
pommpey
