Thursday, March 06, 2008

Terry Dixon Exclusive Interview: Buggered & Bitter.


This is from Terry himself.

Me? Comment has been passed that we as Club don't have a tremendous rapport with our 'exes' other than our legends.. Graham Roberts for example has been treated shamefully for indulging in little more than 'free thought'.
Dixon? The free thinking among us will acknowledge that it ain't Spur's fault what happened to him. Afterall. We aren't Newcastle, our charges don't train on a ploughed field..

Terry Says...

"People knew that I'd had injury problems for the last while. People within football knew that I had left Tottenham so word got around that I had finished, I had retired,
but that's not the case.There are no guarantees and I have a bit of a way to go, but I do hope that I will be able to play football again. At what level, and with any success, I don't know, no one knows that now."

"I had a real high in my career, in my life, when I was in the Ireland squad and on the bench for a game at Lansdowne Road. If that was the high, this is the real low at the moment, leaving Tottenham.But I do have a real hope that I will be able to play football, at least earn a living from football and see where it takes me after that.

"I went to see a specialist a while back and he gave me a bit of hope, he said it's possible that I can play again and be a professional. At this stage it's only a possible and there are no guarantees, but I am strong in my own mind and I am determined to get back playing again.I am finished with Spurs now, but I have had clubs in touch with me. "

"A couple of teams have said they want me to come there so I can do my rehab and get back training. If I get my fitness up and can show them that I'm able to play without any problems, then I will have a chance of signing.I will see how I am feeling in the next few weeks but I hope to be able to go to a club soon enough and start doing some more work. At the moment I can do some jogging and some work with leg weights, I have done a bit of passing and some ball work so that was good for me, to work wth a ball again.

"There's a long road ahead of me and if I do get back, it will be next season. Spurs paid up my contract. They said that they couldn't take any more chances on me and my fitness, they said that they didn't see it happening for me there. It was hard to leave, I had been there for ten years and to be honest I'd hoped they would treat me better."

Whilst I'm genuinely sorry for the fix you're in son, who is it you think OWES you a living again???

"There are clubs interested in me and that's a boost for me. I have a good family and
friends around me but it's good to know that people in football are also interested and want to sign me.I will try and get fit and give it a go with some club. This could be my last chance, so I have no reason not to try. I haven't achieved anything in football really, I haven't played a club game and I haven't played for Ireland, I want to do both of them so hopefully the knee can clear up, I can get fit and achieve my goals.If I can't play again and if I have to quit, at least I know that I tried, and I will do something else. I have been doing coaching courses and I want to stay in the game so I'll see what the future holds for me."

Courtesy of The Evening Herald...

17 comments:

egg said...

A bit harsh Harry, i had high hopes for this young man. Rumour was that he was the Irish Rooney?

Anyway, it is a shame for Dixon if Spurs feels that to spend further on his rehab is a waste, but they know better than I and in Ramos we trust!

2 - 1 at PSV and we go through on away goals!

BIOYFPSVC!!!!!!!!

Frank said...

Finished before he began.

Hey ho, lifes a bitch. At least he doesn't have to stack shelves at Tesco's.

Shame about the result tonight, but we would have to had scored once in Holland anyway.

Gilberto actually showed some decent touches before his mistake and Taarabt looks like he's actually been turning up to the passing based coaching sessions.

We can still win on the day.

Anonymous said...

would you be saying that shite if the same thing happened to our captain ledley king???? i dont think so!!! wind youre fucking neck in harry!! he had a great future and spurs shat on him from a great height,

phil moore,
belfast

Harry Hotspur said...

Phil, next time you run out of napkins, go wipe your bleeding heart on someone else's wall... please.

King is owed a car park space in heaven.

This lad was UNFORTUNATE. Nothing more.



Mind you, could've been worse. Could've been living in ******* Belfast.

Harry Hotspur said...

And The Drifters

~Spot on~

Gilberto looked like good stuff to me.

Dynamic.

And we do like dynamic.





Taarabt On board!

Anonymous said...

Going forward Gilberto looked great, going back he looked pony.

Anonymous said...

probably got a great future tarmacing driveways and selling heather...

Anonymous said...

harsh but fair. Spurs did keep him on through his first major injury.

good luck to the lad.

bueller said...

Disappointing but certainly not beyond us. An early goal out there and it could be a rollercoaster of an eveining.

I thought the positives of the night were Woodgate and King.

Gilberto had an error strewn debut but for all he did wrong, he still looked quick, aggressive, a good passer and wanted to get forward. A bit of settling in time and he could be a player. I think he we should try and give him ninety against west hame.

Taarabt looked like exactly what we needed. If not ten minutes too late. I would like to see him involved now.

This is obviously just opinion but Zokora does not have enough quality to play in our midfield. He looks ok at the back (don't want him there either though) but lacks the quality to dictate a game in the middle.

I would move him on.

bueller said...

Apologies for the spacko spelling above. I'm not even on the crystal meth today!!

Anonymous said...

A bit puzzled about the alleged quote from the young lad...

"It was hard to leave, I had been there for ten years and to be honest I'd hoped they would treat me better"

He'd been at Spurs for TWO years, more like. Some bad journalism, methinks.

Phil, I appreciate from your comments you are a Spur. But settle down. Slating the treatment Dixon received is ridiculous. He may be hurt, but what 18yr old wouldn't be if a relatively big club (whose future plans had included you) turned around and said, "Look son, I'm really sorry but..."?

At his age, he'd dreamt of being a top class footballer all his growing life, so of course he's gonna be upset!

He has been unfortunate with his injuries. As to whether he could recover sufficiently to make up into an adequate club player in a lower division will be down to many factors, and there's clearly no guarantee he'll even do that. It is a terrible shame for the lad. We should wish him all the best for the future, and hope for his sake he can, in time play the game at a decent level.

As for Spurs "shatting on him from a great height"... I believe they paid up his contract. Or do you think they should have magicked up a 2 million pound golden handshake for him as well?

He is not the first lad who has had to face adversity in sport through injury. He won't be the last. The fact is bad injuries can temper or finish careers. I once knew a golfer who could play with the best of them and did just that as an amateur, players who are everyday household names. Then a recurring injury put paid to any ambitions there. And deep inside, I know he's bitter too because almost every day he probably wonders how far he could have gone, had he not had the injury.

Unknown said...

I am gutted for the boy, he showed huge promise and not so long ago either, I am also gutted for the club, let us not forget that Dixon was very highly thought of and Tottenham counted themselves lucky to have had him, they have both lost out, (I am sure the club will not see him go short).

It's Them and Us said...

It's a shame but let's face it, we've got enough players that are susceptible to injuries. It's sad for the lad, and a promising youngster turfed out before he can really develop but I completely understand the situation. From what I've been told he was also given a fairly large compensation package as the injuries have cost him a potentially(!) very good career.

As for PSV I had a horrible feeling we'd start off shakey and concede first but I didn't expect such a so-so performance. I actually look at it, based purely on our performance, as a very good result. If they had got a second (and arguably deserved to) we'd be dead and buried. As it stands if we score early then it's an even playing field. A 2-1 victory would see us through and we're more than capable of that.

King was solid. Woodgate too, but I wish he'd look at where he was heading the ball out to at times. Chimbonda (despite what that cunt Pleat says) is awful in the air. Great leap, good positioning, but his execution is pityful. I thought Gilberto tried too hard to impress. Give him a couple of reserve outings, certainly looked unfit.

Midfield: Lennon is the biggest concern for me. FINAL PRODUCT. Stop getting fucking pissed in a club, throwing up over yourself, and do extra training sessions so you actually improve. Having pace and no end product makes you as good as Theo bleedin' Walcott. Jenas was quiet. He's playing a lot higher up the pitch but we descending into knocking the ball around the back with no wing-play before King/Woody/Robbo hoofed the ball up to Berba. We looked like Bolton in all white and played like Bolton. Zokora I don't understand. See Lennon. The good? Pace. The bad? His ability to be a footballer. Teemu, return! Steed worked hard but then when doesn't he? His defending needs some work as both Gil and O'Hara were terribly exposed when they broke fast.

Berba tried hard but couldn't really stamp his authority. And when he did win free-kicks they were duly wasted. Seriously, how many DANGEROUS areas did we get a free-kick in and promptly waste? I only remember one of being any note -- and that was within the first 15 minutes. Jenas, Lennon, Thud and O'Hara were all poor in their delivery. Keano was pointless. I know he plays further up now and had great feet to set up our only meaningful effort on target but I'm sure if Bent was fit he'd of been brought on.

HALF-TIME!

Death said...

For me the worst part about last night had to be the dead ball delivery. The opposition don’t have to worry about giving away free kicks or corners ‘cause we aint going to do anything with them.
We’ve all seen goalkeepers go up for corners and free kicks at the end of a match but perhaps we could start something by sending Robbo up to take ours?

It aint over 'till the fat dutchman skins up!

COYS!

Anonymous said...

i've never been in a worse mood after last nights match...and not because we lost (lord knows i've seen enough losses in my time), and not because we played shit (ditto), but because Spurs have managed to piss all over the Carling Cup win with two terrible terrible results and performance.

but ok now i've settled down and had a chance to think about it..of course we're still in the tie.

but it didn't have to be like this..PSV are by no means awesome but credit must go to them for their professional performance..and IF they are any good they should be able to pick us off in the second leg and stroll on to the quarters..id dopn't see it going that way however - but that's for another day...

ROBBO: (6.5)
good save in second half but once again was badly out of position for the free-kick in the first half that went out off Jenas. on target and it was a goal.. gone in Summer

CHIMSY: (6)
not great.. gone in Summer

WOODY: (7)
solid..

KING: (7)
likewise..

GILBERTO: (3)
i'll give him the benifit of the doubt for now..

LENNON: (5)
may as well not have been there.. will be gone in Summer if he doesn't get his act together

JJ: (6)
all work but no play makes Jack a dull boy..

ZOKORA: (5)
gone in Summer..

STEED: (6)
faded a bit..

BERB: (6.5)
did nothing wrong..

ROBBIE: (5)
did nothing at all..

O'HARA: (6.7)
did fairly well including one excellent block..

THE NUT-MEG KID: (6)
i guess he tried..disappointed with his lack of nut-megs though!!

BIG TOM: (6)
some poor deliveries from free-kicks..

DAVID PLEAT ON ITV: (-5)
for suggesting with over a half hour left that Spurs need to start hitting it long..

RAMOS: (10)
gets full marks for masterminding next week's victory in the return leg..

Anonymous said...

I don't believe that Spurs would have let Terry Dixon go without due consideration. He represented a valuable asset whose medical welfare was bound up with the club's aspirations to develop him as a top-class footballer.

Clubs spend time and money on their charges, to whom they have a duty of care. So, it was surely not on a whim that Spurs decided he merited no further investment, and that his injuries effectively precluded his future growth as a premier player.

Clubs are neither nursing-homes nor charities. No one will have taken pleasure in the decision. As cold and capitalist as chairmen sometimes appear, they oversee systems of administration which are designed to enable their clubs and players to thrive. Books must be balanced, decisions weighed. Yes, these are sometimes life-cahnging and career-ending decisions. But if these decisions are based on a footballer's injury-history, can we really be surprised or disappointed? A footballer's body is the tool of his trade. Would you employ a carpenter who didn't possess a saw and spirit-level and still expect your shelves to be regular and straight?

Last night's performance against PSV was indeed demoralising. I think Ramos made one of his few errors so far by deploying Gilberto in the side. Not that Gilberto didn't start well - I thought he did. He looked intelligent and lively, and his low centre of gravity gave him stability and assuredness. But he perhaps lacked a little for pace. And maybe that lack of pace manifested mentally, too - which perhaps accounts for why he was caught in possession and yielded a goal. Slow-thinking and reactions. After that he fell apart and, frankly, I felt sympathy for him. It can't have been easy knowing his debut might be remembered for contributing to ending his club's UEFA Cup campaign.

Woodgate made some timely interceptions. The result could have been worse but for him and King. That said, I feel that, since we lost, we squandered King's performance. Had we won, it would have been a wise investment of his fragile fitness. The fact we lost effectively means we threw away 90 minutes of his match-play, as we know he will require many more minutes to recover. Or maybe the result would have been 0-3 without him. The absence of more PSV goals on account of his presnce was the positive. Who knows?

The match was the barometer Ramos promised. I think as fans we saw that, although Ramos is a gifted coach, he can't turn a sow's ear into a silk purse. Malbranque, for example, can't do the extraordinary. He can't be faulted for industry, but he wants for vision. Also, why doesn't he shoot at the earliest opportunity? Why does he want to walk the ball into the net? The same is true of all the other players who find themselves in front of goal but still a few yards out. Why not pepper the goal with shots to unnerve the opposition and put their defence on tenterhooks, driving their midfield back to defend deeper? Why not demonstrate that danger can come from a distance as well as close to goal? Is there one Spurs player who has a lethal shot?

Lennon was flimsy, his runs aimless. Yes, he's still young and still learning; but he has had ample time to don the mantle of a senior player. He lacks invention. He shoots like a girl. His crosses are hit-and-miss at best.

Jenas drives, interrupts, pushes, surges. But where is the vision that a leading midfielder must have? Where is the creativity and the left-field thinking? There's plenty of lateral movement, but where's the lateral thinking, the incisive passing? For once, I want to witness him do something that makes me think, 'Whoa! I didn't see that coming!'.

Zokora has a feature on the official web-site, which suggests his position is safe and endorsed from on high. Ramos does indeed seem to like him. I truly hope he has secret and powerful qualities that are on the cusp of being revealed. And perhaps he does deserve the opportunity of working with Ramos in the summer - to see if he really can be developed - before he's sold in the next January transfer window. At presnt, he's just another interrupter, disrupter, break-upper. But he offers precious little by way of invention and control? Along with most of his team-mates last night, he needed more touches and more seconds to make the ball his own. Imagine it hadn't been a ball. Imagine it as a rifle he'd been fumbling with. He would have been dead from a bullet before getting the butt to his shoulder. Berbatov is the only player whose touch inspires confidence.

The midfield is essentialy workman-like. Malbranque and Lennon possess the touch of feathers. They fuss and fume. They buzz like gnats, and are brushed aside with the casual waving of a big hand. Zokora has the touch of a mule but not the kick. Jenas has a better touch and an engine to boot, but tug-boat Huddlestone has the poise.

Ramos' fielding of Taarabt smacked of slight desperation. Glad though I was to see the player, it felt like a last throw of the dice, and all rather untimely.

There's much talk today about how we must win the derby against Spam to get our confidence back. Even Zokora suggests it in the aforementioned feature, as if he were a figurehead and a leader. As if. And as if Spam would turn up just for our benefit. As if Spam would roll over and die just to allow us back to our winning ways. And that - after two consecutive 4-0 defeats.

Enough psycho-drivel, Spurs. Walk the talk.

9.37 Anon

Anonymous said...

cheers harry for such a polite reply lol i can put your house on it harry that Dixon comes back to bite the board in the arse!

Phil

Belfast Tottenham Hotspur Supporters Club(who arent impressed with harrys lovely comment about Belfast!!)