On this day 25 years ago (1 Viewer)

Diogenes

Well-Known Member
The Keane season was the last time I truly felt like we were going somewhere, until the last 18 months of course.

Those days were exciting - we still had the dream of ARENA 2000 and were talking about a 45000 new stadium with retractable roof and pitch. A plethora of exciting attacking talent. As much as we were brilliant though that season without an away win still scars me.

Would I rewind time if I could to hope it plays out differently? Absolutely not - the clubs the healthiest it's ever been in and the years of pain have made the club what it is today.
 

wingy

Well-Known Member
Remember it well. Scored on his debut and it was obvious he’d go on to huge things. Tried to replace him with Bellamy which was pretty much the beginning of the decline in the prem years.
Parallels with current model, not quite,we expect to get at least two years of service before they fly,or promotion and keep in-house !
 

Telfer85

Well-Known Member
Was a great season that! remember finding out about the transfer on teletext. The team talk advert that used to appear with the midlands clubs and next to wolves it said something like record sale for star man agreed and next to cov it said something like record fee for teenager agreed and then articles started to appear on it. Oh the days before the internet!

knowing villa had been after him all summer it really felt things were beginning to change. Remember calling the ticket hotline to buy tickets for his debut and you could see immediately he was gonna be quality.

How quickly all that unravelled the following season!
 

Telfer85

Well-Known Member
It’s difficult to compare players from different eras and how good ones were then and now. Vik for me is prob the one that’s come closest and will go on the same career trajectory as Keane.

The one thing you’d say about Keane was how good he was a such a young age. Plus he hit the ground running didn’t have to adapt to prem football. When you think of the attacking talent in the prem that season Shearer, Henry, Cole, Yorke, Bergkamp, Owen etc i always felt he was the closest we would get to getting anyone near that level. That season it felt like we had a world class striker backed up by the likes of hadji, mcallister, chippo etc and we’d give any team a game.

It really was a failure of GS how we finished so low that season and not winning a game away all season. Utterly criminal.
 

Sick Boy

Super Moderator
It’s difficult to compare players from different eras and how good ones were then and now. Vik for me is prob the one that’s come closest and will go on the same career trajectory as Keane.

The one thing you’d say about Keane was how good he was a such a young age. Plus he hit the ground running didn’t have to adapt to prem football. When you think of the attacking talent in the prem that season Shearer, Henry, Cole, Yorke, Bergkamp, Owen etc i always felt he was the closest we would get to getting anyone near that level. That season it felt like we had a world class striker backed up by the likes of hadji, mcallister, chippo etc and we’d give any team a game.

It really was a failure of GS how we finished so low that season and not winning a game away all season. Utterly criminal.
Yeah GS should have gone around Sept/Oct in the relegation season, at the latest. Keeping him on for the Div.1 campaign was an even bigger mistake as he’d completely lost the plot at that point.
 

Skyblue Bangkok

Well-Known Member
Yeah GS should have gone around Sept/Oct in the relegation season, at the latest. Keeping him on for the Div.1 campaign was an even bigger mistake as he’d completely lost the plot at that point.
We even managed to lose our last game of the season away at Watford who had already been relegated.
 

rob9872

Well-Known Member
I know we probably wouldn't have got Keane if we hadn't sold Dion, but would have loved to see those two together for a full season. I always thought it would be a perfect combination. Genuinely believe we'd have challenged the top end if we had.
 

SkyBlueSam01

Well-Known Member
My favourite ever

A really rare example of a player reaching the elite level without having exceptional pace, strength or even ball striking ability

Just sheer creative genius and if he'd had any of the three attributes above he would have been truly world class
 

LastGarrison

Well-Known Member
We even managed to lose our last game of the season away at Watford who had already been relegated.
Was a good day out though!!!

Also a sublime bit of skill from Hadji where he nearly scored from the corner flag with a volley (never been able to find this anywhere online so may have actually over exaggerated it in my head 🤣).
 

Skyblue Bangkok

Well-Known Member
Was a good day out though!!!

Also a sublime bit of skill from Hadji where he nearly scored from the corner flag with a volley (never been able to find this anywhere online so may have actually over exaggerated it in my head

Was a good day out though!!!

Also a sublime bit of skill from Hadji where he nearly scored from the corner flag with a volley (never been able to find this anywhere online so may have actually over exaggerated it in my head 🤣).
Apart from the result yes it was a good day & a lot of beer consumed.
 

ProfessorbyGrace

Well-Known Member
Amazing we won 12 home league games and none away.
Think it was 14, but anyway, our home form was indeed outstanding that season.

Our best squad for years, and Strachan contrived to finish lower than mid table. 🤷‍♂️
 

Travs

Well-Known Member
Didn't we win a record 7 home games in a row?

It did include a couple of pretty poor last-minute wins against Barnsley and Sheff Weds if i remember correctly....
 

shepardo01

Well-Known Member
Not that season I don't think.
Think just the three away wins would have put us top six!
97/98, we won seven in a row - league and a couple of FA Cup I think. Think the end of that season we only lost one on something like the last sixteen games!... Too many draws saw us end up mid table. We were good that season!...And would have had a great chance of winning the FA Cup too....
 

Mild-Mannered Janitor

Kindest Bloke on CCFC / Maker of CCFC Dreams
Most talented player to ever play for us, brilliant awareness, positioning, touch and then finish.
it was only brief but was amazing to watch
 

ProfessorbyGrace

Well-Known Member
Most talented player to ever play for us, brilliant awareness, positioning, touch and then finish.
it was only brief but was amazing to watch
My favourite Keane goal was the one against Arsenal at HR, the 3-2 win. The way he flicked/directed it past Seaman from such an angle (with his right foot) was just incredible.
 

Travs

Well-Known Member
The home game against Villa under the floodlights was pretty special.

I'm pretty sure Keane had a goal disallowed for offside, just prior to scoring the winner (which was also borderline onside/offside)
 

Diogenes

Well-Known Member
The following season when we played villa I was sat in the main stand and for some reason John Gregory kept walking from the dugout and down the tunnel multiple times during the game and I kept trying to trip him up.
 

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