DN35 interview - Tommy Widdrington

Quoted from 1mickylyons

Yeah maybe a bit harsh but he was 300k and I was hugely disappointed with him compared to for example Wayne Burnett 100k. I don't object to him managing us though seems to have done alright.

Wasn’t it rumoured Wayne had other “skills” as well…?

Quoted from 1mickylyons

Yeah maybe a bit harsh but he was 300k and I was hugely disappointed with him compared to for example Wayne Burnett 100k. I don't object to him managing us though seems to have done alright.

Widdrington had a decent pedigree when he arrived here. 75 top flight appearances and only 25.  We sold Groves for double the fee we paid for him, as good as Groves was it was all done at second-tier level so on paper it probably looked good business at the time.    £300,000 in the bank and replacing a very, very good second-tier player with a promising top flight player.

Burnett on the other hand was a few years older, despite time at top flight and Championship clubs he had played very few games at a higher level, the absolute majority of his games coming in the lower leagues.  Also a bit of injury record too, which I personally believe held him back from probably a top flight career.

If injuries weren't an issue, Burnett was about as much a £100,000 player as I am, of course contrasting extremes between us both.

Burnett often gets overlooked in best Town XI's but my god he was a glorious player.  He just caressed the ball, never struck it with venom even though he had a very powerful shot on him and very good long range passing.  Always looked like he wanted to look after the ball rather than welly it.  He could mix it up too.  Big bloke, wouldn't want to mess with him and he was pretty decent in the air too.  

Towards the end of his Town career I went to watch a reserve game when he was on the comeback from injury, it was very, very late in Lennie Lawrence's reign and the reserves were full of kids who Lennie had brought in from elsewhere to bridge a gap between youth and first team; Chris Thompson, Chris Bolder, Simon Ford etc.  Burnett was the only real senior pro in the team and played in a sweeper role.   I've never seen anyone control a game as much as he did that day, it was like watching a Chess Master the way he just moved people around (both on his side and the opposition) and dictated the play, effortless.  He was back in the first team soon after that, think it was a few games later Lennie got the sack.  We had become really leaky at the back and couldn't get into games.  I've always wondered if Lennie had a solution in the building waiting to change how we play.

Quoted from Limerick Mariner

Wasn’t it rumoured Wayne had other “skills” as well…?

Very adept at creeping into the box undetected...

I simply didn't rate Widdrington. He could obviously never replace Groves, who was a spectacular player for us, but he didn't do enough in attack or defence for me. It was the pointing that I remember most - he'd point at the gaps when the opposition was in possession, I suppose to inform his teammates where they needed to cover, but it effectively helped the opposition know where they needed to pass the ball!

An honest enough pro who did decently elsewhere, and he seems to be doing OK in management.

Quoted from Limerick Mariner

Wasn’t it rumoured Wayne had other “skills” as well…?

Riding a harley Davison