Drum Magazine Issue 4 | Page 44
42
Drum: SPORTIVE
Colour is no longer a factor when the national squad is
selected, but bookies will give you long odds on there
being a black England boss any time in the next 10 years.
Best described as ‘niggly’
during his top-flight playing
career.
Some may disagree with the
idea of Carlton Palmer earning
a place in any ‘best of’ list.
First black player to captain the
England first team. His defining
moment in the Three Lions came
when he put in a battling performance against Italy, helping
England to a draw that put them
into the 1998 World Cup Finals.
Ending the game with his head
swathed in bandages after sustaining a nasty head wound in
the first half, cheeky Geordie
wife-beating funster Paul Gascoigne brought the world to its
knees with helpless mirth by
likening Ince to ‘a pint of Guinness’
because Ince is black, and the
bandage on his head was white.
And Guinness is black, with
white on top. See? Amazing.
However, Palmer was unfairly
maligned throughout his career,
and suffered from being part of a
singularly uninspiring Graham
Taylor-era England team, and the
fact that he wasn’t Paul Gascoigne.
But he was a hard-working,
effective player, and a godsend
for cliché-happy commentators,
who could always find an excuse
to refer to his ‘telescopic legs’. To
some he will always be an Argos
catalogue version of Patrick Vieira.
To me he will always be the man
who made me cry with laughter
at his pitch-perfect Graham Taylor
impression in the classic ‘Impossible
Job’ documentary about the
beleaguered England manager.
© Sporting Heroes Collection Ltd.
CF: Cyrille Regis
5 appearances; 0 goals
© Sporting Heroes Collection Ltd.
CM: Carlton Palmer
18 appearances; 1 goal
© Sporting Heroes Collection Ltd.
CM: Paul Ince
53 appearances; 2 goals
Another of Ron ‘after
everything I’ve done for black
players’ Atkinson’s ‘Three
Degrees’.
Regis terrorised defences in the
70s and 80s with his muscular
forward play and explosive
shooting. Built like a middleweight boxer, he was voted PFA
Young Player of the Year in 1978,
and went on to win five full
England caps. Never truly reaped
the rewards in terms of medals
that his incredible natural gifts
should have brought him, despite
playing a key role in the Coventry
City team that won the FA Cup
in 1987. In the team for his sheer
charisma and physical presence.
Also, he looks a bit like my Dad
and signed a programme for me
at the 1995 Coca Cola Cup Final.