The statue of limitationsMarch 21st, 2007

It’s not often I’ll devote a whole story to something that happened at another club, but the Southampton sculpture fiasco is just too compelling a tale to ignore.

In case you missed it, a bronze statue of Southampton legend Ted Bates was unveiled outside St Mary’s stadium last weekend. To the horror of fans the £112,000 statue depicted a midget-like figure with an uncanny resemblance to former Portsmouth chairman Milan Mandaric.


Click on image to see photos of other football statues

Supporters immediately condemned the work, with readers at the Daily Echo describing it as “shrek in a suit” and “an affable Oompa-Loompa carrying a Malteser”. The BBC say the club might now tear it down, members of the Trust which commissioned it “have not been able to sleep or eat”, while sculptor Ian Brennan describes being “mentally shattered” and even offered to add five inches to the legs free of charge.

To quote Oscar Wilde, you would need a heart of stone not to laugh.

But the tragedy is that all of this is the product of two years’ hard work from the dedicated fans who formed the Ted Bates Trust in 2005. It raised £50,000 from supporters while the remainder was put in by the club and former chairman Rupert Lowe.

The root of the problem appears to be that Ian Brennan, the distinguished sculptor the Trust commissioned, specialises in wood carvings of animals and had never made a bronze statue of a person before.

The comments of Trust chairman Dave Ford days before the unveiling probably didn’t help matters either:

“It is very rare I am lost for words but I saw the statue last week and it is awesome - a tremendous tribute to a great man. Fans have waited a long time for this and it is going to be fantastic. I really believe it will be the best football statue anywhere both in size and the amount of detail.”

I suppose there are two morals to this tale. Not only do the best intentions in the world mean nothing if you have poor judgement, but failing to consult the fans can have disasterous results.

~ The story also made me wonder who we would immortalise in bronze if we were given the option. I suppose Colin Bell would be the most obvious choice, though maybe a gold statue of Malcolm Allison - sipping champagne and waving a large cheque - would be a more fitting reminder of this club’s history.

Reaction, stats & ratings: City v Boro

With a nickname like “Psycho” you’d figure he wouldn’t leave without a fight.

An excellent day for City and a good one for the “Pearce in” brigade on the talkboards. It’s understandable that Pearce’s supporters would want to give out a bit a stick after this result. Less understandable is the view I’ve read on a couple of talkboards suggesting relegation wouldn’t be a bad thing.

Relegation would be an utter disaster for this club.

City have been getting around £26m a year from the current TV deal but this season’s relegated clubs will receive just £12m-a-year in parachute payments for two seasons.

According to a chartered accountant writing at the MCFC Supporters Trust site, City have been losing £10m - £12m a year - a shortfall which so far has been plugged with player sales and loans from John Wardle and David Makin. Add that to the £14m loss of TV income and relegation would leave us needing to find £24m - £26m in the first year just to break even.

Ipswich and Leicester went into administration after they were relegated (and like City, both borrowed heavily through Schechter & Co when they were in the Premiership). Without fresh investment we would run the risk of following suit, which in turn would result in an automatic 10 point deduction.

And this is aside from the extra TV income we’d miss out on. With the new deal with Sky and Setana representing a 67% increase on the current one (details here), City should receive around £43m in TV money in the Premiership next season.

Never in City’s history have the stakes been higher. But how many points we still need is anybody’s guess. In the last ten years, the 18th placed side has finished on 34, 33, 33, 42, 36, 34, 33, 36, 40 and 40 points - which averages out at 36 points. A win and a draw might be all it needs and two bookmakers have just lengthened our relegation odds to 9/1.

Maybe some of us are worrying unnecessarily. But being a City fan has just carried too many disappointments over the decades to stomach another relegation.

For me, the day we win the point that guarantees safety will be our greatest moment of the last five seasons.

~ YouTube highlights
~ Pearce’s post-match interview
~ Getty Images photos
~ Latest Premiership table.
~ Remaining fixtures for all clubs

Match stats

The stats (below) are compiled from the live commentary and differ slightly from the stats at Sky Sports and the BBC.

You can find a more detailed breakdown of player stats for the game, including graphics showing which part of the pitch each player’s passes were made, at Eurosport.com

Match reports

Couldn’t help notice that The Observer’s reporter for the game was called John Wardle. I’ll let you do your own jokes.


Boro 0 Man City 2
Beleagured Manchester City boss Stuart Pearce was handed a lifeline as his players snatched a precious Barclays Premiership victory at Middlesbrough.
The former England international, who headed for Teesside with his employment prospects far from encouraging, set off home with three points and the cheers of his club’s travelling supporters ringing in his ears just days after facing a torrent of abuse at Blackburn.


City victory lifts Pearce (Richard Rae)
Halfway through the second half, Stuart Pearce was asked for a wave by the Manchester City fans. “Psycho”, as they called him, responded and, contrary to the predictions beforehand, it was not a wave of farewell.
Their unbeaten home record had stretched back to December, while City had not won on Teesside for 30 years - but then, as Pearce will no doubt have mentioned when he joined his old England teammate for a glass of wine last evening, football can be funny like that.


Distin and Mpenza give Pearce a little breathing space (John Wardle)
Pearce was already preparing for forthcoming games within minutes of this win. ‘I will be able to get into my car tonight and put on a book tape with a smile on my face,’ he said. ‘I will wake up tomorrow, though, wondering how I can win the next game. I know if you don’t win enough matches, you come under the spotlight and get flak.’


Pearce eases pressure with brave gamble (Louise Taylor)
It is 11 years since Stuart Pearce treated Gareth Southgate to a night out at a Sex Pistols reunion concert but his former England team-mate finally got round to re-paying the favour yesterday.
By fielding a weakened Middlesbrough team ahead of tomorrow night’s all-important FA Cup quarter-final replay at Manchester United, Southgate probably saved Pearce’s job.


Mpenza leads foreign legion to the rescue of Pearce (Damian Spellman)
Stuart Pearce barely allowed himself a sigh of relief after seeing his players help to save his job.
The Manchester City boss arrived at Middlesbrough on Saturday knowing a sixth successive Barclays Premiership defeat could signal the end of his two-year reign at Eastlands.
In the event, he returned across the Pennines with three points safely and deservedly banked and the cheers of the travelling supporters ringing in his ears.


Rare City victory on Teeside affords Pearce some welcome breathing space (George Caulkin)
It was the first time that Sylvain Distin had worn white boots for a game — “I have had some stick in training,” the centre half said — but even that fashion faux pas was less ostentatious than the white flag hoisted above the Riverside Stadium. A decade ago, Middlesbrough were docked three points for failing to turn up for a league fixture and history was effectively repeated on Saturday.


Victory buys time for Pearce but City divisions remain (Michael Walker)
As Manchester City departed south, three points in hand courtesy of a first away Premiership win in more than 2½ months, the overriding feeling was one of relief. The sense was of an intervention postponed.
But relief is temporary and big decisions remain for those who govern the club. Anyone with any wit around City will know that Middlesbrough’s unacceptable efforts here were the key to this result. The Boro manager, Gareth Southgate, is culpable - and, for that, Stuart Pearce and City have their neighbours, United, to thank.


City still not united as Distin snaps at Dunne (Rob Stewart)
Barton was given a helping hand by Middlesbrough. With tonight’s FA Cup replay with Manchester United in his sights, Boro manager Gareth Southgate - who could be without Emanuel Pogatetz due to a knee injury - rested key personnel such as Jonathan Woodgate and the remainder seemed to have their minds elsewhere.
It made for a bland display by Southgate’s side for whom Stewart Downing stood out and then brutally put a dull affair into perspective.
“City looked like a poor side,” said Downing. “You could see why they’re in the position they’re in, but we just didn’t have any drive and they didn’t have much either. Everything was flat.

~ For a view from the other side, there’s a good match report at Comeonboro.com.

Player ratings

Ratings come from (in order): MEN, Sunday Times, BBC, Sky and Sky Your Rating.

Isaksson: 6, 6, 7.2, 7, 7.8 (av: 6.8)
Hardly had anything to do of note apart from one decent, low sprawling save in each half. (MEN)

Richards (Samaras 22): 6, - , 5.7, 6, 6.8 (av: 6.1)
Limped off after twenty minutes and rest might be a blessing in disguise for teenager. (MEN)

Dunne: 7, 7, 6.7, 7, 8.3 (av: 7.2)
As always led from the front although he would have been more than pleased to see Viduka on bench. (MEN)

Distin: 8, 8, 7.2, 7, 8.5 (av: 7.7)
Terrific performance showed Boro fans why Gareth Southgate tried to sign him in the January window. (MEN)

Sun Jihai: 6, 5, 6.1, 6, 7.5 (av: 6.1)
Started in midfield and then switched to right back and was a credit in both positions as Blues dominated. (MEN)

Barton: 7, 6, 7.0, 8, 8.4 (av: 7.3)
Passing and shooting astray in first half but improved after break to make City’s vital second goal. (MEN)

Hamann: 7, 5, 6.3, 7, 7.6 (av: 6.6)
Ran the game in the first half without getting out of a jog. Has made holding position his own. (MEN)

Johnson: 6, 6, 6.0, 6, 7.4 (av: 6.3)
Drafted in at the last minute and didn’t let anyone down with energetic and tidy midfield display. (MEN)

Ball: 7, 6, 6.5, 7, 7.7 (av: 6.9)
Gets better and better by the week and the ball he curled in for Mpenza in first half was absolute peach. (MEN)

Vassell (Beasley 84): 7, 6, 6.2, 7, 7.8 (av: 6.8)
Could not have applied himself with any more vigour or energy. Ran himself into the ground. (MEN)

Mpenza: 7, 6, 7.8, 7, 9.0 (av: 7.4)
Missed a sitter via a first half header but scored belter in the second half to redeem himself. Lively. (MEN)

Subs:

Samaras (Richards 22): - , 5, 5.7, 6, 7.7 (av: 6.1)
Not much in front of goal but disciplined effort. (MEN)

Beasley (Vassell 84): - , - , 6.3, 5, 6.9 (av: 6.1)

Subs not used:
Weaver, Dabo, Corradi.

Support this website

This website does not generate any income, but it does cost money to maintain.

If you like what you read here, and would like to help out with the running costs, I’ve set up a site where people can make a credit card or Paypal payment.

Click here if you want to support Purelymancity

Any donation, no matter how small, will be greatly appreciated.

Entry Filed under: Features