Your worst ever Villa player

[castlefields_villan]

Yes - spot on Damo - I'd completely forgotten about Why Ronlie - am I right in thinking apart from Ron (do you wanna bet against us) Saunders - he's the only person to manage Us, the rags and the boggies ?

[Damo70]

I wasn't aware he managed Small Heath but I did meet him at the sty in 1986 (Frank Worthington's testimonial) and he proudly told me and my mate how he had captained both Blues and Villa.

[castlefields_villan]

oooops I must be getting old !! - I remember him as a player for the rags - for some un-known reason I remember going to see them beat Chelsea in the FA Cup quarter final in 1968.  (in those days Chelsea were a good first division team - Peters Osgood and Bonetti, Chopper Harris, John  Hollins and all - the rags, although higher placed than us at the time
( I must check their honours list to see if that's on it) were a mid table second division team.

[oswald funkletrumpet]

Dave Norton - his Dad (RIP) used to run the Vine in Wordsley, I remember when Dave was in the reserves and he came into the pub one night telling everyone how he had brought this BMW off Gary Shaw.

His Dad told me that Dave loved the lifestyle of being a footballer, but he lacked  the desire to want to work hard at trying to improve himself.... His Dad was not too impressed with his attitude.

good post

i knew vic his dad very well and although he loved david he knew he was caught up in the footballers lifestyle. iirc it was a toyota celica he bought off gary and vic gave him the money for it!

david was best mates with tony dorigo and was always trying to keep up with him although dorigo was winning the title with leeds and he was playing for hull in the third division

[Chris Harte]

I seem to remember Hodge making an horrendous mistake to give Norwich their first goal in a 4-1 win against us a VP - I've never known the Holte End turn on a player so much, it looked to me like he was close to tears and Steve Hunt had to console him

The Holte were on Hodge's case before the back pass you call a mistake. This was due to the player saying he wanted to leave because being at the Villa was harming his international prospects. This despite him making his England breakthrough at Villa (he was at the club a little over a year kn the end).

The back pass smacked of a deliberate act of petulant sabotage in the face of the stick he was getting. Of course, only he will truely know if that was how it was.

[peter w]

I seem to remember Hodge making an horrendous mistake to give Norwich their first goal in a 4-1 win against us a VP - I've never known the Holte End turn on a player so much, it looked to me like he was close to tears and Steve Hunt had to console him

The Holte were on Hodge's case before the back pass you call a mistake. This was due to the player saying he wanted to leave because being at the Villa was harming his international prospects. This despite him making his England breakthrough at Villa (he was at the club a little over a year kn the end).

The back pass smacked of a deliberate act of petulant sabotage in the face of the stick he was getting. Of course, only he will truely know if that was how it was.

I never did and still don't think it was deliberate. What I find him to be guilty of however is that his lack of motivation barely 6 weeks into the season meant he gave a very lazy I'm above this shit type of pass. In one instant he went from a Barry type who most people (not I) went on to forgive to a, well, a Hodge.

[castlefields_villan]

I can't remember who we were playing a year before, but when we signed him, didn't we parade him on the pitch as "our new midfield sensation" who was going to help Villa (and England) onto bigger and better things ?

[Damo70]

I seem to remember him leaving Forest to join us because Clough was playing him out on the wing. And for what it is worth I agree with peter w. I was on the Holte that day and have never though Hodge's back pass was deliberate or malicious. Just sloppy.

[Archbishop Herbert Cockthrottle]

Time to revive this - due to the shenanigans of the last couple of seasons and in particular the debacle of Dubai and the relegation party, I'd like to nominate Gabby Agbonlahor.

Even my ire at Nigel Callaghan's slothlike football has nothing on this fat fool.

[Oscar Arce]

I can't remember who we were playing a year before, but when we signed him, didn't we parade him on the pitch as "our new midfield sensation" who was going to help Villa (and England) onto bigger and better things ?

Yes you're right mate.
Tony Stephens was Villa's commercial manager and held an onpitch interview with Hodge, ending with them both in front of the Holte End, Stephens gushing about how wonderful a signing he was and scoring lots of goalds in the Holte End net.
Fast forward to that Norwich game and Hodge's surly demeanour...after his crap back pass which led to the goal he gave a sort of clenched fist sign to the Holte, which made the booing worse.
However, his rampant ambition to leave Villa turned him into the most hated Villa player ever until Mr. Delph cama along....

[castlefields_villan]

Time to revive this - due to the shenanigans of the last couple of seasons and in particular the debacle of Dubai and the relegation party, I'd like to nominate Gabby Agbonlahor.

Even my ire at Nigel Callaghan's slothlike football has nothing on this fat fool.

Fully agree with you again Herbert - there must be a couple of candidates from this present bunch

[SheffieldVillain]

Time to revive this - due to the shenanigans of the last couple of seasons and in particular the debacle of Dubai and the relegation party, I'd like to nominate Gabby Agbonlahor.

Even my ire at Nigel Callaghan's slothlike football has nothing on this fat fool.

Fully agree with you again Herbert - there must be a couple of candidates from this present bunch

I would put N'Zogbia above/below Gabby. At least Gabby has been of use at some point.

N'Zogbia has done the square root of fuck all, taken £60k a week for it and judging by his comments on Twatter, couldn't care less.

[AVH87]

Time to revive this - due to the shenanigans of the last couple of seasons and in particular the debacle of Dubai and the relegation party, I'd like to nominate Gabby Agbonlahor.

Even my ire at Nigel Callaghan's slothlike football has nothing on this fat fool.

Fully agree with you again Herbert - there must be a couple of candidates from this present bunch

I would put N'Zogbia above/below Gabby. At least Gabby has been of use at some point.

N'Zogbia has done the square root of fuck all, taken £60k a week for it and judging by his comments on Twatter, couldn't care less.

He's built up an 'impressive' wardrobe collection though using that 60k salary #lifestyle

[JD]

Richards & Lescott. Couple of overpaid loud mouth useless c$*ts. Gabby, Guzan & N'Zog are not far behind.

At least Hodge, Delph wanted to and did leave and didn't bleed the club dry like those f*"king parasites above.

[dave shelley]

We need to clarify the thread title here I think.  There's a difference between footballer (player) and human attitude.  We've had many terrible footballers in our time but most always tried and gave their best but, very few with the stinking attitude we are witnessing at present.