The End of the Line - David O'Leary

[dave.woodhall]

Dave Collett goes back to July 2006 and uses the ‘f’ word.

https://heroesandvillains.info/2024/06/04/the-end-of-the-line-david-oleary/

[eamonn]

"Why, oh why, the doily?" (Dolly, sic)

Filling Station’ by Elizabeth Bishop

[Legion]

Done.

[Proposition Joe]

Enjoyed reading that. I never had the same dislike of O'Leary that a lot of others did. My memory of that time was it was very up and down, just as likely to get thrashed as have a great win.

Erik Bakke can be added to the list of "did he really play for Villa?". I have no recollection of him ever playing for us.

[brontebilly]

It was a timely reminder of how bad things were at the end of Ellis reign. No budget to sign Bakke! If DOL had just concentrated on his job then Lerner likely would have just given him the next season.

[Andy_Lochhead_in_the_air]

He should have been sacked straight after this.

[cdbearsfan]

I disliked him at the start, hated him by the end. Didn't think I would ever be so delighted to see the back of a manager again. Then that Liverpool player turned up.

[Exeter 77]

Doug and O'Leary were a big part of why I decided to not renew my season ticket in the summer of 2006 along with the last one of my mates also chucking in the towel at that point. The Lerner takeover and the arrival of Martin O'Neil changed my mind

[Malandro]

Perhaps not the worst Villa manager in my lifetime, but he’s the one that I hate the most. He’s a poisonous cnut.

[VillaTim]

In fairness he signed a couple of very good players . We beat Smurfs away (Phillips) enjoyed that one from a beach bar and pissed the mrs off, and was at QPR when we beat Fulham 2-1 to go 4th I think Nobby Solano classy .

[Grande Pablo]

That day up Boro stays long in my memory.

[Steve67]

Always remembering his talking up the opposition and how good they were, how much money they spent etc.  Had a reputation for being lazy and was disliked from within the game too.  I must be one of those sugarbags he referred to.

[VillaTim]

"They've a different agenda to us" , was one he rolled out regularly I recall after another defeat

[LeonW]

Always remembering his talking up the opposition and how good they were, how much money they spent etc.  Had a reputation for being lazy and was disliked from within the game too.  I must be one of those sugarbags he referred to.

“We can’t compete with the Middlesbrough’s and Charlton’s of this world.”

[LeonW]

Good first season, during which he got the best of any manager out of Angel. Then, once Doug wouldn’t spend a kings ransom, showed how limited he was. Vassel, Angel, Laursen, Bouma were just some who said what a dislikeable individual he was. And to think, when he started he said: “One thing I took this job for was to show that David O’Leary doesn’t need money.” And yet, it was never not about money. The clue should have been speaking about himself in the third person.