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February 2002 News

News of other stars from the 1970-71 season will appear here ...

28 February

Jefferies Returns.

Jim Jefferies (Hearts) returns to club management as the new boss of Kilmarnock of the Scottish Premier Division. Kilmarnock lost their manager, Bobby Williamson to Hibernian. The following brief profile appears at BBC Jefferies made new Killie boss

1990: Made Falkirk boss
1991: Wins First Division
1993: Relegated from Premier Division
1995: Made Hearts boss
1998: Wins Scottish Cup
2000: Made Bradford boss
May 2001: Relegated from Premiership
Dec 2001: Leaves Bradford

24 February

Souness Wins Worthington Cup

Well done to Graeme Souness (Tottenham Hotspur) for leading his club, Blackburn Rovers to their first major trophy since the Premiership in1994-95. Previously Blackburn had never been beyond the semi-final in the League (presently 'Worthington') Cup, so this win was a club first. Blackburn Rovers beat Tottenham Hotspur - Graeme's first club, 2-1 at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. Crucially it was a top signing by Graeme, Andy Cole, whose goal made the difference.

Blackburn Rovers are presently struggling in the Premier Division. They are 18th in the League four points adrift of the first non-relegation slot, but with a game in hand. As the win qualifies Blackburn Rovers for the UEFA Cup next season, there is the unlikely situation where a First Division team will be playing in Europe, if Blackburn do go down.

Blackburn overcame the favourite, Tottenham Hotspur, three times previous winners of the Cup and presently 8th in the Premiership.

BBC SPORT WORTHINGTON CUP  Souness salutes Cole goal reports the following ...

An emotional Graeme Souness expressed his delight as underdogs Blackburn Rovers lifted the Worthington Cup after beating Tottenham 2-1.

Souness paid tribute to Andy Cole, who scored the winner, and man of the match Brad Friedel, who kept favourites Tottenham out with some crucial saves.

"We're a small club and they're a big club so this is a great day for us," said Souness.

"It was a very tight game, but I thought we shaded it in the second half. They will point to the possible penalty and Brad made a great save."

And Souness fiercely defended Cole, about whom Tottenham manager Glenn Hoddle was critical during his time as England manager,

"He's a top man," Souness added.

"I've played with Ian Rush and Kenny Dalglish and they never scored every chance they got.

"He's a class player - of course he should go to the World Cup."

Souness looked forward to Blackburn enjoying even better fortune in the Premiership, with relegation still threatening.

"We were a bit lucky today but we've not had much luck this season," he said.

"We're going to enjoy tonight and then I hope that we get a bit of luck in the rest of the season."

Also seeBBC SPORT WORTHINGTON CUP  Cole strike stuns Spurs
BBC SPORT WORTHINGTON CUP  Souness leads Blackburn revival
Official site Blackburn Rovers Football Club

13 February

Taylor Returns

After weeks of saying he won't and the club denying he will ... Graham Taylor (Lincoln City) has returned as manager of Aston Villa - the club for which he is a non-executive director.

Aston Villa were unexpectedly left without a manager when John Gregory left stating that he was over-stressed. Many believed that this actually meant Gregory could not get on with Chairman, Doug Ellis. Gregory quickly returned as manager of the Premiership side Derby County, who look as if they will be relegated despite changing their manager twice this season !

As for Taylor, he is one of the country's most experienced managers, including a stint as the England manager. This said, he has only ever had one season as a manager in the Premiership. Having achieved promotion of Watford to the Premier Division, they were relegated after one campaign as the comparatively small club struggled to compete at this level.

The lure of managing a major club in the Premiership, proved too great, and Taylor's retirement has been put on hold. As the newspapers are keen to point out, 69 year old Bobby Robson is doing well at Newcastle United, which shows that age is not necessarily a factor in choosing a manager. And Sir Alex Ferguson is turning his back on retirement at Manchester United, the most successful Premiership side to date.

Villa are well placed at 7th in the Premier League, and will be hoping to reach one of the European club competitions at the end of the season. Meanwhile, Taylor's appointment has done nothing to stop the campaign against Doug Ellis's role at the club.

See BBC SPORT ASTON VILLA  Graham Taylor profile
Aston Villa F.C.

McMenemy in Kabul

Laurie McMenemy - Football365.com reports

Gary Mabbutt and Lawrie McMenemy (Doncaster Rovers manager) have accepted invitations from the FA to take part in a showpiece match in Kabul, capital of war-torn Afghanistan.

The former Tottenham skipper and ex-Southampton boss will manage teams representing the International Security Assistance Force as they take on Kabul United on February 15 in front of 40,000 fans in the city's Olympic Stadium.

Mabbutt told Spurs' official website: "It's the first sporting event to take place since the Taliban regime left. The idea is to show that the country is returning to some sort of normality.

"I accepted the invitation without really having to think about it. It was only afterwards that my wife said to me 'you do realise there is still a war going on?'"

"It's funny, I've been offered eight managerial roles from clubs in the first, second and third Divisions but this is the first role I've accepted."

Mabbutt will fly out to Kabul of February 11 and has been assured of his safety during the trip.

"I had a meeting with the MOD and everything is being done to make sure everything is as safe as it can be, the route to the stadium, the stadium itself will be protected around the clock, they are doing everything they can.

"There is a risk in everything you do though whether it's driving the car, crossing the road or going out to Afghanistan."

Mabbutt was approached after taking up a post in the FA's International Development Programme.

"We give seminars, hold forums and coach," he explained. "It's all about the FA using its knowledge of football to try to raise the standard of football.

"On this occasion we'll have a training session with both teams on the day before the match and then myself and Lawrie will take charge of a team each.

"Football is the most popular sport in Afghanistan and it's a case of using sport to unite a country that has been torn apart.

"It will be a historic occasion, signifying changes have taken place and, from our point of view, showing that the rest of the world cares.

England Draw

Sven-Göran Eriksson's (Karlskoga) England came back from a 1-0 down to draw 1-1 versus the Netherlands in a friendly tonight. Sven-Göran once again played two teams worth of players as he attempts to explore his options prior to the World Cup Finals later this year. Darius Vassell of Aston Villa scored on his debut.

It is still worth looking for new players, as a caller to Radio Five Live pointed out tonight, Geoff Hurst and Martin Peters debuted in 1966 just prior England's World Cup winning campaign.

See BBC SPORT WORLD CUP 2002  Vassell pegs back Dutch

See more February 2002 news at the following ...

Click here for further soccer headlines www.bobdunning.net