Players your dad never rated

[1974ddr]

Following on from another thread, treibeis and others referred to their fathers' passion for Tom Finney over Stan Matthews. 'Not fit to lace Finney's boots' was a phrase my father often used in reference to Matthews too, and I wondered who else might have been derided by OTFers fathers in later years?
To start with, my old man never rated fifties Villa defender Dickie Dorsett ('a million', whatever that meant) or centre forward Dave Walsh, though in the latter case I think that was basically because he replaced my dad's all time idol, Trefor Ford. Any more suggestions?

[NickSTFU]

Players your dad never rated

Steve Biggins.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Biggins

Always referred to him as a "fanny"

[Jah Womble]

Players your dad never rated

My old man didn't rate Gordon Banks at all. Said his distribution was 'awful'. Despite my young protestations, he was vindicated on this argument twice in as many matches during 1972.

Gil Merrick, apparently, was 'twice the 'keeper Banks could ever be'.

[garcia]

Players your dad never rated

my dad knows nothing about football, but he always hated niall quinn. "he's a stick" was his usual comment.

[Gangster Octopus]

Players your dad never rated

All of them. My father hated football...

[NHH]

Players your dad never rated

My Dad doesn't rate either Neville brother. Never understood why.

[David Agnew]

Players your dad never rated

Not so much didn't rate, but my dad hated Cliff Jones, because he was the first diver he ever saw.

He reckoned Ray Crawford and Paul Mariner were overrated because their goals used to go in off various body parts, which therefore made them lucky, rather than instinctive.

[Toby Gymshorts]

Players your dad never rated

Basically every player who isn't Malcolm Macdonald.

[Theodore]

Players your dad never rated

Jimmy Hill - "smug bugger"

[Giggler]

Players your dad never rated

Phil Parkinson once took it upon himself in the gents under the Main Stand to remonstrate with my old man about why he kept hurling abuse at him. He hadn't been.

My uncle, who's the spitting image of my dad, had been though.

[nmrfox]

Players your dad never rated

Allan "lazy bugger" Clarke was hated by my dad. Caused in no small part by the fact that he replaced Frank Large, a typically old fashioned bludgeoning centre-forward, who my dad thought was brilliant.

[Cesar Rodriguez]

Players your dad never rated

Mark Hateley.

[Hot Orange]

Players your dad never rated

There was a lot of antipathy towards Kevin Keegan in my house (mainly instigated by my mum, come to think of it). I think he was perceived as a little bit self-important. The scornful tutting when he cocked up that header against Spain in the 82 World Cup was deafening.

[Sits]

Players your dad never rated

My Dad didn't like "flashy" players like Stan Bowles or Rodney Marsh.

He preferred a "proper" player like Steve Heighway or Trevor Brooking.

He said Peter Osgood was a "diver".

[longeared]

Players your dad never rated

Another one for Gordon Banks, although that may have been more because he kept Ron Springett out the England team.

Later, he had a real bugbear about Viv Anderson at Wednesday. He thought he was slow, couldn't pass, couldn't head, didn't clear the ball effectively and generally past his best. His dislike of him reached such levels he refused to even applaud Viv's occasional goals.

[StanBowles]

Players your dad never rated

That I can remember -
Tony Cascarino, Neil Shipperley, Robert Fleck, and Bernard Lambourde. Particularly Bernard Lambourde.

[StanBowles]

Players your dad never rated

Oh, and another for Gordon Banks - he felt he was overrated and again, 'smug'. Though this is entirely due to his love of Peter Bonetti.

[blameless]

Players your dad never rated

It's not that he doesn't rate him at all, but my dad won't hear of Diego Maradona being included in the argument for best player of all time.

Oddly enough, Gordon Banks was the last England goalkeeper my dad did rate.

[Amor de Cosmos]

Players your dad never rated

Anyone who played for any club south of Derbyshire, but especially a London team. Therefore Danny Blanchflower was always a "mouthy git" and Bobby Moore "too pretty to be a proper footballer." For some reason he also had it in for all Everton players — "Dirty buggers Everton."

[Mr Beast]

Players your dad never rated

My Dad had a particular dislike for Man Utd winger Gordon Hill - and told him so personally at Portman Road on several occasions.

[laverte]

Players your dad never rated

Georges Bereta, guilty of two unpardonable sins: he was a "communist", and he could only kick with one foot.

[torres]

Players your dad never rated

Toby Gymshorts wrote: Basically every player who isn't Malcolm Macdonald.

The only player I ever knew who would be delighted to see his team lose 4-3 as long as he got a hat-trick.

[Toby Gymshorts]

Players your dad never rated

Dad said pretty much the same thing. Didn't stop him comparing every single player - centre forwards especially, of course - to him.

[torres]

Players your dad never rated

A hat-trick on his Newcastle home debut against Liverpool didn't endear him to me in the first place but his two goals claimed in the 1978 FA Cup Semi-Final v Orient were fuckin outrageous, they were missing by miles.

[Toby Gymshorts]

Players your dad never rated

How often do you reckon I've heard about that debut?