Dream Team - The Centre halves!

[asteener1867]

Bougherra (sp) he looked the deal as well....didn't stay long enough tho

[Mickjj]

5 hours ago, HOOTIE AND THE poo TU said:

Gone with Mick Lyons and Des Walker

 

Mick Lyons would always put his head where others wouldn't put their feet

 

And with Des mopping up behind him, they'd have been a formidable pair

 

If my father was still alive, he'd swear that Peter Swann was better than Bobby Moore

It would have been Jack Charlton who would never have got an England cap if Swan had still been playing.

[Lord Snooty]

16 minutes ago, MoorfOwl said:

When you speak of central defenders, the first name to mind for me is always going to be Peter Swan. Most people, sadly, remember him for the betting scandal, but I remember simply the best centre half in England. He’d played 19 consecutive England games up to May 1962 before missing out on the 1962 World Cup after suffering first tonsillitis and then dysentery. I can’t say I actually remember Peter playing in a 4-4-2 for Wednesday; the idea that you needed a second centre half to help him out would have been thought of as ridiculously superfluous, though England were moving over to the more defensive formation at that time.

 

I don’t want to rake over matters best left to history, but let me say in passing I do hope today’s young people, who live in an era of millionaire footballers, don’t judge too harshly those whose careers spanned the 1961 ending of the £20 per week maximum wage (reduced to £17 in the offseason) and the 1963 ending of the retain-and-transfer system.

 

Not listed in the poll, but I’d like to give an honourable mention to Ralph O’Donnell, who would also have been likely to reach the top if he’d been full time. For most teams, the absence of a player of Swan’s class would have represented a severe weakening, but I never recall anyone expressing concern that Ralph was not a more than accomplished deputy. He himself played 170 games for Wednesday before leaving in 1964, and he scored three goals, which was three more than Swanny!

 

Probably the first central defensive pairing I saw for The Owls would have been Vic Mobley and Gerry Young, though I think those more recent players who grew up with the system probably understood it best. My chosen pairing belong to different generations, but both at their peak were sheer class – Des Walker and Glenn Loovens.

 

That's a smashing post. Just the sort of thing I've been hoping we can draw out with these threads. 

Thank you

[HOOTIE AND THE SHIT TU]

3 minutes ago, Mickjj said:

It would have been Jack Charlton who would never have got an England cap if Swan had still been playing.

I know Jack Charlton benefitted

 

But my father always swore Swann was better than Bobby Moore

[S36 OWL]

50 minutes ago, Holmowl said:

 

I recall a famous ex-pro (Merson?) saying that Des let you know he was there too. 

 

Difference being you you could run away from Lyons. Des would always catch you....then kick you. 

 

Mick was usually so close to the attacker , he would be on his backside before he had chance to turn Mick .

[Utah Owl]

5 hours ago, HOOTIE AND THE poo TU said:

Gone with Mick Lyons and Des Walker

 

Mick Lyons would always put his head where others wouldn't put their feet

 

And with Des mopping up behind him, they'd have been a formidable pair

 

If my father was still alive, he'd swear that Peter Swann was better than Bobby Moore

Plus add Mick's leadership abilities as captain.

 

What an awesome pairing!

[asteener1867]

Mention for Coughlan...The only Wednesday centre half that has had me in stitches on the Kop....

He went up for a header...got his head split open.. tried to take his shirt off cos it was covered in blood while at the same time trying to tackle the right  winger..

cue

Coughlan, shirt over head, covered in blood, blindly running towards where he thought the winger "Might" be..and wildly kicking...

I was helpless.............

Edited May 4, 2019 by asteener1867

[Kevan]

Peter Swan for me, along with Des Walker.  Swan was so commanding in the air and a brilliant tackler.  To have him in a pair with Des Walker, would be a perfect combination of power and pace.  Not many would get past them.

[nevthelodgemoorowl]

The Skulls are numb, Peter Swan can't make our second team two nutters even voted for Bromby and Wood 

[asteener1867]

7 minutes ago, nevthelodgemoorowl said:

The Skulls are numb, Peter Swan can't make our second team two nutters even voted for Bromby and Wood 

I suppose its what you have seen mate....I can only remember Swans comeback in the short shorts when we wore stripes again...........

I had seen him before, but can hardly remember...

Edited May 4, 2019 by asteener1867

[alan48]

Swan and Walker - 2 immaculate England players !

[daveyboy66]

Swan for me as well alongside Des Walker...Swan was great in the air and read the game as well as anyone of that era. With Des's pace alongside him it would be a nightmare for attackers to play against. I always thought that Emerson Thome was a gifted centre half as anyone who has played at the back with us since Swanny

[nevthelodgemoorowl]

2 minutes ago, asteener1867 said:

I suppose its what you have seen mate....I can only remember Swans comeback in the short shorts when we wore stripes again...........

I had seen him before, but can hardly remember...

True but Swan in that Fulham 3-0 win was better than Wood or Bromby. He went to Bury and had two seasons there where he was hero worshipped. Just for good measure Payer manager of the FA Amateur Cup or FA Vase the following year.

[nevthelodgemoorowl]

Had he been given the chance by the nutter from the River Dee, Ian Knight may have challenged my two incumbents. Knight was more in the mould of the new breed along with Thom and Bougera.

[nevthelodgemoorowl]

Snoots this is well skewed it should be on vote for each of our living years .'. my Swan vote x 68

[Lord Snooty]

Des looks to have romped into the side in the sweeping role but it looks like a real battle for the second spot looks to be between Pearson and Lyons as the aerial dominator!

[cognacbarnowl]

 

 

I never saw Swanny play, so it's a Pearson, Walker combo for me. That said, Gerry Young was close to being in there as I thought he was an outstanding defender for us and also chipped in with his share of goals. 

 

The one really abiding memory of one of our centre halves though lies with big Sam Ellis. It was in the Keegan, Scunny cup match when Sam soared like an eagle and sent a thumping header into the back of the net, OUR NET FFS   Come to think of it that might have been the only goal he ever scored in Wednesday colours. I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong 

[HOOTIE AND THE SHIT TU]

57 minutes ago, Lord Snooty said:

Des looks to have romped into the side in the sweeping role but it looks like a real battle for the second spot looks to be between Pearson and Lyons as the aerial dominator!

I wouldn't mind Pearson getting in, he was a great defender

 

But Mick Lyons was better

[Blatter]

I went for a a young Peter Swan at the time he was an England centre half paired with a more experienced Mike Lyons who would also be my captain.

 

Memories of Swan great tackler and great header of the ball, favourite moment Swanny taking the ball off Derek Pace (just as he was about to win a header) in a local derby. Just brushed the top of his head with his boot to great cheers from us all.

 

Memories of Lyons are many but his ploy of going up front alongside the forwards in games and creating chaos for the opposition is my favourite.

[Wizzard1867]

Pearson and Shirliff. The game may have changed since then, but we always looked solid enough at the back with these two, and they were an attacking threat too. I don't remember a time since then other than when we had Reda and Llera in League One were we always liked safe at the back and a danger at set pieces going forward. Bruce will sort this out next season. Iorfa, Palmer and Hector need signing up again.