One of the best moments of Saturday afternoon was seeing a certain Sir Trevor Brooking sitting in the London Stadium director’s box demonstrating all the dignity for which he is so loved and regarded.
With sound and fury blowing around the club after the sale of Grady Diangana, and Mark Noble’s highly unusual response, it was reassuring to see the calm and collected Sir Trev reminding us of better and more dignified times.
I have no doubt that he has a strong view on the sale one way or another but legends become legends on the back of demonstrating a certain etiquette.
It’s no coincidence that such as Sir Trev, Bonzo, Parkesy, and Dev, for example, don’t do social media for, whilst their views are worth more than most, they are not guys who get in your face and demand to be heard.
They are products of another time and place – a period when football created its rows but never crossed into areas where some crazily threaten to “do” each other as things get totally out of hand.
It would have been easy for Sir Trev or any of the others to weigh in with an opinion or ten but it is his and their way to chose not to.
Whatever yours, mine, Mark’s, the board’s, players’ or anyone else’s view of Grady Diangana departure, for me Sir Trevor is the role model showing us all how to behave.
All the while he and others show their love for the club in the right way I will continue to rest easy.
You have reached a new low –
Sir Trevor is one of the all time greats and was the epitome of all that is good about football. Having had the good fortune of meeting the man a couple of times and taken part in one of his football summer classes his status as a true gent is more than merited.
For you to take the moral high ground based on the fact he hasn’t commented on the complete shambles that is our great club or condemn those thieving, lieing parasitic vermin that GSB are, we all should is beyond the pale even for you, Hugh.
Your response is entirely unacceptable given that you have no idea how I feel on this issue or any other. it was in praise of Trevor and you are history because of your hatred of what you believe my attitude to be . I have no love for this board believe it or not whatever you may or may not think. I am a news gatherer and do not allow your kind of mindset of hatred to get in the way of doing that.
And believe it or not I know him well. He has been a columnist for me and I have been his ghost writer. He understands the respect I have for him. Go and use someone else for your rage therapy
I trust you are not suggesting Hugh that we should just suck it up and accept the lies and false promises that have been the hallmark of G&S’s ownership of West Ham. I admire Brooking a lot but silence and abject acceptance is not something I would ever advocate when you can see the destruction of all that is good about West Ham happening in front of your eyes. It was very telling for me that Noble should speak up; he’s had years of G&S and their ineptitude and lies to endure and obviously this was the straw that broke the camels back. I thought his comments were controlled but very telling. Tell me why we aren’t challenging the club over their skint MO for this season as it is pure bs to me? The sooner they are gone the better, as a club we are close to all out civil war and tell me who is going to want to join that?
I think the article speaks for itself. I will enter no arguments with anybody. It says what it says. It was about Brooking who actually didn’t need to turn up at all
I get that more now Hugh but can you also see how it might come across as “time to shut up” other than about the great man given the current circumstances and environment?
Only by those who want to use me as their rage therapist. It was how it struck me. I know TB. He is a fine man who keeps his peace. Good on him – such a change from the loudmouths on here and elsewhere. I’m in the Terry Westley school on Diangana. Could be a very bad move, could be nothing. Time will tell. I respect the fact that others see it differently. Should he have spoken out so publicly. Not sure about that. The point is TB could have made his point as effectively by staying away for once. He didn’t and that spoke to me.
I.m no longer here to comment – there are enough doing that. If they sell fine. if they don’t we’ll have to get on with it. End of.
Couldn’t agree more with this article. Sir Trev and Billy Bonds, as well as one or two other older ex-players like Phil Parkes, in my view, are all that’s left of “the Club” these days. As for the rest of it, GSB can keep it (and, of course, try to sell it to bigger fools for several hundreds of millions of pounds).
Silent dig at the owners, or?
A quieter dig would have been NOT to be there because he ALWAYS attends
Hugh, there are more reports coming out in the main stream media that Diang was sold against Moyes wishes.
Could Claret and Hugh look into this and maybe do a story on it?
Sir Trev will always be a legend. I can still remember being in the TV room at the campsite as a kid, watching that header go in – every person bar 1 wanted the hammers to win simply as we were the underdogs, and I guess they had no love for Arsenal 🙂 Anyway, great memories – I think Nobes will reach that pinnacle too as irrespective of the owners, he is WHU through and through.
I’d happily do a blog on it if you’d let me?
Hi JK. There’s also been a report he will walk before the first game which we have checked out – NOT WITH THE BOARD – and BEEN told it is utter tripe. THERE’S LOADS OF STUFF RE MOYES AND DIANG but unless it can be proved we can’t write for legal reasons. Again I’ve been told it’s nonsense but who knows????
They are products of another time and place – a period when football created its rows but never crossed into areas where some crazily threaten to “do” each other as things get totally out of hand.
Your words not mine, copied directly from the piece above.
For heaven’s sake, are you seriously suggesting the 70’s and 80’s , when the greats you mention we’re at the peak of their powers, were a gentler time. Don’t you remember football specials being wrecked and people being beaten up simply because they supported a different team to the mob responsible ? .