Beckford scored 31 goals (25 League) that season but somehow he only seems to get credit for one of them. Just seems strange how the other 24 League goals didn't seem to contribute to our final League position...well that's according to some/one on here. The rest of us know that if he'd stayed we would have gained back to back promotions and have been in the PL years ago. It's fine to feel aggrieved that he didn't give us another year or two but the lad had come from non-league and took the decision to secure his financial future. Rightly so in my opinion as Bates took care of no one except himself. If he'd been offered decent money 2 years previously I've no doubt he would have signed a long term deal. Bates raped and pillaged us for years and Beckford was one of the few to get the better of him...fair play to the lad.
Bring it on. I won't be turned by the propaganda of the loony left/PC brigade/Black Panther saluting eejits..
Listen Jonny, I know you live in a world of pink fluffy clouds and everyone says have a nice day, but IMO he became big headed, sulked, didn't try in games and engineered a move in the end(if my memory serves me right).
Very true Shako, scored a lot of league 1 goals,well 1 less than Billy Paynter tells you a lot. His love of Leeds seemed to increase when he came back with other clubs, after he had seen the grass on the other side.
Some remember how he lost interest after he signed a pre contract with Everton, while others were too busy eating prawn sandwiches to notice.
Hello from my pink fluffy cloud this fine Friday, I hope you too are having a nice day, While I agree with most of what you have written, how would you react after the chairman offered you the same deal you signed from a non-league club as an unproven player?
I would take a step back and think how lucky I was to be a professional footballer, how I was getting well paid for kicking a ball around a grass pitch and not having to work 10 hour night shifts or dodging bullets from Isis.
The productive life of a professional footballer is very short. In his situation, being a proven goal scorer and match winner, who was only offered the same deal as he got as an unknown non-league player, the overwhelming majority would have asked someone, likely his agent, if he could do better. To believe otherwise is not realistic, in my opinion.
That used to be a very stout argument (or excuse), Jonny. Not now. Not now that 16yo kids in our league regularly earn, on average, 5x the national average wage whilst still in Academies. Not now when you don't have to retire at 30. Not now when a broken leg no longer routinely ends your career, as with many other injuries. However, to be balanced, I personally have no objection in principle to someone moving on for more money, opportunity or whatever - I just don't buy this 'short career' nonsense any more.
Guess who was in the pavilion pre game, yes king Beckford himself,and he admitted he didn't like to work hard for the team, in fact the word he used was hated it.He said Bamford does all the things he hated doing well.
I could not give a flying **** how short a footballers privileged life is, get a real job when your career ends. The fact is that he thought he was better than he actually was.