Why I don't like Johnnie Jackson

[Chris]

We had a very good player on our hands when we signed Johnnie Jackson. I thought it was a brilliant signing, and I believe his time with us could have been better had he managed to settle in Nottingham.

However, I overheard comments he made about Notts, Nottingham, and other matters during a meeting at my former workplace.

The media reported that he couldn't settle with his family in Nottingham, but the truth is he saw signing for us as a step back in his career. He believed he was bigger than Notts County and had already made efforts to leave, but we would only allow him to go out on loan at first.

Professional players sometimes come with attitudes, and while you could easily forgive a young player for being ambitious, what I heard from him that day has been something I found difficult to forget. I don't dislike him; I hate him. Any player who believes Notts would be a good move, only to become two-faced and feel entitled to play at a higher level, doesn't deserve respect. He didn't like fighting for his place, and while I don't particularly care if he hated Nottingham, disrespecting Notts County really angered me.

[liampie]

i felt disappointed but with the explanation at the time, i did feel it made sense for his family but if he used them as an excuse. then it makes he seem less honourable in his move back to london and that he might have thought the munto takeover might land him in favour with other clubs. did we get anything from charlton for him?

[upthepies]

He suffered several injuries that season, but he probably thought his performances would attract the attention of other clubs because of Munto. What surprises me is how Sol Campbell gets criticised for speaking out about the Munto saga, as he was wise to recognise the deception behind it all. Yet Johnnie Jackson is respected; it's not hard to settle in. While I understand it could be challenging, it’s not like many of the Geordie players we’ve had, and London isn’t that far from Nottingham.

[Robbie]

At the end of the day he just played around half the league games in the 2009/10 season. He was either injured or loaned out.

He wasn't a major player in that promotion year. For me he was a player mostly seen on the sidelines for Notts, and to sum up it really did not work out for him while he was at Meadow Lane.

[menzinho]

The problem with the Munto season was that it was always going to attract those types of players. You get to drop down a league(s), play easier opposition (so yes you will look a better player) and you get paid more, quite a lot more as was the supposed case at Notts!

In a way the whole Sol Campbell saga probably put a stop to anymore players just coming for the money. But I agree with @upthepies, it is funny how Sol got all the criticism because he was essentially the first one to figure out all was not as it seemed. I guess us as fans just didn’t want to hear it…

[DangerousSausage]

1 hour ago, menzinho said:

I guess us as fans just didn’t want to hear it…

I think that's it in a nutshell. I remember that Guardian columnist who was onto Munto from the start getting dog's abuse as well. His "crime" was to shine a light on the project we'd all invested so much hope in. But a player leaving because he "can't settle"? Happens all the time, shame but cheerio.

Football is probably full of characters who think they're bigger than the clubs they're at, especially since many were now coached at academies of major clubs and told they were the next big thing before ending up at Crinkly Bottom Rangers AFC.