Sven, me and Notts County’s con artists

Call from ex-England manager promised the world but all I saw was a broken window

HE WAS 34 years old, without a club and worrying that his playing days were over. His mobile phone rang. He didn’t immediately recognise the voice at the other end.
“Hello?†The caller was his former England manager Sven-Göran Eriksson, who had become director of football at lowly Notts County. There were reports a “shedload†of money would be poured into “The Project†at the fourth-tier club.
Eriksson told Campbell he was needed. The patter was perfectly pitched. “Sol, I want you to join us. There is money to help build the oldest club in the Football League to be the best. You would lead the line in helping to achieve our dreams. This is a fantastic opportunity.†Words to that effect.

Campbell liked and trusted Eriksson, having enjoyed playing under the Swede for England. Yes, this could be good, he thought. “I’ll call you in a week,†Eriksson said, “and see how you feel.†He called again, repeating what he had said; nothing too pushy, just carefully chosen words. Before Campbell could even ask a question Eriksson ended the call, saying he would call the following week.

He does, again on the same day, the same hour. This time Campbell is told the two men behind the club who sorted Eriksson’s deal will drive to London for a meeting. “They are very good and will be very helpful in explaining what is planned,†Eriksson says. “It will be our greatest achievement and we will do it together, Sol.†His pitch is near-perfect.

CAMPBELL arranges to meet the two men from Notts County at his local Italian, La Delizia, in Chelsea. First Nathan Willett and then Russell King shook his hand. King had a walking stick and something of a squint; the type that makes you wonder which of the two eyes is the one looking at you. He leads the conversation and quickly shows he can multitask; ordering some drink while telling Campbell their dream of making the oldest club in the league the new powerhouse of football. How they bought the club from the supporters’ trust and intended to invest a fortune.
Willett and King talked of seeing Campbell not just as a player; they saw him as someone who could one day run Notts County, be the manager, do whatever he liked. “Play for two years and in this time we can apply for your coaching badges. Then it will be for you to build the team. Don’t forget, we have the money. Not just millions but billions!â€

Within 10 days Campbell had driven to Nottingham to meet Eriksson face to face. When he walked into the stadium he was struck by the quality of the pitch and stands. The dressing rooms, though, needed work, and a lot of it. No matter, with all the money it would be done, probably within weeks of signing.

He stayed at Hart’s Hotel in the city. Eriksson, Willett and King, with for the first time Peter Trembling, the club’s chairman, were waiting for him next door in the restaurant.

They all spoke the same language of optimism: Trembling, the quietest of the quartet; Eriksson popping up with the occasional thought, mainly about football and the players the club were interested in, such as Benjani and Roberto Carlos, who had been mentioned earlier that day in all the papers.

“Promotion and the Premiership!†one of them toasted optimistically and they clinked glasses.

Campbell noticed Eriksson was a believer and part of the team. He raised his glass the highest.
The centre-half was going to sign. He had been seduced. The financial deal was agreed; a very good deal, a five-year contract. A bigger payday than Arsenal, more money than he had ever been paid before. Sign here! Mr Campbell, the future is bright. He signed.

“SO I got there and thought, OK, right. Where’s the money? It didn’t seem anything was going on. All was quiet, nothing moving forward.†Within days, while still excited, he started to feel uneasy. The big-name signings were not spoken of again. His suggestions had been ignored.

On his first visit to the ground Campbell had noticed a broken window. A small matter, you would think, but something that could become more irritating the longer it went unrepaired. When he first saw it he looked round from left to right, from right to left, as if he were the guilty party. It was on the stairway, so it was difficult to miss. At the end of his first week it was still cracked. The rain was coming down on this particular day and he could see the splashes falling through the crack on to the stairwell.

Strange, Campbell thought. They’ll spend money on a hospitality room to entertain their guests but they won’t fix a broken window . . .

This feeling of unease was not helped by a visit to London, where he ran into two friends who advised him to be careful. “I’ve looked into them, they aren’t honest,†one said. Campbell was slowly waking up from his dream. “It was dawning on me that I was being a mug,†he says.

His first game for Notts County is at Morecambe in September 2009. They lose 2-1. As Sol is having a shower after the game he goes into full panic mode. What am I doing here? I still haven’t been paid and I’m not sure I ever will be.

He was convinced he had been conned. He called Eriksson early that evening. “What’s going on? Nothing is happening!â€

The director of football was still toeing the company line. “Give it time. Everything will be OK. I’m making headway with a few players . . .â€

Campbell decided to give the owners one more opportunity to prove their intentions. At the training ground a few days later he went straight to King and Willett’s office.

It was small and messy. Half-opened files and books were piled in no particular order. Each man was on the phone, leaning back in his chair. One was moaning with more spirit than usual while the other voice was cursing. They finished their calls simultaneously.

Campbell wanted to hear from King and Willett that everything was about to change and that new players were joining at the end of the week. But, after a mere five minutes, he realised the truth: there was nothing. He warned them before he signed that if money wasn’t forthcoming he wanted to be allowed to walk.

“Tell me . . .†he pleaded, “tell me everything is going to be all right.†Again, there was nothing. The time of having that reverential look on their faces was in the past. “I always remember their empty eyes,†Campbell says. The relationship was over. They all knew. What was the point of prolonging the pain? They hadn’t fulfilled their promises and Campbell now knew they couldn’t.

Strange, once you recognise a con, everything seems so obvious. The hesitation in the voice, the softer tone, the way they want to make you feel special, the way they communicated. The ever-so-slight touch of the elbow in greeting, giving you that sense of reassurance. The wide-awake smiles and further hand movements, aimed at befriending you.

He left the office without a farewell handshake. What was the point? He was still in his tracksuit. His immediate thought was: “Shall I have a shower or shall I go straight back to the hotel and do it there?†He chose the hotel.

He needed to be out of Notts County, out of Nottingham.

When he walks down the stairwell he feels a breath of wind touch his face.
He stops and looks up. He sees flecks of light squeezing through a dull autumn sky. It’s the cracked window. It had still not been fixed. As he leaves the ground he passes what appears to be an odd-job man. “Fix the f****** window, will you?†The man looks startled.

“It’s on the landing of the first stairway.â€

Eriksson never picked up the phone or wrote to apologise to Campbell, to say that he just may have made a mistake.
 

http://www.breakingnews.ie/sport/soccer/notts-county-fans-sing-hilarious-songs-as-they-get-thrashed-624692.html

Have to laugh....

i couldn't make the game today but I've heard good things about his debut. Hopefully he will score and that will upset the red half of the trent. 

Mine are as follows;

Millmoor

Don Valley Stadium

Old Show Ground
Fellows Park
Feethams
Highbury
Maine Road
Belle Vue
Boothferry Park
Somerton Park
County Ground (Northampton)
Baseball Ground
Filbert Street
Springfield Park
Layer Road
Sealand Road
Saltergate
Plough Lane
Seamer Road (Scarborough)
Gay Meadow
Christie Park
Yes I know i'm old!!!!

So what do we all think of this one? I read this an was abit puzzled at first but I don't really know what to make of it.

See link Below:

• - Manchester United stars said to be involved in multi-billion pound takeover
  
• - The players may be used to front bid funded by oil-rich Qatari royal family
  
• - Consortium are hoping to purchase 90% stake from club's US owners
  
• - Joel and Avram Glazer are said to have lost interest in Manchester United
  
• - But the club says it has not yet had any formal approach about a takeover
  

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2590555/David-Beckham-Class-92-stars-2bn-takeover-Manchester-United-bankrolled-Arab-oil-cash.html

Welcome to a talented newcomer.I hope to see you around more @JayboyM

In this topic members can request help with setting up an avatar or even a signature, I'm quite happy to have a go at creating signatures because It's something I find pretty creative.

If you would like me to have a go at creating a signature, just mention in as much detail what you would like. For example Bart - Blue background with 'Notts Fan' on it and I will have a go.

With regards to avatars - Please include a picture within the comment below or alternatively you can e-mail me one. (  [email protected]  )

So, if you're reading this and would like some help, please just leave a short message and I'll get onto it.

PS. I've tagged some members who I thought might be interested.

@Freeman25 @Bob Wilson Anchorman @magpiejue @GrannyPie @Pies4u @Northants Pie @BradtheMiller @JC99 @anonypie @ivansneck @LBG123 @fergio79 @andy6025 @Ancientpie @mark notts @Sid @Norwellpie

Glen 'have faith literally' Hoddle new favourite along with yes sir whatever you say Sir Zola.

Christ (Sorry Glen) I wonder what all the PON community have been up to in previous lives with all these cursed injuries.

(For those not old enough google why he had to resign as England manager as a laughing stock.)

Hope this is in the right place.

>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XEXSw2mCRc

Nice to have you with us and posting @Beefsteak.Welcome to our site

Today was the first day of spring but to me seemed more like the first day of autumn and the forecast is for the weather to turn  colder Yes I know we've had quite mild weather over the last week or so but there doesn't seem to be any real pattern to the seasons any more.The old sayings like,February filldyke and March winds and April showers bring forth May flowers, don't apply any more as it appears to be wet and windy all the time. Is it just me?

What is the one line you remember from a movie? I'll start us off; 

"If you build it, they will come"  

Notts County vs Colchester United this Saturday night - 3:00pm KO, will you be in attendance? How many travelling Colchester United fans do you think will make the trip? Our own attendance?

For opinions on the game please visit - Match Thread

It's confession time! Let PoN know..

Managed to get free wifi in this pub, ordered a pint of Wadsworth Bishops Tipple and thought of you @super_ram.

Now, I'm a very eclectic person, I love most kinds of music genres, but my favourite, for the sheer buzz it gives you, is trance music.

Now, I'm of a very unfortunate age with regards to the dance scene - the golden age of dance music was, in my opinion, between 1998 and 2003. Some absolutely brilliant tracks came out, some brilliant DJs were making music and club nights, and Ibiza was at its peak. And during this time, I was a mere child.

Then, in 2004, when I became 16 and could just about get into bars and clubs, dance music took a turn for the worse. Michael Gray - The Weekend, Uniting Nations - Out Of Touch, and Eric Prydz - Call On Me... all these were overly sexualised lumps of trash. Needless to say, trance music was as good as dead, dance music was in a coma, and other genres of music took over the mainstream.

Now, I didn't mind the hip-hop that was came out during that time, some quite good music came out. But come 2006 - incidentally the year I'd be going to university - and then the next big thing was indie. Dirty, stinking, loathsome, pathetic, dull, bland, boring indie music, played and sung by people who can barely play instruments, who look destitute, and who can't sing (Pete Doherty being within 100m of a microphone is a crime against music, him actually singing is a crime against humanity. Were all those people who lauded him being ironic?!).

Music that you couldn't dance to. Pretentious nitwits who were part of bands whose names began with "The". You even had "The The". Bleurgh. it was horrendous. This period of emo hair, skinny jeans and hipster torment coincided with my three years at uni. Thanks, fate!

Anywaaaay, long convoluted rant over... since about 2009, dance music has steadily been supping on vitamins and supplements and minerals and waking itself up from that five-year coma, and after a 2013 laden with amazing dance music, it looks like we're back to the good old days! Thank god!!!

Now... aside from wanting to know people's experiences with dance music - whether you're a 40-year-old who remembers the warehouse raves and acid house, or a 30-year-old who's done Ibiza in its heyday, or anything else, share your experiences - I'd also like you to get stuck in and share some of your favourite dance music videos!

Let's do this shizz folks! :D

Hello, I have finally decided to jump in and take part in this site.

I have supported Notts for a number of years, through thick and thin. I enjoy discussing Notts along with supporters at games and after the matches in the navi or other near by pubs. I hope this place can be just as enjoyable as that and thoughts can be shared freely, without keyboard warriors jumping in.

C'mon folks after this result and performance, it will be a tough one but please do choose. You don't have to have seen the game, you can vote from what you heard!

Please help us choose PoN's MotM...

http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/2022-world-cup-qatars-staging-3255565

Back handers,bribes,Who'd have guessed that!

Apologies as I forgot to mention that the next round takes place this Tuesday night as there is a full list of football league fixtures. Fingers crossed everyone sees this in time! @jurgenpie, @Canadian, @tonyhateley, @super_ram, @GrannyPie, @hissingdwarf, @Northants Pie, @Dan, @notts-joe - and everyone else I may not have mentioned

Tuesday night fixtures:
Millwall v Birmingham City

Queens Park Rangers v Wigan Athletic

Bristol City v Port Vale

Rotherham United v Brentford

Northampton Town v AFC Wimbledon

Plymouth Argyle v Exeter City

Tonight is the reverse fixture  of Rams October home game..That game was the first after Nigel Clough's shock sacking and also followed a game against you know who..Steve McClaren had been appointed as Rams manager but wasn't officially in charge.Rams were losing 4 - 1 at half time but fought back to earn a draw after Mc left the stands for the dressing room.I hope tonight isn't a case of  'after the Lord Mayors Show' (Same goes for Notts)

Gladbach 3-0 up at half time - check out the second half on ESPN

THE January transfer window rumour mill is linking former Stoke City star Jermaine Pennant with a shock move to Forest Green.

The 31-year-old free agent worked with Forest Green management duo Ady Pennock and Dave Kevan at his former club Stoke City and was believed to have been spotted at chairman Dale Vince’s Stroud-based Ecotricity headquarters today, Thursday. Pennant has vowed to start a new chapter in his career after being released by Stoke.

What's happened to his career? He could have done a job here, I noticed a couple of comments about some fans hoping he would. It seems he's on the burner, though unlike some he's got the talent worth saving if a manager can deal with his attitude/behaviour.

Thoughts? Surely this won't happen!!!

Welcome @MikeC.Is this a dual signing?Hope you enjoy your time with us.

Billy Davies and his staff have not turned up to training (so it looks like King Billy is going to be sacked) and reports say that ex Notts manager Neil Warnock will take over will ex Notts manager Keith Curle as his assistant. 

What do you all think to this?