twofootedtackle.com

twofootedtackle.com’s My Favourite XI series continues, with Mirror Football columnist and head honcho from the Football Pubcast Simon Head giving us his all-time eleven. Anybody who is a regular at a certain Kent club might recognise a few names here.

Those of you who know me, or follow my twitter feed, will know that I’m a lifelong Gillingham fan, and my XI features a smattering of the players I loved watching at Priestfield down the years. Chuck in a couple of England legends and some players from my all-time favourite international team and you’ve got my dream side. There’s even a packed subs bench.

But while the players in my squad may have operated at vastly different levels of the game, they’re all players who I look up to. Here’s my Favourite XI.

Previous Favourite XI: Chris Nee
Next Favourite XI: Chris Mann

Goalkeeper: Jason Brown (Gillingham - now at Blackburn)

Picking a keeper was a really difficult choice. Do I pick the best I’ve ever seen, Peter Schmeichel, a club legend, Jim Stannard, or my favourite England keeper, David Seaman? In the end I went for my all-time favourite keeper at Gillingham, Jason Brown. He fast became a crowd favourite at Gillingham and, despite his stature (he’s shorter than average for a keeper) he went on to become one of the club’s best ever custodians. He left us on good terms, to try his luck in the Premier League at Blackburn, but has been forced to operate as a backup keeper for most of his time there. His talent is being wasted at the moment and I’d love to see him at a Championship or League One club (or even back with us) doing what he does best.

Right-back: Mark Saunders (Gillingham - Retired)

“Saundo” was a centre midfielder by trade, but he played in almost every position for Gillingham, so I’ve made a place for him in my side at right back. He was the hardest, most committed player I’ve ever seen live. And considering I watched Andy Hessenthaler (more of whom later) for a decade, that’s some statement. He suffered the most sickening injury I’ve seen, with a horrific broken leg against Preston in 2004. I remember the sound of the break vividly, it was like a gunshot and it sent chills down the spines of everyone in the ground that day. Yet when he was stretchered off, clearly in agony, he managed to raise a defiant thumbs-up to the crowd, who were giving him a standing ovation. That epitomised his spirit as a player, and demonstrated why he was loved by the fans at Gillingham. If you could take one player and bottle their passion and commitment, you’d not find a better donor than Saunders.

Left back: Stuart Pearce (England - Retired)

My hero as a youngster, I used to play against kids two years older than me, so I needed to toughen up quickly, and watching Psycho in action helped me do that. He never backed down and he wore his shirt with pride, for club and country. And for England there was no prouder, or more committed player. If only today’s internationals had a fraction of Pearce’s desire at times.

Centre back: Adrian Pennock (Gillingham - Retired)

He had his own chant, “You only score own goals!” but we loved Pennock at Gillingham. Was told by Mel Machin and Bournemouth that he’d never play again and was cast onto the footballing scrapheap. But we took a gamble on him and he went on to play 169 games for the Gills, skippering us to victory at Wembley as we won promotion to the Championship. A top man, a great defender, and proof that good things happen to good people as long as you never give up.

Centre back: Guy Butters (Gillingham - Retired)

Playing against Chelsea in the cup, former World Footballer of the Year George Weah knocked the ball past Butters, who blocked him off with his sizable arse and saw the ball back to the keeper. As they jogged back upfield together, Butters turned to Weah and said “Don’t even try to out-pace me, son.” Butters was a formidable defender, with a wand of a left foot and was one of the real characters of Gillingham’s great side of 1999-2000. Initially dropped, against the fans’ wishes, by Peter Taylor, Butters knuckled down and became a mainstay in the side.

Right wing: Matty Jarvis (Gillingham - now at Wolves)

I’ve included Matty to get a current player in the XI, and he’s in on merit, too. Whenever he got the ball, the crowd were on the edge of their seats. The former Gills youth product had blistering pace, great finishing ability and a real work ethic that marked him out as a potential star of the future while he was with us. He got the big move he deserved, joining Wolves and he’s kicked on superbly since and, in my view at least, deserves an England cap for his performances in the Premier League. On top of being a cracking player and one that excites fans, he’s a quiet, modest lad with it. While some players in the Premier League are criticised for their excesses and big-time Charlie attitudes, Matty appears to have stayed grounded, just like he was at Gillingham. I wish “Jarvo” every success.

Left wing: Eder (Brazil ’82 - Retired)

OK, he couldn’t defend, he was lazy and he sometimes went missing when his team really needed him, but when he was in the mood, Eder was unplayable. Witness his goals for Brazil in 1982. His flick up and volley against the USSR, his sublime chip against Scotland and his unbelievable 40-yard free kick against Argentina that nearly broke the goal frame were all examples of the flamboyance and brilliance of Brazil’s number 11. He was the epitome of that Brazilian side. He was spectacular, almost for the sake of it. Even simple passes were completed with a flourish. Why did he play like that? Because he could. And that’s why I loved him.

Centre-midfield: Zico (Brazil ’82 - Retired)

Brazil’s number ten from the 1982 and 1986 World Cups was my inspiration as a teenager. I used to watch Zico’s World Cup performances for Brazil over and over again. His vision was astonishing, his passing was brilliant and his dead-ball delivery was simply brilliant. Everything he did, from a simple pass, to a quick turn, to a bicycle kick, was performed with near-perfect technique. Arthur Antunes de Coimbra, to give him his full name, was favourite player of all time.

Centre-midfield: Andy Hessenthaler (Gillingham - Retired)

I was going to pick Hess anyway, but he’d also balance out the middle of my midfield perfectly. Hessenthaler’s energy and commitment would be the perfect foil to Zico’s flair. Hessenthaler was only five foot seven, but he punched way above his weight. A late bloomer in the game, he continued past his 40th year, and is rightly revered as my club’s number one legend. A born leader, Hess would be my skipper.

Striker: Robert Taylor (Gillingham - Retired)

When he arrived at Gillingham, overweight and cumbersome, nobody realised what an incredible talent we’d signed from Brentford. He took a while to get going, but a last-minute flying header to sink Fulham made him an instant hero and “Super Bob” was born. The following season he produced the best display of finishing I’ve ever seen at Priestfield Stadium. I told my dad he had to come with me to watch this guy in action. He’d scored a hat-trick the previous weekend. He came off the bench, scored another hat-trick, all from outside the area, and left my dad speechless. He was our Matt Le Tissier - the best player I’ve seen in the blue and black of Gillingham.

Striker: Alan Shearer (England - Retired)

As a pundit he might be rather dull, but as a player Shearer was simply immense. A monster of a centre forward for Southampton, Blackburn and then Newcastle, Shearer was simply the most complete centre forward England have had in my lifetime. His stunning volley for Newcastle against Everton remains one of the Premier League’s best goals of all-time, while his brilliant finish against Holland in Euro ’96, capping off a memorable team move, is one of my favourite England goals.

Substitutes

John Hodge (Gillingham - Retired)

Hodgey was invariably useless whenever we started him at Gillingham, but the pint-sized winger was simply brilliant coming off the bench against tired defences. I lost count of the number of times we were toiling away in closely-fought games, calling to “Get Hodgey on!” Our manager at the time, Tony Pulis usually responded and Hodgey almost always delivered. Loved a laugh and a joke too. He played with a smile on his face, and he could play a bit, too.

Socrates (Brazil ’82 - Retired)

I love the fact the the great Socrates has been kept out of the side by Andy Hessenthaler, but that’s the truth of the matter. The languid bearded wonder was utter class, and the sort of player you’d pay your money to turn up and watch play.

Paul Gascoigne (England - Retired)

Football’s all about excitement and spontaneity and, when Gazza was playing for England, we had both in spades. Every time he got the ball you expected something special to happen, and, as with the other England internationals on the list, his commitment and dedication to the cause was clear for all to see. At Italia ’90 he may well have been the best player in the world. Sadly injury and personal problems have meant highlights were few and far between after that semi-final in Turin, and I hope he can turn his life around and enjoy a happy and healthy retirement. Seeing him ridiculed in the press saddened me deeply as, in my eyes at least, Gazza is a bona-fide national treasure. I just hope his story doesn’t end in tragic fashion, as many fear it might.

Carl Asaba (Gillingham - Retired)

While Robert Taylor was the battering ram of the Gills strikeforce in the late 90s, “Sarbs” was the twinkle-toed, yet still aggressive, strike partner. Just like Taylor, Asaba had an eye for the spectacular and one goal, scored from the touchline in monsoon-like conditions against Luton, sticks in the memory. Sadly he left us under a cloud following a row between his father (his agent) and Gills chairman Paul Scally, but when I went to watch the Gills in the late 90s, it was Asaba who I most looked forward to watching.

Andy Thomson (Gillingham - Retired)

I’ve reserved my final spot on the bench for the man who gave me the happiest moment of my football-supporting life, in at the end of the 1999-2000 season “Thommo” came off the bench to score a full-length diving header against Wigan and send Gillingham into the Championship in an epic playoff final at Wembley. Our win came just 12 months after we had our hearts ripped out by Manchester City in the same game. I’ve only cried at a football match once and, thanks to Andy Thomson, they were tears of joy.

Simon Head runs the Football Pubcast and is a columnist for Mirror Football. You can follow him on Twitter at @simonhead.

Tags: Alan Shearer, Andy Hessenthaler, Gillingham, Paul Gascoigne, Socrates, Stuart Pearce, Zico