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Alan Ball Born0000-00-00 |
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Bio Written by Monksie
Alan Ball was appointed as Manchester City manager after a difficult close season in 1995 when the club struggled to find a successor to Brian Horton. He came to Maine Road with a reputation for being unable to survive relegation with previous clubs Portsmouth and Exeter City, but could claim to have saved Southampton from the drop in the season just finished. A former England playing colleague of chairman Francis Lee, Ball was also the proud owner of a World Cup winner’s medal, having played in the memorable 1966 England win over West Germany.
His appointment was overshadowed by the arrival of Georgian midfielder Georgiou Kinkladze on the same July Friday afternoon, but Ball immediately arranged a meeting with the first team squad during their next pre-season fitness session at the University of Manchester sports facility in Fallowfield. As the players gathered round he proceeded to warn them as a group that he’d drank in better bars than them, danced in better clubs and earned more respect then they had; clearly not the uplifting speech required to raise morale for the new season ahead. At half-time during a friendly at Scarborough, Ball was clearly heard through an open window in the away dressing room berating every player with language which would not have been out of place on the roughest factory floor or back street garage.
To make matters even worse he was faced with an immediate injury crisis in the week before the season’s opening fixture, at home to Tottenham. He lost central defender Keith Curle and goalkeeper Tony Coton in training accidents and quickly signed former German international ‘keeper Eike Immel and Portsmouth centre-half Kit Symons to bolster the side. City drew 1-1 thanks to an Uwe Rösler equaliser in the baking Manchester heat but the watching capacity crowd were under no illusions as the Blues struggled to stay with a mediocre Spurs side. The club then embarked on its worst losing run in over fifty years, losing the next nine games on the trot to be firmly rooted to the bottom of the table. Further surgery to the squad was undertaken as Ball swapped popular striker Paul Walsh - the club’s second-top goalscorer the previous season - for Portsmouth’s Gerry Creaney in a move which only succeeded in angering the City support even more. Creaney did eventually score City’s consolation goal in a 3-1 defeat at Newcastle, in which Richard Edghill had been sent off.
Despite a 4-0 League Cup win over Wycombe Wanderers in which Ball fielded reserve goalkeeper Martyn Margetson as a second-half centre forward, the Blues went out at Liverpool by the same score in the next round. Three days later they returned to Anfield and this time lost 6-0. During his post-match interview Ball’s comment that he’d enjoyed the game only rubbed more salt into the supporters’ wounds, although what he actually meant was that he’d appreciated Liverpool’s performance so much that he felt his own team were powerless to stop the slaughter. This did not however prevent a sarcastic chant of “Alan Ball is a Football genius” accompanying City’s matches thereafter, although the game turned out to be the last defeat in over a month as the Blues, honouring their legendary ability to surprise when you least expect it, won four and drew one of their next five games to bizarrely earn Ball the Manager Of The Month award. Although a gritty rearguard action earned three points with a 1-0 win at Leeds in early December, the luckless Edghill suffered a serious knee injury which prematurely ended his season. True to form, City were hammered 4-1 at Middlesbrough despite taking an early lead courtesy of an amazing dribble and shot by Kinkladze.
City suffered defeats throughout the Christmas campaign, although icy weather robbed Ball of an early return to Southampton as the away fixture at the Dell was postponed. They struggled to beat West Ham - complete with 17-year-old debutant goalkeeper Ian Feuer - 2-1 on New Year’s Day and escaped an embarrassing F.A Cup exit by scraping a goalless draw at Leicester. Still marooned in the bottom three, releagtion remained on the cards although there was quick relief when City destroyed Leicester 5-1 in the Cup replay, including another 40-yeard dribble and missile of a shot from Kinkladze. It would not be his last.
By now Nigel Clough had been recruited from Liverpool for £2 million and ex-German international defender Michael Frontzeck arrived from Borussia Mönchengladbach. Ball also signed left-winger Martin “Buster” Philips from his previous club Exeter City, a player whom he had promised would eventually be Britain’s first £10 million player. City won their next two home games 2-1 against fellow relegation strugglers Q.P.R. and Southampton respectively. The latter victory came courtesy of two Kinkladze strikes which could not have been more different, the first being a simple tap-in but the second a good contender for the best goal ever scored - for or against - at Maine Road. Receiving the ball by the right-hand touchline and just inside the opposition’s half, the Georgian maestro set off on a run in which he beat several defenders before arriving just outside the six-yard line where he promptly sold ‘keeper Dave Beasant a dummy, forcing the ex-England man to commit himself before Kinkladze nonchalantly flipped the ball over the fallen ‘keeper and into the far corner of the net. As BBC Match of the Day’s commentator Jon champion exclaimed, “That’s mesmeric!”
Progress continued in the F.A. Cup although the fourth round tie at Coventry City was postponed twice due to more bad weather before the Blues were robbed of a Highfield Road win in the dying minutes. The replay - a 2-1 win courtesy of goals from Niall Quinn and Uwe Rösler - set up a mouth-watering fifth round tie at Manchester United the following weekend. Having lost their last five meetings with their local neighbours City started the game as rank outsiders but soon confounded their billing by taking the game to their hosts. It was no surprise when they took the lead on the half-hour mark as a wonderful lobbed reverse pass from Kinkladze released Rösler to spring the Reds’ offside trap and draw ‘keeper Schmeichel before lobbing the ball into the United net, to the glee of 15,000 City fans behind the goal. Their joy was short-lived however as City fell victim to one of the worst refereeing decisions seen in the history of Manchester derbies. United earned a corner on the right and as the ball came over into the penalty area referee Alan Wilkie blew for a foul. All present expected a defensive free-kick for City and no United players appealed for any infringements but to the surprise of just about everyone present and the millions watching on T.V. Mr Wilkie pointed to the penalty spot, claiming defender Frontzeck had fouled United’s skipper Eric Cantona. Although a posse of City players hotly disputed the decision, since there had been the usual mutual pushing and shoving so typical of modern-day set-pieces, Wilkie was adamant and Cantona duly slotted the spot-kick home. To be fair, it had been coming as united had slowly but surely threatened to get back into the game.
This was City’s fifth game inside the fortnight as opposed to United’s third and the difference in fitness levels eventually told as Lee Sharpe scored a late winner to end the Blues’ trophy-hunting hopes for another season. Now all they had to concentrate on was Premiership survival and City faced Newcastle in a classic bottom-versus-top clash at Maine Road played during various stages of a blizzard. Once again the Blues confounded their lowly billing in a stirring 3-3 draw which many felt was the best league game of the season, but once again controversy reigned as the last two Newcastle goals came courtesy of their Colombian ace Faustino Asprilla, who should have received a straight red card before for scoring the first of his brace. In a niggly duel with City centre-half and skipper Keith Curle, Asprilla had blatantly elbowed the Blues’ leader in the face but astonishingly this act of serious foul play only merited a booking in the eyes of referee Martin Bodenham. As injury time ran out Curle shaped to take a throw-in on the Kippax touchline, only to be head-butted full-on by the Colombian in full view of the linesman, who signalled the offence. Bodenham compounded his earlier error by failing to issue a card of any colour to Asprilla as Curle received treatment, although the Newcastle hitman received a three-match ban and fine from the F.A, which was the standard punishment had he actually been dismissed for either offence. Although the Blues earned much credit for matching Kevin Keegan’s men stride for stride in a highly entertaining encounter played in the most trying conditions, the cold fact was that two more precious points had been surrendered at home. To compound the situation, a week later they scraped just one point again with a late Steve Lomas equaliser against Blackburn.
Ball convinced his chairman Lee that even more players would be needed to stiffen the squad up for the challenging fixtures ahead. Since there was by now no budget available for transfers the money had to be raised via the sale of youth team product Garry Flitcroft to Blackburn for £2 million in another move which further enraged the fans, who now viewed relegation as a certainty following the sale of their midfield enforcer. For all Kinkladze’s skill, trickery and goalscoring ability, he was no-one’s idea of a midfield grafter in the mould of, say, a Roy Keane and so Flitcroft’s value as the man who could win the ball and give it to the little Georgian to launch attacks was inestimable. The move was viewed as inopportune, given that title favourites United were due to visit Maine Road for the season’s final derby on the Easter Saturday, but with the transfer deadline looming and no other source of income available - other than unthinkably selling Kinkladze or Rösler - Lee and Ball felt they had no choice but to cash in on Flitcroft. More disappointment for the Blues’ support followed as Ball inexplicably dispensed with the services of fit-again ‘keeper tony Coton, allowing him to Join United for a nominal fee. Coton was to become just one of a string for City players who would have tales to tell of the the manager's utter disinterest in him, infamously not even looking Coton in the face and even managing to forget his name during a short verbal exchange in the manager's office!
An early Quinn goal failed to secure a point at fellow strugglers Bolton who again struck a second-half equaliser. The poor result was made worse by the loss of winger Nicky Summerbee to a needless sending off for violent conduct in injury time, casing a three-match suspension. The Blues used some of the Flitcroft cash to secure Georgian striker Mikhail Kavelashvili from Russian first division side Alania Vladikavkaz (how do I remember to spell these exotic names?) and made what can only be deemed an ‘interesting’ début in the following week’s derby match. United took the lead due to a Cantona penalty in only the second minute before the new striker bagged an equaliser midway through the first half. A second Cantona penalty on the stroke of half-time restored the Reds’ lead which they held until the 70th minute when Uwe Rösler, who had made way in the starting line-up for Kavelashvili, entered the fray. Within less than three minutes he had equalised, only for Ryan Giggs to snatch all three points with a late winner. Fans’ favourites Walsh, Coton and Flitcroft had already been sacrificed: was Rösler next on the list?
The two previous seasons’ relegation battles had been won on the back of winning all of the Easter fixtures but, following the derby defeat, such a “great escape” wouldn’t be possible this time around and so the Easter Monday visit to Wimbledon took on an added significance: if the Blues were to survive, surely a win at Selhurst Park was essential. Instead more woe ensued as the Blues were comprehensively beaten 3-0, but even then results elsewhere went in their favour and with just three games to go there was still a mathematical possibility of staying up, especially with two of the last matches at home. In a tense Maine Road atmosphere Rösler scored the only goal of the game against Sheffield Wednesday to set up a nail-biter at Aston Villa a week later. The traditionally large “last away of the season” following roared the Blues on as the hosts hit the bar and were denied by an excellent last-ditch Michael Brown tackle. As the match moved into its final quarter Steve Lomas planted a header firmly in to the back of the Villa behind which the massed ranks of City supporters celebrated the growing possibility of survival. Having secured three vital points the fans tuned into radios for news of results elsewhere. Ironically all three of their relegation rivals also won, leaving the Blues needing a win at home to Cup finalists Liverpool in the last game and even then depending on at least one of their fellow strugglers to lose in order for City to survive. Typically, they could effectively win and still go down yet conversely they could also lose and still survive due to the similarities they shared in goal difference with Southampton and Coventry.
The pressure was now well and truly on Ball to deliver survival, like never before. Having already conceded ten goals in the space of four days to the Merseysiders earlier in the season the task ahead appeared too great for the Blues, despite their recent mini-revival. But, with the F.A. Cup final to come less than a week later, a lot would depend on the strength of the team Liverpool would field. To add extra poignancy to what could be City’s last Premiership match for at least a year, former chairman Peter Swales passed away in the week leading up to the game. Despite his unpopularity during the final years of his tenure, no-one could deny that Ardwick-born Swales was amongst the most ardent of City supporters, and the minute’s silence for him prior to kick-off was impeccably observed on a hot Sunday afternoon in early May. Liverpool in fact rested future Blues Steve McManaman and Robbie Fowler but otherwise fielded a strong starting eleven.
Understandably with so much riding on the result City started the game nervously and went a goal behind in the sixth minute. Quinn and Rösler missed simple chances to equalise, as Liverpool appeared more content to prevent a City leveller than to add further goals and make the game safe. However, in a rare breakaway just before half-time Ian Rush doubled Liverpool’s lead, though it has to be said that I have never seen him actually appear so disappointed to have scored a goal; perhaps he was a closet City fan… Whatever, it now seemed that City’s fate was sealed and they would e relegated on their own ground.
With seemingly nothing to lose City pressed forward in the second half and Rösler reduced the arrears with a penalty. The atmosphere immediately changed as everyone sensed that perhaps there was a lifeline to be grabbed. Quinn was substituted as City laid siege to the Liverpool goal and it was no surprise when a Kit Symons volley equalised with less than fifteen minutes to go. Further substitutions ensued and Steve Lomas was ordered to take the ball into the corner to waste precious time as the clock ran down. Amazingly, Ball had been misinformed that Southampton - of all clubs – had fallen behind to Leeds and so a point would save the Blues. Remember, this is after all a club with a penchant for producing the unexpected. However, down the years Manchester City have also developed a knack for producing the bizarre when least expected and we were “treated” to the farcical sight of Niall Quinn bounding down the touchline, roaring an order to Lomas to launch the ball into the penalty area in hope of creating the one goal which would keep City up. Sadly it was not to be and the final whistle was greeted with muted applause in the home stands and a quiet cheer from some sections of the visiting support. Results elsewhere confirmed that, since Southampton and Coventry had also drawn, City were relegated for the third time in thirteen years and the second at Maine Road. A tearful Kinkladze left the scene of the Blues’ demise and Ball lamented the poor start which had seen City earn only a solitary point from the first thirty on offer; relegation form however you wanted to view it. Instead of the usual end-of-season lap of honour the City squad trudged out to the centre circle to acknowledge the support form the fans who remained and that was it; instead of gracing Anfield, Old Trafford and Highbury the Blues would be grafting at Elm Park, the County Ground and Roots Hall; hardly a fitting epitaph to the first season for the recently-rebuilt Kippax stand.
The knives were now well and truly out for Ball, if they hadn’t been already for most of the season. He had disposed of many proven first-team players such as Walsh and Coton only to replace them with inferior personnel, and added to this he had staged a season-long feud with star striker Rösler, dropping him from the team at various crucial stages to the extent that, after equalising in the home derby with United, the German sprinted to the City dugout and turned his back to the manager, pointing at his name and squad number as a stark reminder that he should be the first choice striker. Since only two of the players Ball had brought in during the season - Kit Symons and Scott Hiley - had performed to anything like the standard required, the fans bayed for his summary dismissal. Immel, Frontzeck, Clough, Kavelashvili, Phillips and Creaney had proven to be huge disappointments and the loan signings he had made - Edouard Abazadji, Ronnie Ekelund and Guiseppe Materazzi - had also flopped. Kinkladze was the fans’ Player of the Year but didn’t count as a Ball signing since the chairman had recruited him just prior to announcing Ball as the manager. Even chairman Lee, for so long his staunch ally, revealed in an interview for the club’s official magazine that results must significantly improve and the club must make an immediate return to the top flight or else the manager’s position would be under serious review. This was unsurprising given the level of support Lee had shown for his manager, having brought in his own man to replace Brian Horton, who was already in place when Lee took over control of the club from Swales two years before. The wisdom of that managerial change was seriously questioned, marking the beginning of Lee’s eventual fall from grace amongst the City support.
Ball was therefore under no illusions about how tenuous his position was, even less than a year into his contract. After yet another relegation as a manager any failure to restore the Blues to the Premiership at the first time of asking would see him unemployed and it was under this level of pressure that he sought to fashion a promotion side out of the shambles of a squad he had assembled. The job was made harder by the departure of Keith Curle to Wolves but the real disappointment was the loss of striker Niall Quinn to Sunderland just two days before the start of the new season. Ball sought to replace the popular Irishman with Arsenal’s Paul Dickov but the deal stalled.
Despite a poor pre-season build-up City were viewed by the media as red-hot favourites for what was now the Nationwide League First Division Championship. Sky T.V. launched a new satellite sports channel featuring live Nationwide League football across all three divisions and chose City’s first game, at home to Ipswich Town, to start their regular series of Friday night live matches from the new league. A noticeably lightweight City side took the field for that first game, minus its “spine” of Coton, Curle, Flitcroft and Quinn but still with Kinkladze and Rösler still in place and Kit Symons installed as the new captain. The Blues began the game brightly and took an early lead with a Steve Lomas header following some excellent left-wing sorcery from Kinkladze. Ipswich however battled back and finished the game much the stronger although they failed to equalise, much to the relief of the anxious City support as the Blues finished the game with only ten men since Frontzeck had been dismissed for a ‘professional’ foul. In their next game at Bolton just four days later, the scale of Ball’s task became evident as the home side outclassed the Blues in every department although they only won 1-0. The Wanderers had dropped down a division with the Blues but unlike City they had recruited during the summer and became stronger for it, eventually running away with the title. Ball however secured the signing of Paul Dickov from Arsenal in an effort to add firepower to the Blues’ waning attack.
Ball felt the pressure more than ever as he took City to another of his former clubs, Stoke City for the third game of the season. In front of another huge following the Blues served up an abysmal first-half showing in which two defensive howlers gifted the Midlanders a two-goal lead. Ball introduced Dickov as a half-time substitute for Kavelashvili and the Scot duly injected some effort and urgency into the Blues’ performance, creating Uwe Rösler’s goal which offered hope of at least a draw. City’s revival was halted and the sight and sound of both the home and away supporters uniting in fierce vocal derision of the City boss marked their last-ever visit to the Victoria Ground, Ball having been a hate figure in the Potteries for taking them down to the old Third Division some years earlier. During his post-match press conference Ball actually had the gall to try and shift the blame for his failure onto the Manchester Evening News’ City correspondent Paul Hince, accusing the ex-City player’s nightly printed criticism of the manager of stirring up the supporters against Ball and all he was trying to achieve. Had he not already alienated the supporters with his activities before the incident, Ball had certainly done so in spades now.
Enough was enough; not only had City made a poor start to a season which all connected with the club viewed as crucial to its future, but the manner of the two away defeats suggested that Ball had no idea as to how to rectify matters. On the following Tuesday morning news leaked out that he had left Manchester City, the only question being whether he had resigned or been dismissed, although it has been generally accepted that Lee sent him packing with no opposition from his board. The scenario most City fans had feared had therefore come to pass, but with interest: not only had they seen their prediction of relegation from the Premiership come to pass but the malaise within the club had grown to the extent that even after only three games in a lower division, they could possibly be relegated to the third tier of English football for the first time in their history.
Ball’s true legacy was exposed by the events of the coming months: after former Arsenal manager George Graham reneged on an offer he had made to take over, City struggled to recruit a replacement for Ball for two months. His eventual successor Steve Coppell infamously quit only 33 days after accepting the post, stating the job of restoring City was much bigger than he had anticipated when he signed his contract. Eventually Frank Clark steered the Blues to safety in the second half of the season, but even then there were poor performances such as a goalless and soulless home draw with Sheffield United. Ball had been invited by Granada T.V. to act as a studio pundit during their highlights coverage of the match and he dismissed the City team and performance out of hand, only for host Elton Welsby and fellow guest Joe Royle to berate him with protests of “but these are your players Alan, you created this team!” Could there be any more fitting testament to his failure in the City hot-seat? Somehow I doubt it…
Alan Ball was appointed as Manchester City manager after a difficult close season in 1995 when the club struggled to find a successor to Brian Horton. He came to Maine Road with a reputation for being unable to survive relegation with previous clubs Portsmouth and Exeter City, but could claim to have saved Southampton from the drop in the season just finished. A former England playing colleague of chairman Francis Lee, Ball was also the proud owner of a World Cup winner’s medal, having played in the memorable 1966 England win over West Germany.
His appointment was overshadowed by the arrival of Georgian midfielder Georgiou Kinkladze on the same July Friday afternoon, but Ball immediately arranged a meeting with the first team squad during their next pre-season fitness session at the University of Manchester sports facility in Fallowfield. As the players gathered round he proceeded to warn them as a group that he’d drank in better bars than them, danced in better clubs and earned more respect then they had; clearly not the uplifting speech required to raise morale for the new season ahead. At half-time during a friendly at Scarborough, Ball was clearly heard through an open window in the away dressing room berating every player with language which would not have been out of place on the roughest factory floor or back street garage.
To make matters even worse he was faced with an immediate injury crisis in the week before the season’s opening fixture, at home to Tottenham. He lost central defender Keith Curle and goalkeeper Tony Coton in training accidents and quickly signed former German international ‘keeper Eike Immel and Portsmouth centre-half Kit Symons to bolster the side. City drew 1-1 thanks to an Uwe Rösler equaliser in the baking Manchester heat but the watching capacity crowd were under no illusions as the Blues struggled to stay with a mediocre Spurs side. The club then embarked on its worst losing run in over fifty years, losing the next nine games on the trot to be firmly rooted to the bottom of the table. Further surgery to the squad was undertaken as Ball swapped popular striker Paul Walsh - the club’s second-top goalscorer the previous season - for Portsmouth’s Gerry Creaney in a move which only succeeded in angering the City support even more. Creaney did eventually score City’s consolation goal in a 3-1 defeat at Newcastle, in which Richard Edghill had been sent off.
Despite a 4-0 League Cup win over Wycombe Wanderers in which Ball fielded reserve goalkeeper Martyn Margetson as a second-half centre forward, the Blues went out at Liverpool by the same score in the next round. Three days later they returned to Anfield and this time lost 6-0. During his post-match interview Ball’s comment that he’d enjoyed the game only rubbed more salt into the supporters’ wounds, although what he actually meant was that he’d appreciated Liverpool’s performance so much that he felt his own team were powerless to stop the slaughter. This did not however prevent a sarcastic chant of “Alan Ball is a Football genius” accompanying City’s matches thereafter, although the game turned out to be the last defeat in over a month as the Blues, honouring their legendary ability to surprise when you least expect it, won four and drew one of their next five games to bizarrely earn Ball the Manager Of The Month award. Although a gritty rearguard action earned three points with a 1-0 win at Leeds in early December, the luckless Edghill suffered a serious knee injury which prematurely ended his season. True to form, City were hammered 4-1 at Middlesbrough despite taking an early lead courtesy of an amazing dribble and shot by Kinkladze.
City suffered defeats throughout the Christmas campaign, although icy weather robbed Ball of an early return to Southampton as the away fixture at the Dell was postponed. They struggled to beat West Ham - complete with 17-year-old debutant goalkeeper Ian Feuer - 2-1 on New Year’s Day and escaped an embarrassing F.A Cup exit by scraping a goalless draw at Leicester. Still marooned in the bottom three, releagtion remained on the cards although there was quick relief when City destroyed Leicester 5-1 in the Cup replay, including another 40-yeard dribble and missile of a shot from Kinkladze. It would not be his last.
By now Nigel Clough had been recruited from Liverpool for £2 million and ex-German international defender Michael Frontzeck arrived from Borussia Mönchengladbach. Ball also signed left-winger Martin “Buster” Philips from his previous club Exeter City, a player whom he had promised would eventually be Britain’s first £10 million player. City won their next two home games 2-1 against fellow relegation strugglers Q.P.R. and Southampton respectively. The latter victory came courtesy of two Kinkladze strikes which could not have been more different, the first being a simple tap-in but the second a good contender for the best goal ever scored - for or against - at Maine Road. Receiving the ball by the right-hand touchline and just inside the opposition’s half, the Georgian maestro set off on a run in which he beat several defenders before arriving just outside the six-yard line where he promptly sold ‘keeper Dave Beasant a dummy, forcing the ex-England man to commit himself before Kinkladze nonchalantly flipped the ball over the fallen ‘keeper and into the far corner of the net. As BBC Match of the Day’s commentator Jon champion exclaimed, “That’s mesmeric!”
Progress continued in the F.A. Cup although the fourth round tie at Coventry City was postponed twice due to more bad weather before the Blues were robbed of a Highfield Road win in the dying minutes. The replay - a 2-1 win courtesy of goals from Niall Quinn and Uwe Rösler - set up a mouth-watering fifth round tie at Manchester United the following weekend. Having lost their last five meetings with their local neighbours City started the game as rank outsiders but soon confounded their billing by taking the game to their hosts. It was no surprise when they took the lead on the half-hour mark as a wonderful lobbed reverse pass from Kinkladze released Rösler to spring the Reds’ offside trap and draw ‘keeper Schmeichel before lobbing the ball into the United net, to the glee of 15,000 City fans behind the goal. Their joy was short-lived however as City fell victim to one of the worst refereeing decisions seen in the history of Manchester derbies. United earned a corner on the right and as the ball came over into the penalty area referee Alan Wilkie blew for a foul. All present expected a defensive free-kick for City and no United players appealed for any infringements but to the surprise of just about everyone present and the millions watching on T.V. Mr Wilkie pointed to the penalty spot, claiming defender Frontzeck had fouled United’s skipper Eric Cantona. Although a posse of City players hotly disputed the decision, since there had been the usual mutual pushing and shoving so typical of modern-day set-pieces, Wilkie was adamant and Cantona duly slotted the spot-kick home. To be fair, it had been coming as united had slowly but surely threatened to get back into the game.
This was City’s fifth game inside the fortnight as opposed to United’s third and the difference in fitness levels eventually told as Lee Sharpe scored a late winner to end the Blues’ trophy-hunting hopes for another season. Now all they had to concentrate on was Premiership survival and City faced Newcastle in a classic bottom-versus-top clash at Maine Road played during various stages of a blizzard. Once again the Blues confounded their lowly billing in a stirring 3-3 draw which many felt was the best league game of the season, but once again controversy reigned as the last two Newcastle goals came courtesy of their Colombian ace Faustino Asprilla, who should have received a straight red card before for scoring the first of his brace. In a niggly duel with City centre-half and skipper Keith Curle, Asprilla had blatantly elbowed the Blues’ leader in the face but astonishingly this act of serious foul play only merited a booking in the eyes of referee Martin Bodenham. As injury time ran out Curle shaped to take a throw-in on the Kippax touchline, only to be head-butted full-on by the Colombian in full view of the linesman, who signalled the offence. Bodenham compounded his earlier error by failing to issue a card of any colour to Asprilla as Curle received treatment, although the Newcastle hitman received a three-match ban and fine from the F.A, which was the standard punishment had he actually been dismissed for either offence. Although the Blues earned much credit for matching Kevin Keegan’s men stride for stride in a highly entertaining encounter played in the most trying conditions, the cold fact was that two more precious points had been surrendered at home. To compound the situation, a week later they scraped just one point again with a late Steve Lomas equaliser against Blackburn.
Ball convinced his chairman Lee that even more players would be needed to stiffen the squad up for the challenging fixtures ahead. Since there was by now no budget available for transfers the money had to be raised via the sale of youth team product Garry Flitcroft to Blackburn for £2 million in another move which further enraged the fans, who now viewed relegation as a certainty following the sale of their midfield enforcer. For all Kinkladze’s skill, trickery and goalscoring ability, he was no-one’s idea of a midfield grafter in the mould of, say, a Roy Keane and so Flitcroft’s value as the man who could win the ball and give it to the little Georgian to launch attacks was inestimable. The move was viewed as inopportune, given that title favourites United were due to visit Maine Road for the season’s final derby on the Easter Saturday, but with the transfer deadline looming and no other source of income available - other than unthinkably selling Kinkladze or Rösler - Lee and Ball felt they had no choice but to cash in on Flitcroft. More disappointment for the Blues’ support followed as Ball inexplicably dispensed with the services of fit-again ‘keeper tony Coton, allowing him to Join United for a nominal fee. Coton was to become just one of a string for City players who would have tales to tell of the the manager's utter disinterest in him, infamously not even looking Coton in the face and even managing to forget his name during a short verbal exchange in the manager's office!
An early Quinn goal failed to secure a point at fellow strugglers Bolton who again struck a second-half equaliser. The poor result was made worse by the loss of winger Nicky Summerbee to a needless sending off for violent conduct in injury time, casing a three-match suspension. The Blues used some of the Flitcroft cash to secure Georgian striker Mikhail Kavelashvili from Russian first division side Alania Vladikavkaz (how do I remember to spell these exotic names?) and made what can only be deemed an ‘interesting’ début in the following week’s derby match. United took the lead due to a Cantona penalty in only the second minute before the new striker bagged an equaliser midway through the first half. A second Cantona penalty on the stroke of half-time restored the Reds’ lead which they held until the 70th minute when Uwe Rösler, who had made way in the starting line-up for Kavelashvili, entered the fray. Within less than three minutes he had equalised, only for Ryan Giggs to snatch all three points with a late winner. Fans’ favourites Walsh, Coton and Flitcroft had already been sacrificed: was Rösler next on the list?
The two previous seasons’ relegation battles had been won on the back of winning all of the Easter fixtures but, following the derby defeat, such a “great escape” wouldn’t be possible this time around and so the Easter Monday visit to Wimbledon took on an added significance: if the Blues were to survive, surely a win at Selhurst Park was essential. Instead more woe ensued as the Blues were comprehensively beaten 3-0, but even then results elsewhere went in their favour and with just three games to go there was still a mathematical possibility of staying up, especially with two of the last matches at home. In a tense Maine Road atmosphere Rösler scored the only goal of the game against Sheffield Wednesday to set up a nail-biter at Aston Villa a week later. The traditionally large “last away of the season” following roared the Blues on as the hosts hit the bar and were denied by an excellent last-ditch Michael Brown tackle. As the match moved into its final quarter Steve Lomas planted a header firmly in to the back of the Villa behind which the massed ranks of City supporters celebrated the growing possibility of survival. Having secured three vital points the fans tuned into radios for news of results elsewhere. Ironically all three of their relegation rivals also won, leaving the Blues needing a win at home to Cup finalists Liverpool in the last game and even then depending on at least one of their fellow strugglers to lose in order for City to survive. Typically, they could effectively win and still go down yet conversely they could also lose and still survive due to the similarities they shared in goal difference with Southampton and Coventry.
The pressure was now well and truly on Ball to deliver survival, like never before. Having already conceded ten goals in the space of four days to the Merseysiders earlier in the season the task ahead appeared too great for the Blues, despite their recent mini-revival. But, with the F.A. Cup final to come less than a week later, a lot would depend on the strength of the team Liverpool would field. To add extra poignancy to what could be City’s last Premiership match for at least a year, former chairman Peter Swales passed away in the week leading up to the game. Despite his unpopularity during the final years of his tenure, no-one could deny that Ardwick-born Swales was amongst the most ardent of City supporters, and the minute’s silence for him prior to kick-off was impeccably observed on a hot Sunday afternoon in early May. Liverpool in fact rested future Blues Steve McManaman and Robbie Fowler but otherwise fielded a strong starting eleven.
Understandably with so much riding on the result City started the game nervously and went a goal behind in the sixth minute. Quinn and Rösler missed simple chances to equalise, as Liverpool appeared more content to prevent a City leveller than to add further goals and make the game safe. However, in a rare breakaway just before half-time Ian Rush doubled Liverpool’s lead, though it has to be said that I have never seen him actually appear so disappointed to have scored a goal; perhaps he was a closet City fan… Whatever, it now seemed that City’s fate was sealed and they would e relegated on their own ground.
With seemingly nothing to lose City pressed forward in the second half and Rösler reduced the arrears with a penalty. The atmosphere immediately changed as everyone sensed that perhaps there was a lifeline to be grabbed. Quinn was substituted as City laid siege to the Liverpool goal and it was no surprise when a Kit Symons volley equalised with less than fifteen minutes to go. Further substitutions ensued and Steve Lomas was ordered to take the ball into the corner to waste precious time as the clock ran down. Amazingly, Ball had been misinformed that Southampton - of all clubs – had fallen behind to Leeds and so a point would save the Blues. Remember, this is after all a club with a penchant for producing the unexpected. However, down the years Manchester City have also developed a knack for producing the bizarre when least expected and we were “treated” to the farcical sight of Niall Quinn bounding down the touchline, roaring an order to Lomas to launch the ball into the penalty area in hope of creating the one goal which would keep City up. Sadly it was not to be and the final whistle was greeted with muted applause in the home stands and a quiet cheer from some sections of the visiting support. Results elsewhere confirmed that, since Southampton and Coventry had also drawn, City were relegated for the third time in thirteen years and the second at Maine Road. A tearful Kinkladze left the scene of the Blues’ demise and Ball lamented the poor start which had seen City earn only a solitary point from the first thirty on offer; relegation form however you wanted to view it. Instead of the usual end-of-season lap of honour the City squad trudged out to the centre circle to acknowledge the support form the fans who remained and that was it; instead of gracing Anfield, Old Trafford and Highbury the Blues would be grafting at Elm Park, the County Ground and Roots Hall; hardly a fitting epitaph to the first season for the recently-rebuilt Kippax stand.
The knives were now well and truly out for Ball, if they hadn’t been already for most of the season. He had disposed of many proven first-team players such as Walsh and Coton only to replace them with inferior personnel, and added to this he had staged a season-long feud with star striker Rösler, dropping him from the team at various crucial stages to the extent that, after equalising in the home derby with United, the German sprinted to the City dugout and turned his back to the manager, pointing at his name and squad number as a stark reminder that he should be the first choice striker. Since only two of the players Ball had brought in during the season - Kit Symons and Scott Hiley - had performed to anything like the standard required, the fans bayed for his summary dismissal. Immel, Frontzeck, Clough, Kavelashvili, Phillips and Creaney had proven to be huge disappointments and the loan signings he had made - Edouard Abazadji, Ronnie Ekelund and Guiseppe Materazzi - had also flopped. Kinkladze was the fans’ Player of the Year but didn’t count as a Ball signing since the chairman had recruited him just prior to announcing Ball as the manager. Even chairman Lee, for so long his staunch ally, revealed in an interview for the club’s official magazine that results must significantly improve and the club must make an immediate return to the top flight or else the manager’s position would be under serious review. This was unsurprising given the level of support Lee had shown for his manager, having brought in his own man to replace Brian Horton, who was already in place when Lee took over control of the club from Swales two years before. The wisdom of that managerial change was seriously questioned, marking the beginning of Lee’s eventual fall from grace amongst the City support.
Ball was therefore under no illusions about how tenuous his position was, even less than a year into his contract. After yet another relegation as a manager any failure to restore the Blues to the Premiership at the first time of asking would see him unemployed and it was under this level of pressure that he sought to fashion a promotion side out of the shambles of a squad he had assembled. The job was made harder by the departure of Keith Curle to Wolves but the real disappointment was the loss of striker Niall Quinn to Sunderland just two days before the start of the new season. Ball sought to replace the popular Irishman with Arsenal’s Paul Dickov but the deal stalled.
Despite a poor pre-season build-up City were viewed by the media as red-hot favourites for what was now the Nationwide League First Division Championship. Sky T.V. launched a new satellite sports channel featuring live Nationwide League football across all three divisions and chose City’s first game, at home to Ipswich Town, to start their regular series of Friday night live matches from the new league. A noticeably lightweight City side took the field for that first game, minus its “spine” of Coton, Curle, Flitcroft and Quinn but still with Kinkladze and Rösler still in place and Kit Symons installed as the new captain. The Blues began the game brightly and took an early lead with a Steve Lomas header following some excellent left-wing sorcery from Kinkladze. Ipswich however battled back and finished the game much the stronger although they failed to equalise, much to the relief of the anxious City support as the Blues finished the game with only ten men since Frontzeck had been dismissed for a ‘professional’ foul. In their next game at Bolton just four days later, the scale of Ball’s task became evident as the home side outclassed the Blues in every department although they only won 1-0. The Wanderers had dropped down a division with the Blues but unlike City they had recruited during the summer and became stronger for it, eventually running away with the title. Ball however secured the signing of Paul Dickov from Arsenal in an effort to add firepower to the Blues’ waning attack.
Ball felt the pressure more than ever as he took City to another of his former clubs, Stoke City for the third game of the season. In front of another huge following the Blues served up an abysmal first-half showing in which two defensive howlers gifted the Midlanders a two-goal lead. Ball introduced Dickov as a half-time substitute for Kavelashvili and the Scot duly injected some effort and urgency into the Blues’ performance, creating Uwe Rösler’s goal which offered hope of at least a draw. City’s revival was halted and the sight and sound of both the home and away supporters uniting in fierce vocal derision of the City boss marked their last-ever visit to the Victoria Ground, Ball having been a hate figure in the Potteries for taking them down to the old Third Division some years earlier. During his post-match press conference Ball actually had the gall to try and shift the blame for his failure onto the Manchester Evening News’ City correspondent Paul Hince, accusing the ex-City player’s nightly printed criticism of the manager of stirring up the supporters against Ball and all he was trying to achieve. Had he not already alienated the supporters with his activities before the incident, Ball had certainly done so in spades now.
Enough was enough; not only had City made a poor start to a season which all connected with the club viewed as crucial to its future, but the manner of the two away defeats suggested that Ball had no idea as to how to rectify matters. On the following Tuesday morning news leaked out that he had left Manchester City, the only question being whether he had resigned or been dismissed, although it has been generally accepted that Lee sent him packing with no opposition from his board. The scenario most City fans had feared had therefore come to pass, but with interest: not only had they seen their prediction of relegation from the Premiership come to pass but the malaise within the club had grown to the extent that even after only three games in a lower division, they could possibly be relegated to the third tier of English football for the first time in their history.
Ball’s true legacy was exposed by the events of the coming months: after former Arsenal manager George Graham reneged on an offer he had made to take over, City struggled to recruit a replacement for Ball for two months. His eventual successor Steve Coppell infamously quit only 33 days after accepting the post, stating the job of restoring City was much bigger than he had anticipated when he signed his contract. Eventually Frank Clark steered the Blues to safety in the second half of the season, but even then there were poor performances such as a goalless and soulless home draw with Sheffield United. Ball had been invited by Granada T.V. to act as a studio pundit during their highlights coverage of the match and he dismissed the City team and performance out of hand, only for host Elton Welsby and fellow guest Joe Royle to berate him with protests of “but these are your players Alan, you created this team!” Could there be any more fitting testament to his failure in the City hot-seat? Somehow I doubt it…