Gordon 'Sid' Cowans

[mattyvilla]

1 hour ago, romavillan said:

Yes I'm sad to see Sid go too, I'm sure he could still offer us something in some capacity but maybe for the best. We won't know for a while though will we either way?

Re: the highlighted bit, it never ceases to amaze me this. It's really bonkers, even when serie A was completely choc full of the world's best players Italy still managed to produce players to compete at that level. Even now the Italy national side is widely considered to be the weakest it has been for a long, long time it would still beat us and our "stars" quite comfortably more times than they lost I reckon. It has happened consistently over my lifetime that a country with a slightly larger population has produced way better players and won international trophies with them. Every generation it's the same it seems to me, we seem to end up with the same technical and tactical limitations regardless of manager and formation and players. Weird and deeply cultural if you ask me.

That said, maybe the scarcity of academy products who can play at the highest level is nothing to do with Sid? Maybe it's more to do with the whole football setup in the UK?

Anyway, big thanks to Sid, one of the few English players in the last 40 years to be technically as good as his continental counterparts!

 

The whole football setup is wrong in this country. Professional clubs put barely any money into grassroots clubs , they just come along and cream the best players from the top of childrens football. Ultimately that reduces the quality of childrens football in the long run ... but thats another story

[meme]

1 hour ago, mattyvilla said:

The whole football setup is wrong in this country. Professional clubs put barely any money into grassroots clubs , they just come along and cream the best players from the top of childrens football. Ultimately that reduces the quality of childrens football in the long run ... but thats another story

This is why Spain has hugely succeeded in international times. Clubs are pumping millions into grassroots football in city-wide operations. Germany is a similar story.

The English FA desperately need to conduct a Germany-like reform, otherwise English talents will stagnate and we won't even get past the qualifiers of tournaments. However, we keep getting these plonkers in charge who don't do anything.

Edited September 8, 2016 by meme

[Zatman]

12 hours ago, Demitri_C said:

Some have a point, our academy hasn't produced any stars in a long time. Only green, baker, Gardner and grealish in current squad. Only grealish has reached a decent level thus far. 

Gabby

that lad at Leicester aint bad

[Zatman]

Did I see earlier that XIa said Cowans wanted to retire. If that is true then I hope club takes care of him

[TRO]

1 hour ago, Zatman said:

Did I see earlier that XIa said Cowans wanted to retire. If that is true then I hope club takes care of him

If that is the case.....fair play to all.

[sidcow]

10 hours ago, Phumfeinz said:

With new ownership, management and a new squad I feel a change in the backroom staff was necessary. Considering the world-class facilities that people bang on about all the time our youth development has been quite disappointing for some time now. Legend, legitimately, but time for a change. 

Absolutely. He's my hero but NO ONE should be set in stone at the club in anything on the playing side. 

We had a decent youth team a few years ago,  won the youth champions league thingy but realistically we have produced only Jack in many years.  I rarely hear of any of our youth products at other PL teams or even many at Championship level. 

Maybe Sid is now out of touch,  things change,  or maybe it is simply time for a clean sweep and start anew with a fresh team.

Looking at Southampton it's not just that they have bought and sold well they have also developed a lot of fantastic youth's. We certainly seem to have missed out on our fair share of youth players down the years. 

[sidcow]

5 hours ago, meme said:

This is why Spain has hugely succeeded in international times. Clubs are pumping millions into grassroots football in city-wide operations. Germany is a similar story.

The English FA desperately need to conduct a Germany-like reform, otherwise English talents will stagnate and we won't even get past the qualifiers of tournaments. However, we keep getting these plonkers in charge who don't do anything.

Yep and they know deep down inside that the only course of action they can take to ensure this happens is to appoint Pulis as England manager when they have to sack Big Sam after the euros. 

[sidcow]

On 21/05/2014 at 17:02, SikhInTrinity said:

 

Agree with this, even amazes me how fans think they can adapt passing football at VP. Whenever the players try to play it on the deck and keep it, we scream and shout to get it forward. Even MON won like 8 or 9 in his last two seasons at VP.

Well the crowd don't seem to have had any effect on them. They have happily passed it around and around for several years without any kind of sign of intent of bowing to the crowd and getting it forward or at least that is what 8 have seen. 

No one is against a passing game but they just want a passing game with some intent,  that's what's got people frustrated. 

[sidcow]

On 16/04/2014 at 16:21, briny_ear said:

He even came back after that in 1993! But that was less successful and he only played a few matches before leaving again (for Wolves, I think?

If I remember rightly just before he came back for his third short time we had played Blackburn and he had taken us to pieces even as an old man. 

Youngsters watch the Villa 6 Everton 2 game. Notable for Plattys rise to prominence but also shows some sublime passing from Sid and a goal. 

I think I am right in saying that he got a late England cap shortly afterwards in a scandalous England career,  was treble the player Glenn Hoddle was. 

Best thing ever was the headline in the villa fanzine "Miissing Sid" when he came home

Headline was VILLA PLAYER RUINS FANZINE NAME

Edited September 8, 2016 by sidcow

[sidcow]

On 16/04/2014 at 17:41, av1 said:

I think I'm right in saying (maybe wrong) that one year David Platt said that his ambition for the season was to make a run that Sid didn't see.

 

I may well have dreamt that, I'm sure someone with a better memory than me can confirm/rubbish that.

Can't confirm this but he would have had to wake up before he had gone to sleep in order to make that run. 

I am going to run out of likes and I am only on page 1. 

I know a lot of people rate McGrath as the greatest and he WAS unearthly good. 

I may have seen Brian Little play but was too young to remember but for me Sid transcends all players.  I feel probably like someone who saw Pele or Best play feels. Just that much higher than the very best for me. 

[sidcow]

And as someone said earlier,  I have had the privilege to have met him a couple of times (once in the away end at The Baggies which speaks volumes,  when will Gabby be seen there?) and he really is a genuinely lovely man. 

[sidcow]

On 16/04/2014 at 19:57, AValon said:

Two vivid memories of Sid spring to mind. One was how lightwieght, yet astute he was in midfield......like a rabid whippet. The other was when he broke his leg abroad, the footage of which would still make me cringe today.

 

Mr Aston Villa.

Regarding the leg break it's not like it is now. It was a bad break,  medical technology is not like it is now and he won't have had millions thrown at him to see the top men. Many a player in those days ended their career,  it's a wonder that he came back so strong

As mentioned his frame was so slight and football in those days was savage,  unless a chainsaw was involved the refs were not interested.  Men were men yet today he would probably be told he has to bulk up to make it. 

I am sure Villa only used 14 players in the entire season they won the league.  Just think about that. You watch some of the games and you see people literally scythed down and they just get back up again with no free kick and no complaints. Remarkable how the game has changed and they were paid a pittance compared to now. 

[briny_ear]

5 hours ago, Zatman said:

Did I see earlier that XIa said Cowans wanted to retire. If that is true then I hope club takes care of him

You did indeed.

Having created the impression that Sid's departure was somehow linked to "Steve"'s plans to create a "great" academy - which may well have prompted many on here to pull out their knives and join in the general backstabbing that has been going on since the announcement - it seems Dr T decided to check what actually was going on.

Prompted by a helpful tweet from Pat Murphy, he agreed that Sid's departure had nothing to do with Steve Rounds.

Then he actually checked the facts and confirmed Sid just left because he wanted to, having reached the grand old age of 58 (which is the most shocking bit of this story for me. For me he is always 23 )

So here we go again. Dr T a bit Twitter-happy, says something cryptic and unclear which is over-interpreted by his adoring followers, and then has to backtrack because he has created the wrong impression.

This is all going to end in tears some day.

[briny_ear]

6 hours ago, Zatman said:

Gabby

that lad at Leicester aint bad

A bit earlier there was also that bloke who went to Chelsea via Bolton. 

Don't really know how the stats pan out but I reckon our academy system, despite a clear decline in reputation and quality (alongside the club's decline in the same areas) has still produced some decent players - maybe an average number for a premier league club?

But it seems increasingly the better ones have to leave the club to progress in their careers (and in some cases spend a bit more time learning their trade). 

Pretty sure the failure to bring on young talent from academy to first team squad can't all be laid at Gordon Cowans's door.

 

[Eastie]

5 hours ago, briny_ear said:

You did indeed.

Having created the impression that Sid's departure was somehow linked to "Steve"'s plans to create a "great" academy - which may well have prompted many on here to pull out their knives and join in the general backstabbing that has been going on since the announcement - it seems Dr T decided to check what actually was going on.

Prompted by a helpful tweet from Pat Murphy, he agreed that Sid's departure had nothing to do with Steve Rounds.

Then he actually checked the facts and confirmed Sid just left because he wanted to, having reached the grand old age of 58 (which is the most shocking bit of this story for me. For me he is always 23 )

So here we go again. Dr T a bit Twitter-happy, says something cryptic and unclear which is over-interpreted by his adoring followers, and then has to backtrack because he has created the wrong impression.

This is all going to end in tears some day.

Odd that he chose to retire on the same day Tony mcandrew and Ben petty leave the club and only a month into a new season - would have thought he would have gone in the summer if he was that keen on stepping down 

[blandy]

Something from the villa talk of 2002 front page

Quote

Why do I nominate “Sid” as the greatest Villan?
Well, Perhaps first I should explain the criteria I would use to determine whether anyone is deserving of Villa “greatness”.

Ability above far the “norm”, Loyalty, Love - both ways “we” have to love them and they have to love the club. Committment too, both on and off the field. Vision, inspiration, perspiration and the ability to affect the course of history too are essentials too.

Sid has all of these in buckets.

Anyone who has seen Sid play will find it impossible to argue that he has footballing ability in spades. He’s the only truly two footed player I can recall seeing. With either foot Sid could pull the ball down from mid-air and stroke, caress even, a pass to a team mate in the best position to recieve the ball. Nearby or 50 yards away. Did he ever put a pass astray? He must have, but I don’t remember any. Perhaps the first indication of greatness - memories of him are all good.

Although born in Durham Sid came to Villa as an apprentice in 1974 at 15 and was part of the bunch that won the youth Cup. An early indication of his talent. He soon made his first team debut, at 17 in 1975 whilst still an apprentice. He became a member of the England youth team, too. Progress continued and he was soon in the Villa first team on a regular basis during the season when we won the League Cup (eventually) at Old Trafford against Everton.

Sid’s progress continued and he became part of the England U-21 side. Then later the B side and in ‘83 the full side, winning 9 caps and scoring against Scotland at Wembley. If it wasn’t for a strange preference for the very inconsistent and underperforming, London based, Hoddle he would have been capped far more often in what was a barren period for Enland’s national side.
Back where his heart lies with Villa things were going just great. He was a pure class act in our midfield and was voted PFA Young Player of the Year in 1979-80. Things got even better for Sid and for Villa, when after a few years of steady improvement the Club won the league in 1980/81. Sid, in this season was perhaps at his very best. He of course continued to make everything look easy, but he seemed to turn into the complete footballer - he would pick the ball up from Allan Evans, or Ken McNaught, turn and lay it off, out wide, or find Shaw or Withe and then suddenly he’d be recieving the ball again and playing through a pass to create a chance to score, or cross. he could tackle, too. Sid is lightly built, like a taller Lee Hendrie, but boy could he tackle. No bottling out, just straight in there, and more often than not winning the ball, and then maybe after a turn and drag through his legs the ball would be with Swain or Morley and off we’d go again.
Like all of Ron Saunders’ team he was very fit and ran all day. Of course the whole side was fantastic - all 14 players used that season could perhaps be nominated. But Sid did more than any of them - he played more games for us - 399 League apps (+15 as sub), scoring 49 goals in 3 spells.
After Ron Saunders left, courtesy of Ron Bendall, Tony Barton suddenly found himself manager of the team he led only a month or so later to become European Champions, 26 May 1982. And Sid, again, was an absolutely crucial part of the side that beat Bayern in Rotterdam (‘scuse me while i pause for a moment..).

The next season we got to the quarter finals, but were knocked out by Juventus in the second leg, after a great game in the first leg, during which Sid scored a diving header in front of the Holte, to get us back into the game. We did win the Super Cup though, and Sid scored a penalty in the 3-0 2nd leg win over Barcelona. He was assaulted by their keeper on retrieving the ball from the net, but just trotted back to the half way line. Far too cool to get involved in any ructions.  

Sid had his leg horribly broken in a pre-season “friendly” in Spain and missed the whole 83/84 season, but back he came, only to be sold to Bari, along with Paul Rideout in 1985. At a time when players wages were Ok, but nothing at all like they are today, Sid had a chance to earn real money and well deserved it was too. 

Fortunately we had an option of first refusal to buy him back. So obviously we did and in 1988 Graham Taylor brought him back and to our delight he was still the same old Sid. Same wiry frame, same talent and desire and there he was reading the runs of Platty and Rambo and controlling the midfield. We went on to finish as runners up before GT went off to manage England. Some turnaround isn’t it? - from relegated to back where we belong in the top division, and finishing second to Liverpool. And for Sid too, as he was called back into the England side under GT the next season. So plenty of evidence of his talents all round - broken leg, recover, move abroad, adapt well, come back to the club he loves, huge influence on our history and back as an international.

Still the tale’s not over, Big Fat Ron sold Sid in ‘91 to Blackburn (where he helped them to promotion). The attraction to VP was still there though and he came back again for the 1993-1994 season. Sold again to Derby he spent his last playing days doing a good job for a number of first division teams - Wolves, Sheffield United (from one of their sites, here’s a neutral testimony on his talent)

“The first thing I noticed about Gordon Cowans was how many times he actually touched the ball in a game....I could not believe a player could receive and pass the ball THAT many times in a game. Also, no matter how many times he touched the ball he nearly always found another United player with his pass... For a man of 37 he buzzed around and passed and moved all afternoon whilst still managing to bring a calming influence to the midfield.

The part of Cowans game that impressed me most...was his ability to come short, receive the ball from either Kelly, Vonk or Ablett, turn and bring someone else into the game. He was the link between defence and midfield/attack....Gorden Cowans took control of midfield and he wasn't scared to bring others into the game, he made other players "tick". It was difficult to hide when Gordon Cowans was playing because he'd give you the ball and make you play and he was always ready to receive a return pass or find space to give you an option once he'd despatched the ball. One of the last things I saw Gordon Cowans do was set Andy Walker up for a marvellous goal at Reading in April. Nothing special, just a simple 15 yard pass and Walker did the rest. BUT that was Gordon Cowans, so simple, yet so effective.”
http://homepages.shu.ac.uk/~cmssa/traww/issue4/misslink.htm,

Sid moved from Shef Utd to Bradford, Stockport and Burnley where he started into coaching, before yes you’ve guessed it, returning back to VP for a 4th time, in ‘98, to coach the youth team. And as with all the other times, he’s done a great job - the youth team won the FA youth cup last season and more than that the players that are coming through all seem properly coached in the footballing skills that Sid is remembered for.

There’s a lot of facts and figures in all that lot above, but in truth the things I remember Sid for are the things on the pitch, the perfect 30 yard pass down the line on a wet wednesday at Stoke, the ball spinning backwards so as not to run out of play on the greasy surface. Perfect. No one else on the pitch could do that. 

So there you have it really. Pure class. All the other people nominated ARE Great Villans, but none has given us as much as Sid, none have had such an influence and continue to do so.

Finally, almost as an afterthought, anyone heard of anything bad about Sid- fights, drink or Drugs, controversy of any kind? Failure? No obviously not. A great player, a winner, a modest man, a nice bloke and one of us.

THE GREATEST VILLAN has to be

First Division Champion, European Champion, League Cup winner, promotion winner, youth Cup winner, youth cup winning coach.

Sid Sid Sid Sid Sid....

 

[tinker]

Met him a few times and he really is a gentleman. At the town hall  european cup get togethor He took time to talk to all the people who approached him for autographs and photos and had to be dragged back to the stage by the people organising the night. Even then he apologized and promised to come back at the end , which he did . 

He really is Mr Villa 

[limpid]

1 hour ago, Eastie said:

Odd that he chose to retire on the same day Tony mcandrew and Ben petty leave the club and only a month into a new season - would have thought he would have gone in the summer if he was that keen on stepping down 

And perhaps this is the end of his three months notice.

[MrDuck]

McGrath tweeted today that Sid was the best he ever played with.

[NIVillan]

5 hours ago, Eastie said:

Odd that he chose to retire on the same day Tony mcandrew and Ben petty leave the club and only a month into a new season - would have thought he would have gone in the summer if he was that keen on stepping down 

Good Time to retire when you colleagues who you have worked with for years are also leaving.

Also he may have decided that with the other two going, that it was best for the club he retired giving Steve Round a clear run.