Andy Townsend in action for Middlesbrough.
| Andy Townsend was described by Jack Charlton, his manager at
International level, as one of the three best players he had ever worked
with. After his two full seasons at Middlesbrough, few Boro fans would
disagree with his assessment. The former Republic of Ireland captain
joined the club from Aston Villa in the summer of 1997, not long after
his 34th birthday, for a fee of £500,000. Any doubts about his
commitment to playing in the First Division at that stage of his career
were soon banished, as he turned in a string of excellent performances.
Although not quite so quick over the ground as in his prime, his work
rate would have done credit to a man 10 years his junior. His interplay
with Paul Merson, Marco Branca and Craig Hignett was instrumental in the
end of season run of 5 wins and a draw, which carried Boro to automatic
promotion by a single point from North East rivals Sunderland. He also
played a full part in the League Cup campaign, which saw Liverpool
defeated over two legs in the semi-final, followed by another final
against Chelsea. After the retirement of Nigel Pearson in the summer of
1998, Townsend was appointed captain for the clubs return to the
Premiership. In 1998/99 he continued to defy the ageing process by
turning in another very consistent season, appearing in 35 of 38 league
games. Andy also scored Boro's goal in a 2-1 defeat at Old Trafford.
Despite extending his contract to summer 2000, Townsend decided on a
move back to the West Midlands early in the 1999/00 season. Ironically
it was Brian Little, the man who sold him to Boro, who took him to West
Bromwich, for a fee of £50,000. Townsend played a handful of games for
the Baggies before injury forced his retirement. (Paul Thompson) |