| It said much about Tottenham's eagerness to sign Dean Austin that
their approach soured relations with Southend United, who stated their
reluctance to do business with the Londoners in the future. A tribunal
set the fee at £375, 000 and the fullback moved to White Hart Lane in
the summer of 1992, following in the footsteps of Justin Edinburgh who
had made the move from Roots Hall to White Hart Lane two years earlier.
Eager to tackle and willing to get forward, the 22-year-old enjoyed a
promising start to his Spurs career, making 34 league appearances in
1992-93. Austin was a key part of a young team that recovered from a
poor start to the season to finish 8th and reach the FA Cup semi-finals.
Unfortunately, that was as good as it got for Dean, who broke his leg
during a 5-0 home win over Oldham Athletic in September 1993. Manager
Ossie Ardiles responded by bringing in David Kerslake from Leeds United,
and Austin had to fight for his place.
When he returned to the side, Austin never seemed to be the same
player, frequently finding himself outmuscled and outpaced by opposing
attackers. The notoriously demanding White Hart Lane regulars started to
turn on the fullback, whose cause wasn't helped by inaccurate
distribution and lapses in concentration. Yet Dean managed to secure the
right back slot for much of the next two seasons, making 24 appearances
in 1994-95 and 28 in 1995-96. However, he was still prone to high
profile errors, David Ginola dispossessing the dilly-dallying fullback
to fire home a Newcastle equaliser in October 1995.
From time to time, Austin provided glimpses of the attacking intent
he had shown early in his Spurs career. On New Year's Day 1996, the
fullback flicked the ball over Phil Neville's head and sent in a cross
that led to a Sol Campbell goal in a 4-1 demolition of Manchester
United.
In 1996-97, Austin battled with serious knee problems that restricted
him to just 15 games. In his absence, a young Stephen Carr made the
position his own and by 1997-98, Dean was out of the picture. He was
allowed to leave on a free transfer to Crystal Palace on 8th July 1998,
after 124 league appearances for the club. (Alex Voskou)
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