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Phillips twice the threat to Owls
Blackpool threat: Matt Phillips has scored two hat-tricks
WEDNESDAY could be facing a Phillips threat at Bloomfield Road.
There is Matt, who starred for Sheffield United on loan and made his first appearance for them as a sub in the Bramall Lane derby.
There is also Kevin, a scourge of the Owls in the past and still a capable striker though he is 38.
But Matt, a winger or forward who scored six goals in six games for the Blades, has been in the limelight recently. He won Blackpool’s Player of the Month award for December and has scored hat-tricks in the league against Barnsley and the FA Cup at Fleetwood.
He will be one of the reasons why Megson feels that Ian Holloway’s Blackpool can sustain another promotion challenge: “They’ll obviously have a priority of getting themselves back in the Premiership. Since Olly’s been there, they’ve done remarkably well,” he said.
“They got themselves promoted - it’s always difficult in your first season after that. They’ve come down to the Championship. I know they’ve lost Charlie Adam [to Liverpool] but they’ve brought in quite a few top-class players. It’s going to be difficult for us.
“Olly knows his football. He’s renowned for his sense of humour and some of the things he says but you wouldn’t get by on that in football management. He knows his stuff and he’s an experienced manager. He’s done well at Blackpool and he did well at QPR.”
Megson had a season in charge at Blackpool, 1996-97, in between jobs at Norwich and Stockport, and led them to 21 wins in 52 games.
“I class that as my first job,” says the Owls boss. “I enjoyed it. It was an experience. It was entirely different to how it is now. It’s a good club.
“When I was there you looked at how it was 40 years ago and they had they some worldclass players back then. It’s nice to see them doing well.”
In discounting his time at Norwich, which was actually his first managerial post, in 1995-96, he believes in hindsight that he was the wrong choice for the Canaries.
“I didn’t know my ---- from my elbow. They should never have given me that job, certainly not under those circumstances. I sat in on redundancy meetings, bank foreclosures and all that stuff,” he recalled.
“When I went to Blackpool, Mrs Oyston had just become chairman; she was brilliant. I really enjoyed my time there.
“My wife, Barbara ,was really ill and I needed to move back to Sheffield, so I went to Stockport, but the actual football ... we had some good players in Division One; it was a good side.”
The Seasiders were reluctant to lose him and won a court case against Stockport, claiming that they had poached him.
Holloway said: “A lot has changed since Gary was in charge here but a lot has changed in his life too.
“He’s got promoted a couple of times to the Premier League since then with the Baggies. He is just a very experienced manager, a very good manager. He was always going to be one because his dad was a good boss as well.
“I think there is an awful lot of water under the bridge, so he should get a very polite clap and not too much stick, I believe, unless they take the lead, then I’ll get the stick anyway!”
Holloway added: “I’ve written on the board 19 and 3. To me, we have to do as well as we can in the last 19 games and we should start getting focused now. We are three games away from Wembley, and a semi-final. That is the reality of it.
“We have a home tie against Sheffield Wednesday, who were terrific in the week. I had them watched.
“They’ve got a tough game on Tuesday at MK Dons so I don’t know what Gary is going to do. In the last round he made some changes but who knows this time?
“I will make the odd change to get over three games in a week. I will try and get that right. I can guarantee our fans we will be very upbeat.
“There is a bit of a belief coming in what we are doing, a bit of enjoyment in what we do.”
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Weather for Sheffield
Saturday 26 May 2012
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Temperature: 9 C to 21 C
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Wind direction: East
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Comments
There are 3 comments to this article
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silverblade
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 09:03 PMWednesday will be all at sea tomorrow when Matty Phillips get's an hatrick , hi tony oz or i mean tony owl onward & upward hey
tonyowl
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 08:49 PMRattertattat:- Gary's father Don came from Cheshire, Stockport is technically still part of Cheshire though in the Manchester conurbation. So it doesn't surprise me that Gary wanted to move there to be nearer to Sheffield, and maybe also in surroundings he knew through family connections. It will be very interesting to see how the Owls do as an attacking force, will JJ be let off the leash again to good effect - hope so!! Good luck to Blackpool in their Premiership push, great that Jimmy Armfield still commentates for everyone, what great players Blackpool had not so long ago. Ian Holloway seems ideal for them. Gary has great passion for his Club, like his Dad: and that's what Sheffield Wednesday needs at this point in their history. Onwards & upwards!
Rattertattat
Friday, January 27, 2012 at 02:52 PMAs a Blackpool fan living in Sheffield ... I have to say that it is good to read the positive comments from Gary M about his period as BFC manager ... and also to say I'm surprised by them ... has he forgotten the horror cup match against Northwich Victoria ? I don't know the man to be able to say whether I like him as a person or not, but I definitely don't like his F'ing and Blinding style of motivation especially when it is screamed out in front of kids ... so I was not unhappy to see him depart from Bloomfield Road. I also didn't realise Stockport was a suburb of Sheffield !!! As regards the game tomorrow ... and I will be there ... I don't think either team will be bothered about the result, much bigger fish to fry for both teams. I really hope Wednesday get promotion this year ... means a nice local match for me, if, that is, we don't get promotion to the EPL again !!!
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