It's been a truly wretched Winter for Aston Villa supporters. In the space of the last two months, four key people from its long and illustrious history have sadly passed away, all of them playing their part in bringing glory and silverware to Villa Park.
Today we hear the sad news about the death of Paul Birch, a Villa midfielder for eleven years. Having joined the club as an apprentice in 1980, he went on to become a fixture in the middle of the pitch and was a true fans favourite due to his versatility and work ethic.
In 1991, he moved onto Wolves where he played under Graham Turner and Graham Taylor but by 1996 his career was nearing its end as spells with Doncaster and Exeter came to pass. A career in coaching gave Birch the chance to remain involved in the game, linking up with former Villa team mate Nigel Spink at Forest Green Rovers and then Birmingham City.
In May 2008, Paul Birch was diagnosed with bone cancer. Friends and former colleagues rallied around to support him in his plight, but his death at the age of only 46 will come as a terrible blow not only to them but the many Aston Villa fans who have also recently suffered the loss of other legends synonymous with the club.
Last November, former full back and Villa stalwart Peter Aldis died at the age of 81. He played for the club between 1948 and 1960 and was described by many as being a player with 'a sunshine smile'. Aldis made 294 appearances in the claret and blue and was a member of the team that won the 1957 FA Cup Final.
Then a couple of weeks ago came two more pieces of sad news. Johnny Dixon was Peter Aldis' captain in the 1957 Cup Final winning side against Manchester United and enjoyed a 17-year career in which he scored 144 goals in 430 appearances. He later suffered from Alzheimers Disease and died on January 20th aged 85 in the same Good Hope Hospital in Sutton Coldfield where Paul Birch died earlier today.
Vic Crowe was a former player and manager of Aston Villa, and his death at the age of 76 was announced the day after that of Dixon's. Crowe won the League Cup with Villa as a player in 1961 and took them to the League Cup Final as manager in 1971 while the club were still in Division Three.
A member of the Wales squad that played in the 1958 World Cup, Crowe played 350 times for Villa leading them to the Second Division championship in 1960 and a League Cup win in 1961.
The loss to Aston Villa of these four former players is something which fans of other teams would hope never to experience themselves. It goes without saying that Villa Park will echo to their cheers for a long time to come, but as this club falls silent once again it's worth acknowledging that Villa's current form owes a lot to the huge amount of effort and dedication they gave in the past.
They will be greatly missed.
Showing posts with label Aston Villa. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Aston Villa. Show all posts
Monday, 2 February 2009
Tuesday, 5 August 2008
Premier League Kit Parade (Part 1)
This time last year, SPAOTP brought you pictures of some of the new shirts being released for public purchase by each of the Premier League clubs, and we asked you to tell us what you thought of them.
This year, we've back again for more of the same and we've got even more new designs to show you, so let's crack on and see what the twenty clubs of the Premier League will be wearing this season. In Part 1, we begin with...
Arsenal
...and the first thing you notice about their new home and away shirts is that they're strangely familiar - particularly the away one.
Nike have this time come up with another of those 'controversial' Arsenal home shirts where the sleeves aren't predominantly white as we're all used to seeing - a bit like the first one they produced for The Gunners back in 1994 - but that navy blue stripe resonates with their 2000-2002 kit as well.
As for the yellow change shirt, that can only bring back memories of one thing - the exciting climax to Arsenal's 1988/89 season in which they beat Liverpool 2-0 at Anfield to clinch the title.
It's the classic combination - yellow with navy blue sleeves, and it's bound to prove a big hit with the Arsenal fans, purely for nostalgia value alone. A good pair of shirts from Nike, we think, and a slight improvement on last season.
Aston Villa
Once again, we have a couple of offerings from Nike, but this time we're left with a slight feeling of disappointment.
Oh don't get us wrong - both the home and away shirts are nice and smart and no doubt well made, but they lack any sense of excitement or specific interest. Perhaps Nike went for the traditional look - something non-flashy and respectable?
Either way, the home shirt isn't vastly different from the one Villa wore last season, while the Summer Blue away shirt contrasts nicely with the previous white one. The thing is, we like Aston Villa's white away shirts so even that isn't scoring big points with us.
All in all then, a couple of safe shirts design-wise from Nike but if this were a school report we'd now be scribbling down the immortal phrase 'could do better...'
Blackburn Rovers
The first of six Umbro offerings here, and already there's one thing to note - the new Blackburn away shirt is already available to buy via their club website, but the home shirt isn't. You'll therefore have to make do with a picture of David Dunn wearing it for the time being.
So let's begin with that home shirt. Once again, the pendulum that is the eternal debate about whether the kit should have red trim swings back in the direction of 'No'. In many ways, that makes this shirt smarter and more refined - OK, we're tempted to say it's potentially less interesting to look at, but we think it's nicely styled, actually.
And then there's the away shirt. Now this is more like it... We're big fans of this one as it's that classic 'feature stripe' design that comes back in vogue every so often. This one's well executed with a white and royal blue stripe going down the middle on a navy blue background, but a technical point here - shouldn't an away shirt be coloured in such a way that it contrasts significantly with the home shirt? Discuss...
Bolton Wanderers
Now here's where we enter the realms of the surreal and the slightly comedic...
As you can see, Bolton's new shirts for home and away have what you might call a 'unique design element' - a strange dark-coloured thing that goes around the neck, over the shoulders and under the arms.
Seen from a distance and from certain angles, it looks like any player wearing one has got a rucksack strapped on his back. Suffice to say we fear for any replica shirt-wearing Bolton fan that has to catch a Tube train home from an away match in London this season.
While we're all in favour of creative design and a fresh approach, we think this is a step too far on the part of Reebok. We're also tempted to say that this is the sort of kit that you'll either love or hate, but to be honest it's more likely to just make you laugh more than anything. We'd like to be persuaded otherwise, though, so if you're a fan of Reebok's latest, leave us a comment and tell us why...
Chelsea
Somewhat typically from one of the 'Big Four', we have not two but three new shirts for the coming season, all of which are once again brought to us by Adidas.
Seen side by side in this manner, you'd first have to say there's an element of the 'template kit' about this (not that Adidas are any strangers to the art of designing template kits) but there is at least some difference in all three shirts as can be seen by (a) their colours, and (b) their collars.
Yes, it's another example of that 'let's keep it simple' mentality which you can't really knock but at the same time it doesn't really set the pulse racing either. We think the first point on the agenda when Chelsea met up with Adidas this summer was 'Get rid of that fluorescent yellow aberration from last season', and that they've duly done. It's been replaced with an old-fashioned (for Chelsea) warm yellow and blue edition which is much more pleasing on the eye, although it'll probably end up selling fewer units than the black one.
Still, all three look good to us and they're probably already flying out of the Chelsea club shop as we speak. So what are your thoughts on the new Chelsea shirts, or indeed any of the shirts mentioned above? Which would you be happy to keep as a memento for your future grandchildren and which would you happily set fire to in a frantic fit of pyromania?
Leave us a comment and tell us - we'd love to know your opinions. Meantime, look out for Part 2 heading your way shortly as it features Everton, Fulham, Hull, Liverpool and Man City...
This year, we've back again for more of the same and we've got even more new designs to show you, so let's crack on and see what the twenty clubs of the Premier League will be wearing this season. In Part 1, we begin with...
Arsenal
...and the first thing you notice about their new home and away shirts is that they're strangely familiar - particularly the away one.
Nike have this time come up with another of those 'controversial' Arsenal home shirts where the sleeves aren't predominantly white as we're all used to seeing - a bit like the first one they produced for The Gunners back in 1994 - but that navy blue stripe resonates with their 2000-2002 kit as well.As for the yellow change shirt, that can only bring back memories of one thing - the exciting climax to Arsenal's 1988/89 season in which they beat Liverpool 2-0 at Anfield to clinch the title.
It's the classic combination - yellow with navy blue sleeves, and it's bound to prove a big hit with the Arsenal fans, purely for nostalgia value alone. A good pair of shirts from Nike, we think, and a slight improvement on last season.
Aston Villa
Once again, we have a couple of offerings from Nike, but this time we're left with a slight feeling of disappointment.
Oh don't get us wrong - both the home and away shirts are nice and smart and no doubt well made, but they lack any sense of excitement or specific interest. Perhaps Nike went for the traditional look - something non-flashy and respectable?Either way, the home shirt isn't vastly different from the one Villa wore last season, while the Summer Blue away shirt contrasts nicely with the previous white one. The thing is, we like Aston Villa's white away shirts so even that isn't scoring big points with us.
All in all then, a couple of safe shirts design-wise from Nike but if this were a school report we'd now be scribbling down the immortal phrase 'could do better...'
Blackburn Rovers
The first of six Umbro offerings here, and already there's one thing to note - the new Blackburn away shirt is already available to buy via their club website, but the home shirt isn't. You'll therefore have to make do with a picture of David Dunn wearing it for the time being.
So let's begin with that home shirt. Once again, the pendulum that is the eternal debate about whether the kit should have red trim swings back in the direction of 'No'. In many ways, that makes this shirt smarter and more refined - OK, we're tempted to say it's potentially less interesting to look at, but we think it's nicely styled, actually.And then there's the away shirt. Now this is more like it... We're big fans of this one as it's that classic 'feature stripe' design that comes back in vogue every so often. This one's well executed with a white and royal blue stripe going down the middle on a navy blue background, but a technical point here - shouldn't an away shirt be coloured in such a way that it contrasts significantly with the home shirt? Discuss...
Bolton Wanderers
Now here's where we enter the realms of the surreal and the slightly comedic...
As you can see, Bolton's new shirts for home and away have what you might call a 'unique design element' - a strange dark-coloured thing that goes around the neck, over the shoulders and under the arms.Seen from a distance and from certain angles, it looks like any player wearing one has got a rucksack strapped on his back. Suffice to say we fear for any replica shirt-wearing Bolton fan that has to catch a Tube train home from an away match in London this season.
While we're all in favour of creative design and a fresh approach, we think this is a step too far on the part of Reebok. We're also tempted to say that this is the sort of kit that you'll either love or hate, but to be honest it's more likely to just make you laugh more than anything. We'd like to be persuaded otherwise, though, so if you're a fan of Reebok's latest, leave us a comment and tell us why...
Chelsea
Somewhat typically from one of the 'Big Four', we have not two but three new shirts for the coming season, all of which are once again brought to us by Adidas.
Seen side by side in this manner, you'd first have to say there's an element of the 'template kit' about this (not that Adidas are any strangers to the art of designing template kits) but there is at least some difference in all three shirts as can be seen by (a) their colours, and (b) their collars.Yes, it's another example of that 'let's keep it simple' mentality which you can't really knock but at the same time it doesn't really set the pulse racing either. We think the first point on the agenda when Chelsea met up with Adidas this summer was 'Get rid of that fluorescent yellow aberration from last season', and that they've duly done. It's been replaced with an old-fashioned (for Chelsea) warm yellow and blue edition which is much more pleasing on the eye, although it'll probably end up selling fewer units than the black one.
Still, all three look good to us and they're probably already flying out of the Chelsea club shop as we speak. So what are your thoughts on the new Chelsea shirts, or indeed any of the shirts mentioned above? Which would you be happy to keep as a memento for your future grandchildren and which would you happily set fire to in a frantic fit of pyromania?
Leave us a comment and tell us - we'd love to know your opinions. Meantime, look out for Part 2 heading your way shortly as it features Everton, Fulham, Hull, Liverpool and Man City...
Sunday, 7 October 2007
Shirts for 2007/08: Aston Villa (away / 2nd)
Yes folks, we're nearly there. Only two teams remain unfeatured in our look at some of the new shirts on show this Premier League season, and today's penultimate offering is the Aston Villa away shirt:
Just when you thought the pinstripe was dead, here it is again in all its glory. (Actually this isn't the only shirt you'll see paying homage to the pinstripe - Umbro's new Northern Ireland away shirt is a tribute to the one worn in the 1982 World Cup and made by Adidas, curiously enough, but we digress...)
This shirt's made by Nike and is in itself a visual nod in the direction of the one Villa wore between 1981 and 1983. It's just come out on sale and you can pick one up via Aston Villa's online store at the slightly pricey price of £45.00.
Is it worth it? Well perhaps so. Nike's recent trend for minimalist and slightly plain kit design appears to have been shelved temporarily to make way for this nostalgic and well-executed piece. To us it's got clean lines, is unfussy and makes good use of colour but hey, what do we know having judged nineteen shirts already? This feature's all about you telling us what you think, and you can do that by leaving us a comment or by registering your basic feelings on this handy online voting facility...
---------------------------------------------------------------------
VOTING HAS NOW CLOSED FOR THIS SHIRT
The final results were as follows:
Excellent: 40 (66%)
Good: 12 (20%)
OK: 4 (7%)
Poor: 3 (5%)
Terrible: 2 (3%)
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Tell us what you think and let the world know how good a shirt this really is. Next time around we'll have the last in the series, and that'll be looking at the new Portsmouth 3rd shirt.
Get your handkerchiefs ready - it could be quite an emotional occasion...
Just when you thought the pinstripe was dead, here it is again in all its glory. (Actually this isn't the only shirt you'll see paying homage to the pinstripe - Umbro's new Northern Ireland away shirt is a tribute to the one worn in the 1982 World Cup and made by Adidas, curiously enough, but we digress...)
This shirt's made by Nike and is in itself a visual nod in the direction of the one Villa wore between 1981 and 1983. It's just come out on sale and you can pick one up via Aston Villa's online store at the slightly pricey price of £45.00.
Is it worth it? Well perhaps so. Nike's recent trend for minimalist and slightly plain kit design appears to have been shelved temporarily to make way for this nostalgic and well-executed piece. To us it's got clean lines, is unfussy and makes good use of colour but hey, what do we know having judged nineteen shirts already? This feature's all about you telling us what you think, and you can do that by leaving us a comment or by registering your basic feelings on this handy online voting facility...
---------------------------------------------------------------------
VOTING HAS NOW CLOSED FOR THIS SHIRT
The final results were as follows:
Excellent: 40 (66%)
Good: 12 (20%)
OK: 4 (7%)
Poor: 3 (5%)
Terrible: 2 (3%)
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Tell us what you think and let the world know how good a shirt this really is. Next time around we'll have the last in the series, and that'll be looking at the new Portsmouth 3rd shirt.
Get your handkerchiefs ready - it could be quite an emotional occasion...
Thursday, 10 May 2007
New Aston Villa Badge - You decide...
In case you weren't already aware, Aston Villa have announced they now have a new badge. Out goes the existing design, and in comes the replacement...
For what my opinion's worth (and that's probably not a lot), I think it looks distinctly like the product of an under-14's art competition. But wait - Aston Villa's website ensures us that there's sound reasoning behind the new design:
At the expense of your team's full name?!?! It gets better...
What a load of rubbish. Oh and they've added a white star to represent their European Cup victory in 1982. The perfect finishing touch...
As you can tell, I'm not impressed. What do you think? Leave us a comment and make your feelings known!
For what my opinion's worth (and that's probably not a lot), I think it looks distinctly like the product of an under-14's art competition. But wait - Aston Villa's website ensures us that there's sound reasoning behind the new design:
After being ommitted from the previous badge... the letters FC have been re-introduced.
At the expense of your team's full name?!?! It gets better...
The famous lion also has a different look. Gone is the fragmented image seen on previous Villa badges. The lion is now proud, looking to the future and unified - signalling our desire for togetherness.
What a load of rubbish. Oh and they've added a white star to represent their European Cup victory in 1982. The perfect finishing touch...
As you can tell, I'm not impressed. What do you think? Leave us a comment and make your feelings known!
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