extonsred Posted April 19, 2014 Report Share Posted April 19, 2014 Interesting on another topic - April1976 - how many people are still convinced, like I am, that the loss of Paul Cheesley against Stoke had huge implications for the club then and for many years since. I can honestly say that I have not seen many a better centre forward since -- and at 21 he had it all -- pace, strength, great skill with both feet and head. Like others said we struggled from thereon in Div 1 for the next four seasons and never really recovered from his loss. If we could have kept him for a few more years we may well have become much more established in the top flight -- maybe, maybe fantasy? Sad but sure he would have made a brilliant career for himself had he not got injured that night. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cityexile Posted April 19, 2014 Report Share Posted April 19, 2014 Really difficult to say. Just 23 when injured? Clearly a huge blow. Was still developing, and almost certainly would have gone on to pull on an England shirt - he was that good. If he had stayed fit, and stayed a City player, we would have been in a much better place. A shame for us, a disaster for him. One challange, not a bad one, and all that promise gone. Career over. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tiz Posted April 19, 2014 Report Share Posted April 19, 2014 I genuinely believe he would have played for England a real handful. I also believe as others have said without his injury our stay would have been longer. He was my hero and it took me years to get over his injury.....scrub that ...have never got over it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigTone Posted April 19, 2014 Report Share Posted April 19, 2014 Really difficult to say. Just 23 when injured? Clearly a huge blow. Was still developing, and almost certainly would have gone on to pull on an England shirt - he was that good. If he had stayed fit, and stayed a City player, we would have been in a much better place. A shame for us, a disaster for him. One challange, not a bad one, and all that promise gone. Career over. The biggest shame being had he suffered the same injury in this day and age he would have carried on playing. A huge loss I think Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cityexile Posted April 19, 2014 Report Share Posted April 19, 2014 Against Stoke? Might even have been Shilton. Absolutely nothing challange - O, Pauls stayed down. Bugger, looks like he is going to go off, seems in a bit of pain. Hopefully he has just landed funny and is back quickly. Never in a million years did I suspect that would be the last time he would pull on a city shirt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1960maaan Posted April 19, 2014 Report Share Posted April 19, 2014 Big , strong , quick and with 2 feet......... don't come along every day do 'em . Oh and very good in the air ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Posted April 19, 2014 Report Share Posted April 19, 2014 I can still see shilton coming out to get the ball from a corner leading with his right foot high and bringing it down on Cheesleys leg. Complete forward as have been said. Cheesley was the King of the west country and would have played for England. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cityexile Posted April 19, 2014 Report Share Posted April 19, 2014 Big , strong , quick and with 2 feet......... don't come along every day do 'em . Oh and very good in the air ! ...and like a lot of good players in that era, bloody brave. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Posted April 19, 2014 Report Share Posted April 19, 2014 Against Stoke? Might even have been Shilton. Absolutely nothing challange - O, Pauls stayed down. Bugger, looks like he is going to go off, seems in a bit of pain. Hopefully he has just landed funny and is back quickly. Never in a million years did I suspect that would be the last time he would pull on a city shirt. Your joking right, Shilton had stick everytime he played against City. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cityexile Posted April 19, 2014 Report Share Posted April 19, 2014 Your joking right, Shilton had stick everytime he played against City. From then on of course. Just talking about my immediate thoughts at the time, as a kiddie really in the enclosure. Do not in truth remember much about Shilton's actual challange, as from memory I thought Paul got his head to it and nearly scored, although may have got that wrong. Clearly it became fairly obvious from the reactions that there was more to it than that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MC RISK77 Posted April 19, 2014 Report Share Posted April 19, 2014 surely wouldn't have made a difference for years other than financially because if he would have been bought by a much bigger club so wouldn't have been with us for long....having said that money we could have got may have changed complex 4 years later Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Posted April 19, 2014 Report Share Posted April 19, 2014 From then on of course. Just talking about my immediate thoughts at the time, as a kiddie really in the enclosure. Do not in truth remember much about Shilton's actual challange, as from memory I thought Paul got his head to it and nearly scored, although may have got that wrong. Clearly it became fairly obvious from the reactions that there was more to it than that. I was in the East that Tuesday night, corner by the open end and Dolman, ball came over I remember Cheesley going for the ball and Shilton coming out to go for the ball leading with a high foot and that was the end of a fantastic player who had it all in front of him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
where's the joy Posted April 19, 2014 Report Share Posted April 19, 2014 cheeseley, still the nicest bloke, still mad for city and yes would have played for england, but his misfortune and the injury that denied gerry sharpe that step up, remind us of what might have been and we haven't seen enough of our west country boys get to the top since, heres hoping there's a few youngsters coming through like southampton produced gareth bale Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dandare 1966 Posted April 19, 2014 Report Share Posted April 19, 2014 Was most likely to have been the best player we have ever had he not got injured and would have played for England Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
REDOXO Posted April 20, 2014 Report Share Posted April 20, 2014 A subject I could talk about for hours. Remember the night so well. Donnie ( who pretty much scored all the goals that meant anything) got our goal. I was in the open end, Paul went up with PS who had his studs and boot raised high and crashed them down on Paul's knee. That's the way I remember it and to be honest no one has ever argued as to what happened. Geoff Merrick has said PC would have played for England and I firmly believe that myself. That is how good he was. JOE ROYAL was a great stop gap but so much could have been different!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miah Dennehy Posted April 20, 2014 Report Share Posted April 20, 2014 Great player, I was there the day he got 'done' (I used to go to watch both teams then, but always supported whoever City were playing!), I've met him a few times, and if only players today were as grounded and approachable as him. I saw him play in the 4-1 loss against you lot at Eastville, and seem to remember at the time that he was a bit overweight, and wasn't yet then considered particularly good- could be my memory playing tricks though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Major Isewater Posted April 20, 2014 Report Share Posted April 20, 2014 I said in an earlier thread that you could compare him to Andy Carrol when at Newcastle . He had it all. It was a tragedy and it took us far too long to find an alternative (Joe Royle ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
class not gas Posted April 20, 2014 Report Share Posted April 20, 2014 I said in an earlier thread that you could compare him to Andy Carrol when at Newcastle . He had it all. It was a tragedy and it took us far too long to find an alternative (Joe Royle ) Christ if Andy Carrol was worth 30 mil,Cheese would have been priceless. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ashton_fan Posted April 20, 2014 Report Share Posted April 20, 2014 Cheesley would have played for England if he'd continued to improve but he only had one good season for us. Looking back at the records he struggled to get into the team for the first two years, I think he fell out with AD at one point over something. In 75/76 when we went up you always thought he was going to score, he looked confident an dangerous. However, looking at the stats he wasn't the top scorer that season, Tom Ritchie got 18 goals to his 15 in the league. We'll never know what he might have achieved but he was the most exciting striker I've seen all the years I've been watching City. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Galley Posted April 20, 2014 Report Share Posted April 20, 2014 Paul Cheesley would have played for England and was being recognised by the England management team when he got injured, The England team were crying out for a centre forward like Paul at that time. He had the power and strength of Andy Carroll but in my opinion a far better player. In this day and age with medical advancement he would have been back playing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aizoon Posted April 20, 2014 Report Share Posted April 20, 2014 Would have challenged John Atyeo as City's greatest postwar player Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CITYSCOUT1970 Posted April 20, 2014 Report Share Posted April 20, 2014 I never saw Cheese play as just before my time, but I'm told it was between him & Paul Mariner as the next number 9 for England. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ciderhead433 Posted April 20, 2014 Report Share Posted April 20, 2014 I think we lost another great player couple years before Gerry Sharp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pongo88 Posted April 20, 2014 Report Share Posted April 20, 2014 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
extonsred Posted April 20, 2014 Author Report Share Posted April 20, 2014 I never saw Cheese play as just before my time, but I'm told it was between him & Paul Mariner as the next number 9 for England. no comparison Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nibor Posted April 20, 2014 Report Share Posted April 20, 2014 Dean Ashton be a reasonable comparison? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mahatma Coate Posted April 20, 2014 Report Share Posted April 20, 2014 Cheesley would have played for England if he'd continued to improve but he only had one good season for us. Looking back at the records he struggled to get into the team for the first two years, I think he fell out with AD at one point over something. In 75/76 when we went up you always thought he was going to score, he looked confident an dangerous. However, looking at the stats he wasn't the top scorer that season, Tom Ritchie got 18 goals to his 15 in the league. We'll never know what he might have achieved but he was the most exciting striker I've seen all the years I've been watching City. He had a slow start in 74-75 but he looked a changed man when we started the 75-76 season. I watched a pre-season Anglo Scottish game vs Norwich (?) and he looked like a changed man, sharper, fitter, stronger.... That game was notable for one of Bryan Drysdale's very rare goals - from all of 35 yards. For me Cheese was the real deal, certainly on a par with Mariner and much more potential. In fact that would have been a fantastic England strike force. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gert Mare Posted April 20, 2014 Report Share Posted April 20, 2014 According to Paul in his own opinion Peter Shilton didn't do anything. He went up high and landed awkwardly and his ligaments went and he chipped the bone. Who knows whether he would have gone on to be a great. He was certainly the quickest at Bristol City at the time and Alan Dicks said his football brain was still developing when he got injured, but Dicksy really rated him highly, and so did the other players who played with him. All I know is that he is a top bloke, has always got time for the fans, and has got loads of interesting stories about those days. He is generous, a great laugh, likes a beer or three and is not a bad singer either! He is a true legend! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gert Mare Posted April 20, 2014 Report Share Posted April 20, 2014 Cheese going up high against West Brom. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1960maaan Posted April 20, 2014 Report Share Posted April 20, 2014 Dean Ashton be a reasonable comparison? Imho no , Cheese was more mobile, quicker and had more to his game. As said above terrorised the Arse on the opening day of the season. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uW70X4FRYAA One thing though , even though I blamed Shilt's for years after, Cheesley was on Flashback for the fans and he said there was no real contact and he just landed awkwardly. I have it on video somewhere ' I'll put it on youtube when I get chance. I remember when he tried a comeback against Birmingham (I think), just gave a glimmer of hope. It was a good time for City , top centre forward , one of the , best wingers I've seen in Whitehead , Gerry Gow (nuff said) , Geoff Merrick was quality , Tom Ritchie , massively under rated (by me ). a great team ethic and hard working squad. I'm not sure he would have left that quickly , we managed to keep Merrick and Ritchie with Arsenal bidding. It took me so long to type this I missed the 2 posts above. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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