Nicky Hunt Still Gets Paid To Play The Beautiful Game

[Tomo]

I had a very sad afternoon reporting on the gas, seeing them score 6 goals against Darlington. I will try and forget that. 

Anyway, Nicky Hunt was playing centre back for Darlington. How is that bloke still being paid money to play football. 

Words fail me. 

He's up there with Gus Caesar as our worst ever signing? 

 

 

[The Dolman Pragmatist]

2 minutes ago, Tomo said:

I had a very sad afternoon reporting on the gas, seeing them score 6 goals against Darlington. I will try and forget that. 

Anyway, Nicky Hunt was playing centre back for Darlington. How is that bloke still being paid money to play football. 

Words fail me. 

He's up there with Gus Ceaser as our worst ever signing? 

 

 

Leave the bloke alone.   Yes, he was dreadful for us, but he came at a difficult time - signed by a manager who resigned after one match.  But he’s made 400 appearances in his career, and you don’t do that if you can’t play football.  I shouldn’t think he’s paid much money to play for Darlington.

I always thought Gus Caesar wasn’t as bad as he was made out to be - he made a few mistakes and was crucified by fans and media.

[Tomo]

6 minutes ago, The Dolman Pragmatist said:

Leave the bloke alone.   Yes, he was dreadful for us, but he came at a difficult time - signed by a manager who resigned after one match.  But he’s made 400 appearances in his career, and you don’t do that if you can’t play football.  I shouldn’t think he’s paid much money to play for Darlington.

I always thought Gus Caesar wasn’t as bad as he was made out to be - he made a few mistakes and was crucified by fans and media.

He is probably on 1500 a month..... Not worthy... :laugh:

[The Dolman Pragmatist]

2 minutes ago, Tomo said:

He is probably on 1500 a month..... Not worthy...

Typical tier 6 salary is about £500-£600...

[Tomo]

On 31/10/2020 at 14:23, Redpool said:

Funny how he’s done well everywhere else. But then comes here...

We would turn Messi into COD 2.0

 

5 minutes ago, The Dolman Pragmatist said:

Typical tier 6 salary is about £500-£600...

I am aware that even below that level some player's are on 300+ per match. Agree to disagree on the wonderful Nicholas Hunt

[archie andrews]

1 hour ago, Tomo said:

He is probably on 1500 a month..... Not worthy...

have you played over 100 games in the premiership?.....

[Davefevs]

Wasn’t it just the other week he picked up a neck injury that looked very serious for a while....got treated for over an hour on the pitch.  I’m pleased he’s back playing.

[nickolas]

30 minutes ago, Davefevs said:

Wasn’t it just the other week he picked up a neck injury that looked very serious for a while....got treated for over an hour on the pitch.  I’m pleased he’s back playing.

So based on him being a tad sh1t, i guess you could say hes got some neck, still managing to be paid to play.

When he signed for us it was full of anticipation. I even think his debut he played great. But after that, wow, he was a little bit crap!

[Davefevs]

2 minutes ago, nickolas said:

So based on him being a tad sh1t, i guess you could say hes got some neck, still managing to be paid to play.

When he signed for us it was full of anticipation. I even think his debut he played great. But after that, wow, he was a little bit crap!

I never saw him play live for us.

[Silvio Dante]

3 hours ago, The Dolman Pragmatist said:

Leave the bloke alone.   Yes, he was dreadful for us, but he came at a difficult time - signed by a manager who resigned after one match.  But he’s made 400 appearances in his career, and you don’t do that if you can’t play football.  I shouldn’t think he’s paid much money to play for Darlington.

I always thought Gus Caesar wasn’t as bad as he was made out to be - he made a few mistakes and was crucified by fans and media.

Whenever Gus Caesar comes up I’m reminded of the passage in Fever Pitch. Points out that to get to the level he did, Gus was the best player in his school. Then the best player in his locality and so on. It’s well worth a read:

http://remotestorage.blogspot.com/2011/01/hornby-on-excellences-long-tail.html?m=1

[Vespa Red]

3 hours ago, The Dolman Pragmatist said:

 

I always thought Gus Caesar wasn’t as bad as he was made out to be - he made a few mistakes and was crucified by fans and media.

Wimbledon away in the FA Cup (might have been 1991), I thought he was our Man of the Match.  A rare exception admittedly...

[Red-Robbo]

4 hours ago, Silvio Dante said:

Whenever Gus Caesar comes up I’m reminded of the passage in Fever Pitch. Points out that to get to the level he did, Gus was the best player in his school. Then the best player in his locality and so on. It’s well worth a read:

http://remotestorage.blogspot.com/2011/01/hornby-on-excellences-long-tail.html?m=1

It's a good point always worth remembering just how good professional players are compared to us ordinary Joes.

I had a mate when I lived up in London who was really athletic and played Sunday football for the (at the time) top club in the highly competitive Hackney Marshes leagues. Compared to the laughable outfit I turned out for on Wimbledon Common, my mate's side took their footie seriously. A number had been on the books of professional clubs as kids and their coach had played for Orient. They trained regularly. Many of them were teetotal. 

One year they had a summer tour of Belgium and played 4 local sides. Three decent amateur teams and one all-professional side in what was then the Belgian Third Division.  They won two of their games against their fellow amateurs but when they came up against the professionals they were dicked 9-0. My mate said "We just couldn't get near them!"

When we slate professional players, we should remember that ALL of them can play to an amazing standard. If some look poor at times, that is only by comparison with the incredible skills of other professionals.  Millions of us play the sport at school and afterwards, but only an elite few are good enough to make a living out of it. 

 

[REDOXO]

I’m not sure why Gus Caesar is often reputed to be our worst player of the last 35 years. 
 

Ladies and Grntleman. I give you

Carl Hutchins

Tony Dinning

Heeeey Jonesy

Almost anyone bought from Scotland by McInnes

That goalkeeper SoD got from Cardif

and I’m not even trying. 

[Major Isewater]

This from an interview in the Post, a counter balance.

What were the keys to their ( Darlington) victory against Swindon in the first round?

Darlington did their best to keep it tight, although goalkeeper Johnny Saltmer had to make a couple of saves, but experienced centre-back Nicky Hunt was outstanding and crucial to the victory.

[SecretSam]

21 hours ago, Tomo said:

I had a very sad afternoon reporting on the gas, seeing them score 6 goals against Darlington. I will try and forget that. 

Anyway, Nicky Hunt was playing centre back for Darlington. How is that bloke still being paid money to play football. 

Words fail me. 

He's up there with Gus Caesar as our worst ever signing? 

 

 

My impression was that there were matters outside of football going on with him, and he's been an excellent signing at other clubs, and played a lot in the Premier League.

Still, being shit for us must condemn his entire career...

[SecretSam]

13 hours ago, Red-Robbo said:

When we slate professional players, we should remember that ALL of them can play to an amazing standard. If some look poor at times, that is only by comparison with the incredible skills of other professionals.  Millions of us play the sport at school and afterwards, but only an elite few are good enough to make a living out of it. 

Yup, at University the chap who took our five a side was an ex-pro. Even uni first team players couldn't get near him, and he was easily late 40s at the time.

[GrahamC]

21 hours ago, Davefevs said:

I never saw him play live for us.

Trust me, he was absolutely terrible.

Only played 7 games for us & luckily I wasn’t there at Elland Rd when he came on at 0-0 with 25 minutes to go, within 5 minutes the bloke he was “marking” had already scored two, & he got a hat trick in 17 minutes.

Hunt never played for us again, Millen was scathing about him post match..

Been told by a few that it was the worst performance they have ever seen in a City shirt, Coppell gave him a lucrative 2 year contract we couldn’t get out of..

[Lanterne Rouge]

21 hours ago, Vespa Red said:

Wimbledon away in the FA Cup (might have been 1991), I thought he was our Man of the Match.  A rare exception admittedly...

Cambridge wasn`t it? That time we played them three times, lost the toss for venue for the second replay and got mullered about 5-0. Dion Dublin & Steve Claridge tore us a new one.

[Polly]

23 hours ago, Silvio Dante said:

Whenever Gus Caesar comes up I’m reminded of the passage in Fever Pitch. Points out that to get to the level he did, Gus was the best player in his school. Then the best player in his locality and so on. It’s well worth a read:

http://remotestorage.blogspot.com/2011/01/hornby-on-excellences-long-tail.html?m=1

A good read -thanks!

Lead me to rewatch the highlights from the classic Luton-Arsenal Littlewoods Cup Final under the old Twin Towers. 10 minutes to go Arsenal 2-1 up with a penalty, missed it, then Caesar came, collapsed and cocked it up... Danny Wilson the scorer.

[Wealwayseatcheese]

4 hours ago, GrahamC said:

Trust me, he was absolutely terrible.

Only played 7 games for us & luckily I wasn’t there at Elland Rd when he came on at 0-0 with 25 minutes to go, within 5 minutes the bloke he was “marking” had already scored two, & he got a hat trick in 17 minutes.

Hunt never played for us again, Millen was scathing about him post match..

Been told by a few that it was the worst performance they have ever seen in a City shirt, Coppell gave him a lucrative 2 year contract we couldn’t get out of..

Ha, I was there and immediately thought of this when I read the earlier post about not seeing him play live. He came on when Carey went off after being Poleaxed by a dirty Leeds ***** . Becchio ran him ragged and that was that. We matched them until he came on and I can still remember the reactions of our minibus when his name was mentioned on way home

[Pezo]

I don't think some people realise how good you have to be to play at this level. I was reading on the LJ thread how he was only ever an average footballer, if he was average then I don't know how you describe lower league pros or our youth players that run rings around semi pros, semi pros that would probably be described as actually average or even a decent quality Sunday league player that can usually run rings around most other people who would run rings around me.

Because someone is shit in the championship (and to me looked like he had some mental health issues) doesn't mean they shouldn't be able to be paid to play football. Most players in league 1 would look shit in our team let alone going down to Darlingtons level.

[The Constant Rabbit]

Nicky Hunt had been diagnosed with severe clinical depression prior to us signing him.

I don't know wether he had enough medical support, but after he was at fault for 2 soft goals early on at AG, his head was gone.

We should have spelled him for his own good - we kept playing him. he got worse, both playing wise and mentally.

I spoke to someone who knew him well a couple of years back, and NH only positive recollection of his time with us was that he didn't go ahead with what he was planning to do.

As he went down the leagues, the pressure dropped, and I am led to believe he is enjoying football, and more importantly LIVING again.

He was very, very unwell and it's lucky he is still with us.

I wish him well.

 

[BS4 on Tour...]

On 29/11/2020 at 17:41, The Dolman Pragmatist said:

Leave the bloke alone.   Yes, he was dreadful for us, but he came at a difficult time - signed by a manager who resigned after one match.  But he’s made 400 appearances in his career, and you don’t do that if you can’t play football.  I shouldn’t think he’s paid much money to play for Darlington.

I always thought Gus Caesar wasn’t as bad as he was made out to be - he made a few mistakes and was crucified by fans and media.

Good post - although I’m sure Coppell resigned after two matches?! Wasn’t it after the match at Southend, following the home debacle vs Millwall?! Don’t wanna cut short his fantastic career with us!

[poland_exile]

On 29/11/2020 at 21:56, Silvio Dante said:

Whenever Gus Caesar comes up I’m reminded of the passage in Fever Pitch. Points out that to get to the level he did, Gus was the best player in his school. Then the best player in his locality and so on. It’s well worth a read:

http://remotestorage.blogspot.com/2011/01/hornby-on-excellences-long-tail.html?m=1

I was going to mention Fever Pitch - whilst it of course wasn't Hornby's intention, I have no doubt that Gus's notoriety is unfailingly linked to that book. He would have been long forgotten by everyone by now were it not for being immortalized and highlighted in one of football's most ground breaking literary works.  

As others mention, he really wasn't thaaaaat bad. He wasn't great by any means, but it's curious how people are more inclined to list him in a roll-call of city's worst rather than, say, Brian Mitchell, Liam Robinson, Ian Baird, etc from much the same era. 

So yeah, give Gus a break!

As for Hunt - move on. Didn't work out. He ain't Holloway or someone of that outright villainy - just the wrong player at the wrong time who happened to be earning a great wage - he ain't the first and he won't be the last. LET'S GET OUR VILLAINS RIGHT! 

[poland_exile]

On 29/11/2020 at 22:14, Vespa Red said:

Wimbledon away in the FA Cup (might have been 1991), I thought he was our Man of the Match.  A rare exception admittedly...

Andy May with a lawn-cutter of a shot from 25 yards! 

[Redwhitepurple]

On 29/11/2020 at 17:41, The Dolman Pragmatist said:

Leave the bloke alone.   Yes, he was dreadful for us, but he came at a difficult time - signed by a manager who resigned after one match.  But he’s made 400 appearances in his career, and you don’t do that if you can’t play football.  I shouldn’t think he’s paid much money to play for Darlington.

I always thought Gus Caesar wasn’t as bad as he was made out to be - he made a few mistakes and was crucified by fans and media.

Some players can tbh, they just had great agents

[Wealwayseatcheese]

6 hours ago, poland_exile said:

Andy May with a lawn-cutter of a shot from 25 yards! 

I was there , stood in middle section on Holmesdale terrace,  missed the first leg as my father, who was a Wrexham fan, took me to the Racecourse to watch them play Arsenal.!!! The Wimbledon  win set up the unforgettable trip to Filbert street. 
how I wish I could relive those days again. 

[Denbury Red]

Some years ago, my old employers used to organise a 5 a side tournament at Taunton and was supposed to be staff only.

We could see after a few games one team had this guy playing for them - he was certainly in his 40’s, but the ball just stick to his boot and he was scoring goals for fun.

It turned out to be Steve Kember (ex Chelsea).

There were probably 100 plus players at the tournament, many of whom thought they were the bees knees - but compared to someone who had been there and done it - there was no comparison!

Professional vs Amateur - there is no comparison!

[poland_exile]

4 hours ago, Wealwayseatcheese said:

I was there , stood in middle section on Holmesdale terrace,  missed the first leg as my father, who was a Wrexham fan, took me to the Racecourse to watch them play Arsenal.!!! The Wimbledon  win set up the unforgettable trip to Filbert street. 
how I wish I could relive those days again. 

so completely! Couldn't have dreamt how much the game - or more to the point, supporting it - would change. Unbelievable, and also unbelievably sad  

Great times watching City! 

[Will Rollason]

20 hours ago, The Constant Rabbit said:

Nicky Hunt had been diagnosed with severe clinical depression prior to us signing him.

I don't know wether he had enough medical support, but after he was at fault for 2 soft goals early on at AG, his head was gone.

We should have spelled him for his own good - we kept playing him. he got worse, both playing wise and mentally.

I spoke to someone who knew him well a couple of years back, and NH only positive recollection of his time with us was that he didn't go ahead with what he was planning to do.

As he went down the leagues, the pressure dropped, and I am led to believe he is enjoying football, and more importantly LIVING again.

He was very, very unwell and it's lucky he is still with us.

I wish him well.

 

I've posted before about Nicky hunt and how he was obviously not well when he was here. I didn't know the background but guessed, from personal experience, what was wrong. 

as someone has already said , leave the bloke alone ffs.