Are we at times too hard on foreign players, saying theyre prolonging injuries as they cudnt be arsed?

Lots of criticism aimed at Marcelino yet hes due to be back sooner than the hand specialist predicited, after snapping a hand tendon. I think we shud give the man a chance and stop slagging off the ugly bastard.....ooops!!

-- Anonymous, October 05, 2000

Answers

Nooooooooooo, He's a soft Spaniard and deserves our wrath until he starts earning the Million pound a year that we pay him.

Barton, Speed, Dabizas and Charvet have all bounced back from being our most disliked players, by getting stuck in and doing what they are payed to do. Untill I see a marked change in this mans performance and commitment I'll continue to call him worse than shite.

-- Anonymous, October 05, 2000

Howay, man, give him a break. I read an interview with hom today and he was really embarrassed that the club doctors made him take a month off. REAALY embarrassed.

-- Anonymous, October 05, 2000

Right there with you Rik, soft spanish bastard that is until he single handedly scores the games winner against the makems until then ssb. Dougal I am surprised that you( of all people) were taken in by what he said, of course he is going to say that what dope wouldn't? Didn't someone carry on playing with some horrible injury which wasn't discoverd until after the match.

-- Anonymous, October 05, 2000

Maybe its his favourite nose picking finger, used when hard at work in defence? Sympathize for goodness sake!

-- Anonymous, October 05, 2000

Syme - I've just heard from other sources that this isn't as simple as what meets the eye. On this occsaion, Marcelino isn't really guilty of anything.

-- Anonymous, October 05, 2000

Agree with you Dougal, although Marcelino has been out of action a while, How do we...the likes of the every day supporter, know what is truly wrong. ANS: We don't, he might have lost the finger for all we know if it wasn't for specialist surgery. Got to admit though he is shite!

-- Anonymous, October 05, 2000

Dougal writes: Howay, man, give him a break. I couldn't agree more Dougal......what were you thinking of.....arm, leg, neck or back!

A hand injury for a goalkeeper I could understand, the hands are, after all, the tools of his trade, but Martha is supposed to play the game with his feet.

If some players can get out and compete with broken noses (unproctected) and broken cheeks, (protected by a Phantom mask) then a piggin knackered finger should pose no problems........

-- Anonymous, October 05, 2000

Bassedas played on with a broken leg didn't he? But speaking of hand injuries, I snapped my tendon in my thumb (which pulled part of the bone off) playing on astroturf when I was a student. I was out for 2 months, I've injured knees, broken my nose and had cracked ribs and all of them were for less than 2 months. To be honest I think we should stop slagging him off over a finger

-- Anonymous, October 05, 2000

For me Kegsy the finger injury is merely the last straw - or last tendon if you prefer.

The reason the big blouse (a.k.a. Marcia Brady) deserves the slagging he has been getting is simple. In well over a year now he has failed to do even one thing of note that proves he is worth the megabucks he has been picking up over that period.

Once he shows he's capable of offering more than the (very) occasional tackle or burst from defence then he may get some respect. And while he can't be blamed for genuine injuries, unfortunately for him he is the latest in a long, long line of decidedly average NUFC players being paid decidedly above-average money, funded in part out of my pocket. And for bugger all in return, unless of course you believe keeping the subs bench warm or the club physios busy equals value for money.

I'm sure I speak for many in saying we're sick of the Marcias. Either show us something you skiving (straw) donkey or vamoose back to Spain ! Not that I'll barrack him in public mind if he plays against Boro ...

-- Anonymous, October 06, 2000

I don't dispute the fact he's done bugger all since he joined, it's just that speaking from painful experience you can't play on it. It's not like you can protect it, how many times in a game do players fall over/ get knoced over and you put your hand out to stop yourself. Broken arms can be protected, so can noses but fingers are like toes in this case.

-- Anonymous, October 06, 2000

I'm inclined to agree that he might not be as black as he's charcoal looking. As I understand it, the layoff was enforced because of the type of splint he had fitted - he wouldn't have been allowed to play wearing it.

Nobody hated Barton more than I did, and he made me eat umble pie, so if this guy can come good and save us wads of dosh, good luck to him.

-- Anonymous, October 06, 2000

Failing that pit bull, if he can b*gger off and give us loads of dosh then that would also be acceptable.

-- Anonymous, October 06, 2000

That would be an acceptible alternative.

-- Anonymous, October 06, 2000

Why couldn't they have just amputated his bloody finger, He could have played on them couldn't he?

-- Anonymous, October 06, 2000

Ive read that if he didnt get the operation he could have lost any feeling in the finger, so give him a break !!!!

The specialist said 12 weeks on the sidelines, sooooooo

How many players do we have who experienced a european cup final ?

He will not play any better if we slag him off, let get behind him !

If he play a couple of good matches he will worth something !!!

Come on guys............get behind the poor guy

-- Anonymous, October 06, 2000

Vatos! far be it from me to get on anyones case but the facts are that we paid a small fortune for his services and continue to do so. Regardless of the fact that he has only played a handfull of games all of which he has shown himself to be a remarkably average player. In my estimation he needs to have a stella season just to be at an even keel. He has shirked from challenges and his overall performances have been comparible to the dark days of pistone (who did redeem himself) We are talkin about playing for Newcastle United not some mickey mouse outfit, 50000 people pay vast amounts of money to come and watch eleven players (ours) be prepared to die on the field not cry off becuause of some finger injury. Jackie Milburn would have put a bandage on it and continued playing and that would be his drinking hand too.

-- Anonymous, October 06, 2000

Howay fellas, give the guy a chance. Knock a man when he's down, eh? Hardly fair. Hoy aal sort of s*ite at him when he comes back from the injury if he's cr@p. But if he's not, then get behind him. After all, if we want to get some dosh back, we need him to be playing reasonably well. He seemed OK for Majorca. Just ask Dennis Wise.

-- Anonymous, October 06, 2000

He is the best Centre Back we have at the club!

-- Anonymous, October 08, 2000