KK reveals the facts behind him leaving the Toon in an interview for FootballNews.com:

Keegan has now revealed the manager's job lost its appeal after the club was set to become a Plc, prompting his shock decision to quit. "When anybody leaves their job, it's rarely the way you want to leave" he said. "I know it was my choice to leave, I had no option - but I was forced into a corner. When then chairman Sir John Hall first rang me to bring me back to Newcastle, he said 'We are the two people who can save Newcastle."

"On the last day, he was nowhere to be seen. I felt that was bad. In fact, it was the one bad day I had there. I was sat in the boardroom with Freddy Shepherd, Freddie Fletcher and Douglas Hall, men I had worked with, but they said nothing as some finance man floating the club told me I had to sign a new contract or go."

"I said 'You don't know me. These people do. Thank you very much - goodbye!' It was becoming a Plc and I felt the focus of the club had changed. It just wasn't as enjoyable as it had been."

-- Anonymous, February 16, 2002

Answers

to all of you who didn't believe me when I told you so....

I TOLD YOU SO!!!!

The well had run dry and Keegan turned tail and ran like the punk he is!

-- Anonymous, February 16, 2002

In case you've forgotten Sparxx, crucifixion is also what happened to the other messiah.

-- Anonymous, February 16, 2002

The thing is the other Messiah stood firm and never ran.

-- Anonymous, February 16, 2002

It was inevitable that old wounds would be reopened when we were drawn against KK. The old saint/sinner argument rears its head once again.

As far as I'm concerned the man is a God because he helped us to realise things that we all wanted so badly but had previously only dreamed about.

Yes he spat out the dummy and probably would have quit eventually anyway, but when you consider that the PLC floatation and subsequent PR has been a complete disaster did the man not have a good point to make at the time?

I cant wait for Sunday to shout his name from the rooftops throughout the match simply because he deserves it.

-- Anonymous, February 16, 2002

You idol worshippers need to realise....

the man is managing MANCHESTER CITY!!!! His loyalty to us stopped the minute he left. Your loyalty to him should as well!

-- Anonymous, February 16, 2002

No loyalty, just genuine affection. Nowt wrong with that.

-- Anonymous, February 16, 2002

Sparx, you should appreciate a valuable contribution. It's called respecting the history of the club. Like we respect the memory of Jackie Milburn.

Rob Lee would appear to have let us down by claiming he was injured for five weeks then not only passing a medical for Derby County but playing a full game three days later. We don't even owe him a bit of polite applause if he comes back to Newcastle on your analysis of how we should treat ex-servants.

-- Anonymous, February 16, 2002

Dougal... if you can compare Rob Lee, who was a faithful servant to the club and didn't quit, was sold - a major difference - to Keegan we have nowt further to discuss. Rob Lee's actions leading up to the transfer not withstanding, he gave us all he had. If ye think for a second he'll make a major difference for Derby... then again, we have nowt to talk about.

As for old legends, legends are made of stern stuff. Keegan's accomplishments for the toon are well recorded and will long be remembered. The fact he betrayed us and for the likes of Fulham and Man. City, can not be forgotten for the man who said, "that if he were to manage we were the only club he'd come to"

Oh how quickly the tune has changed. The man has no fibre. If he beats us tomorrow, I'll not be surprised to hear the toon singin "walkin in a Keegan wonderland...."

By god I love this team, but I will not...ever... worship that man...

-- Anonymous, February 16, 2002

Sparxx, withhout KK we probably wouldn't be in the Premiership (we might even be in division 2 or worse), we wouldn't have a world class stadium, we wouldn't have a world class manager, we wouldn't have Alan Shearer. We wouldn't have challenged for the title, played in Europe, beaten Barcelona, put 5 past Man United & 7 past Spurs. No Ginola, Albert, Asprilla, Cole or Lee. We'd have been signing Beardsley to play for us now and not when he was in his prime.

Regardless of Keegan's motives for arriving at the club and then leaving, he is arguably the greatest Newcastle manager of all time and deserves all the respect and affection he'll receive on Sunday. If we do go on to win the title don't forget where this club was pre Keegan - our current position was simply unimaginable.

-- Anonymous, February 16, 2002

Oh, and as far as Rob Lee goes I think you'll find he took a testimonial a year early then asked for a transfer shortly afterwards. Hardly counts as being sold against his will.

-- Anonymous, February 16, 2002

greatest manager ever? He had MILLIONS to play with... Sir John Hall was the saviour NOT Keegan. I'm certain Keegan would never have even taken the job if he was told he had no money to spend.

Greatest manager??? Opportunist... definitely. The well ran dry and he found a deeper well in Al Fayed. Your naievety is believing that he saved us... he didn't. Sir John Hall did. 30 million pounds 10 years ago could've made Ardiles a genius as well.

As for Rob Lee... the criticism of his actions is understandable. Unfortunately this thread is about Keegan.... not Robert. This gaga- itis over Keegan is really deplorable.

-- Anonymous, February 16, 2002

shout his name from the rooftops THROUGHOUT the match - Andy W ????? Newcastle Utd Football Club managed now and being PREPARED for the future under the PROFESSIONAL tutelage of one Robert Robson are playing tomorrow. No-one is bigger than the club, never will be, until KK manages a club that has limited buying power and by sheer graft hauls it up to the top I will class him as a convenience opportunist manager.

-- Anonymous, February 16, 2002

Sparxx , read your post above after my wee rant, I agree with every word you say re Keegan, the same people on here would have Shearer farmed out to a smaller club to gain managerial experience,!!! of course KK began his managerial career with Scunthorpe, not.

**Would Keegan have bought Jenas?, Keegan was for now, Robson is for Newcastle and always and will leave a legacy of young talented players for the next manager.

-- Anonymous, February 16, 2002

thank you Buff...top marks!

-- Anonymous, February 16, 2002

Just how much did Keegan have to spend when he came back? I'm struggling hard to think of the big money signings that kept us from relegation, or the ones that won us promotion. David Kelly? Paul Bracewell? Kevin Sheedy? Brian Kilcline? Not exactly throwing the millions around at that stage.

You may recall that John Hall was chairman for some time before Keegan was appointed. Ardiles wasn't given cash to play with because the club was in a desparate financial state and Keegan's appointment did an enourmous amount to change that by putting 15,000 onto our home gates for that near-relegation run in. In other words, his mere presence for those 7 or 8 home games that year was worth somewhere between half a million and a million pounds in gate money alone. That's where the money came from, either directly or indirectly. Hall (and I'm not attempting to take any credit away from him) put the money in on the basis that with Keegan and a decent side we could reasonably expect to have vastly greater income and could therefore afford to spend. Without Keegan there was no money - do you think we would have been able to go down that route if Jim Smith was manager? Ardiles? Even Robson - I'm certainly not saying he wouldn't have been a long term success if he'd come instead of Keegan, but there's no way he would have had the same immediate impact on the club's finances. Not that he would have come anyway.

Sparxx, I notice that whilst you mock the suggestion that he's our best manager ever, you don't come up with an alternative suggestion. You could perhaps make a case for someone else, but I would suggest you'd have to go back 50 years or so. And it's certainly not Bobby Robson as yet, though nothing would make me happier than for him to enter the running in that particular contest.

And as for your suggestion that Keegan left because the well ran dry and he found a deeper one in Al-Fayed...... regardless of whether I agree or disagree with you on that point, that's clearly nonsense as the vast amounts of money flushed down said well by every manager since Keegan's departure demonstrate. 30 million would have made even Ardiles a genius? Ask a Spurs fan if they agree. Ask a Boro fan about Bryan Robson. A Villa fan about Brian Little. A Wolves fan about just about all of their managers of the last decade. History is littered with managers who have had bucketloads to spend (not least being our last 2 managers) and who have gone nowhere.

Buff, you may be right that Keegan might not have bought Jenas though you might just as easily argue that he wouldn't have bought Gavilan or Lua-Lua either. Anyway, he wasn't as reluctant to play youngsters as some people suggest, as the likes of Watson, Elliot, Howey & Clark would doubtless testify. He also bought the likes of Cole, Gillespie, Huckerby, & Holland (with varying degrees of success). You could certainly make a case that he didn't manage the youth side of the club as well as he might have, but it's harsh to suggest that he was just about the moment and not about the future. The fact that until a couple of weeks ago we had 3 players (4 if you count Elliot) still at the club who were bought by Keegan suggests that it's not quite that simple.

Sounds like I'm a Keegan worshipper, and to an extent I suppose maybe I am. I'm perfectly prepared to accept his flaws and limitations, but I can't fathom the bitterness some people seem to feel towards someone who dragged us from the depths to the highest league finish in all of our lifetimes (unless we have an 85 year old BBS-er out there). Makes me wonder if sometimes people forget what it was like going to Oxford to see us ship 5 goals, or to Southend for a noon kick off on New Years Day to watch us lose 4-0, or any of those other crappy places over the years where we just knew we were going to get beaten. We could still be there now.

-- Anonymous, February 16, 2002

Oh, and Buff, not sure why you're equating the "Keegan worshipper" camp with people who think we should farm out Shearer to a small club. Personally I'd make him assistant manager next season with a view to taking over when Uncle Bobby decides to call it a day.

-- Anonymous, February 16, 2002

AL, This debate over Keegan has been covered many times on here , this time I feel its a wee bit different, coming at a time when we are back playing good football, still in the latter stages of the cup and with a good chance of winning the title all overseed by a man we all can relate to and trust. In the past guys like me and Sparxx have been swamped by the Keegan afficiendos when discussing the man, cannot speak for Sparxx, I have nothing against the guy , seems likeable, bubbly,effervescent, in fact all the things that go against anyone being a good long term manager. At least this debate is only loosely comparing for like with KD and RG, that`s a bonus. You see Al, one can only compare with a person or a club that has been in the same position as Newcastle , probably Liverpool is the one I will use, down the divisions, nothing going for them and a saviour arrives at Annfield, no fuss,job to do and he gets on with it, Gruff, taciturn,but inwardly a winner, surrounds himself with a staff of jobbers but importantly good football people, he gradually gets the club out of its terminal decline, lays the foundations on the training ground and in the celebrated boot room . He forms a bond with the supporters who realise that this guy is going to go the distance with us,can identify with us, is us!!. The foundations are laid, success is regular, hand-over of managership is done with minimum fuss the club lives on, the spur being their own high standards set in the past,relegation is/never will be an issue, pre-season talk is of the title, of Europe, the club is geared to go forward, one man who did serve an apprenticship in football managership.

I therefore accuse Kevin Keegan of wasting the best chance that Newcastle ever had of reaching the standard set out above, no success no foundation for the future,all this when he was hero worshipped by the fans, backed by the most enthusiastic chairman ever in Newcastle`s history, on leaving when the work was not completed , a flawed legacy of players , leaving in later stages a senior citizen to show him how to build , not just a team but a club, not just for the day,but always

BTW AL, I do not credit Keegan with the stadium, methinks Lord Taylor had a big say in the outcome, credit Peter Reid with SOL next.-:)

Don hard hat, prepare for incoming flak, tot of rum and a Joe Harvey.

-- Anonymous, February 17, 2002

I still have a soft spot for KK, and the passion he showed while he was at the Club. Great memories of great football too. I would love him to receive a hearty welcome when he arrives at the bench. From then on, however, I would like to hear wor Bobby`s name chanted loud proud and clearly so as to leave no-one in doubt that we are 100 percent behind our `man of the moment`. I know the team will get the usual fantastic support, but I feel today, of all days, is the opportunity to let Bobby Robson know just how much he is appreciated. (:o)

-- Anonymous, February 17, 2002

I have to say - I'm inclined to go along with some of what Sparxx says. I appreciate what KK did for us and for that I will applaud him but I hope that the crowd will not be singing his name. This is Bobby's team, as some of you have already pointed out.

KK gave us our respect back, a great team and some great memories. However, he walked out on us and he couldn't cope when we were`12 points clear. (Read Les' book to find out more). Hopefully today can give the supporters the opportunity to say goodbye and finally we can all move on.

-- Anonymous, February 17, 2002

Sparxx, are you saying that comparisons aren't relevant? Personally, I think Rob Lee has shown his true colours ever since charging so much for a shite testimonial played a year early. I will give him no more than polite applause if he ever comes back. He got my thank you when I paid £20 for his testimonial and he abused that thanks by DEMANDING a transfer about five weeks after he'd cashed the cheque and by spending most of the rest of the season "injured". To me, that sort of behaviour is nothing short of sh*te. What you think of Keegan, in fact.

-- Anonymous, February 17, 2002

A manager is judged by his results. Keegan was the best manager we have had for my lifetime in terms of league position. The breathtaking football his team played, his and the team's media profile, the sheer excitement of his too short stay was such a change from the mediocre fare previous and subsequently until YBR. How anyone can rubbish these achievements is beyond me. Of course he was part of a management team - but without him we would not have had those marvellous years.
Thanks KK, the true fans will always remember you.

-- Anonymous, February 17, 2002

I will always love KK for giving us back our belief that we could compete with the very best: will always love Rob Lee for all the memories of The General, one of our best ever signings - and btw we don't know the facts of what has gone on behind the scenes recently, so I'm prepared to give Rob the benefit of the doubt.

Aside from the above, I think some very valid points have been made about tonights match. It is undoubtedly an opportunity to welcome back one all-time Geordie hero, but let's not forget who the real Geordie hero is right now, and let's make sure we let Bobby Robson know just how high highly we regard his efforts to do the unimaginable for us. This is a very important point.

-- Anonymous, February 17, 2002

Brilliantly put ADK. Wish I could have wrote that!

Buff, if I thought that singing KK's name would have an adverse effect on the team I would'nt do it. It wont though. And when I said I would sing his name throughout the match you can bet your life I will sing Bobby's name ten times more and get behind our team 100%. However Sunday is more than a little about sentimentality, a chance to show the man that (most of us) appreciate what he did for us, even if he did leave in controversial circumstances.

For what its worth I agree with you when you speak of wasting a glorious opportunity by quitting but it seems that you are judging all of KK's contribution to our club simply on the manner in which he departed. That is blinkered and very unfair IMHO.

Really, I find the ferocity of the criticism of KK on this thread quite appalling. If I did'nt know better I would think you were Mackems on a wind up.

KK left a great legacy at the club. Yes it could have been even better but what we got, I would argue, was better than anything any supporter of this club had seen before. Thankfully both our club and KK himself have recovered from their respective setbacks and are both prospering.

The fact that the bond between the two has survived is something worth celebrating in itself. And I for one will be doing that.

-- Anonymous, February 17, 2002

Andy - for what it's worth, I reckon 95%+ of Toon fans who actually experienced the so-called "Keegan Years" are of a similar mind to yourself and ADK.

There is special relationship between us and KK that will endure. Those who simply tag KK as a quitter don't comprehend his qualities and his achievements here, and never will - and this is not intended to be a criticism, just a statement of fact.

-- Anonymous, February 17, 2002

We can't compare Keegan with Robson. The club's circumstances have changed in the past ten years as has the entire face of football. Keegan was what we needed to bring the club back to life, Robson was what we needed when we looked like we were sinking fast. We have reason to be grateful to them both. I don't agree with those who say that when eventually we win something, Keegan should get a medal, too, since he started it all, as that's belitting YBR. On the other hand, I think it's churlish to criticise Keegan - he understood us and gave us what we wanted. If some of us want to celebrate the five great years he gave us, surely there can't be anything wrong with that. In the final analysis, it should be an ovation for Keegan, then non-stop support for Newcastle after kick-off. For the life of me, I can't see what's wrong with that.

Clarky, you're right that we don't know all the facts but equally we have only ever heard Rob's version of the Ruud Gullit saga. I guess it's one we've all got an opinion on.

-- Anonymous, February 17, 2002

We've been through this loads of times, but my opinion is still the same.

It's pointless repeating what's already been said on this thread though.

Basically, Keegan was fantastic for us and we definitely wouldn't be where we are now without him in our history.

Yes he had his flaws, but these were minor compared with his plus points. I go along with ADK's argument that he has actually done something with the money.

Look at someone like David O'Leary. Although the jury is still perhaps out on O'Dreary, he has spent an absolute fortune and not made a lot back in return. One good CL run is about it, no runners up spots, no silverware at all, and I bet not even the most ardent Leeds fan will say that Leeds have played football as entertaining as Keegan's Newcastle team.

However, he is the past, not the present, nor the future. I appreciate what he has done in the past and will show my appreciation tonight at the game, but that it that, Robson is the present and that is what matters.

-- Anonymous, February 17, 2002

I had the utmost respect for Keegan until late on when I felt he cost us the premiership with some very poor tactical decisions. Most people at the time were screaming for him to tighten up at the back late on in games (Blackburn and Bindippers away???????).

He then pulled the pin and left NUFC and the fans in the lurch . He repeated the dose at Fulham and England.

A polite round of applause before the game is respectful. Accolades and standing ovations should be reserved for winners not quitters!!

-- Anonymous, February 17, 2002

But you cannot deny that he largely got us where we are today, and that we would most likely be either bankrupt or languishing in the lower leagues without him.

Whether he is a quitter or not, we have all benefited massively from his services.

-- Anonymous, February 17, 2002

Keith - "The thing is the other Messiah stood firm and never ran."

He didn't have much choice being nailed to a piece of wood, did He?

-- Anonymous, February 17, 2002

The Revisionism about KK here is quite remarkable. Facts are facts - and the facts about KK speak for themselves, which is why the Revisionists have to make up new ones!

The well had run dry and Keegan turned tail and ran like the punk he is!

Look at the spending by Dalglish and Gullit. £60m plus? Dry well? FICTION.

greatest manager ever? He had MILLIONS to play with... Sir John Hall was the saviour NOT Keegan.

The two were a TEAM. They could not have achieved what they did without each other. SJH did NOT hand over millions to KK on day 1 - indeed you might recall that KK threatened to quit very early because modest funds which had been promised had not materialised. In KK's first season when he saved us from relegation, he spent £250,000(?) on Kilcline, who was instrumental in getting us to safety. And how many millions was KK given in the close season to start our promotion year? Beresford £650,000, Venison £250,000. Bracewell (£??) Net result? 11(?) straight wins and promotion on it's way. During the season the first major signing was made - Cole for £1.75m from a lower division team - a brilliant signing. KK was GENERATING HIS OWN FUNDS. It was clear that promotion was becoming likely so SJH was more confident cash could be released. The really big signings, Ferdinand, Tino, Shearer, all came after we had established ourselves as a top 3 side and turnover had grown from a mere £4m to £50m. Remember the "millions" spent on the likes of Mathie, Allan, Papavasiliou in KK's early days? Stick to facts. The idea that KK achieved what he did because of the SJH millions is FICTION. KK's success brought in the millions and SJH had the vision to give him free reign with them.

30 million pounds 10 years ago could've made Ardiles a genius as well.

Others have pointed out how silly that remark is. Both KD and RG had sums like that to spend and went backwards. The Bryan Robson example is excellent and demonstrates that the above statement cannot be justified.

Would Keegan have bought Jenas?, Keegan was for now

YES he would have done. He bought Huckerby for £500k, a player who has since had a value of TWELVE times that. Rob Lee £700k(!!!!!) Cole was young and unproven at top level. The legacy KK left was excellent. Are you seriously trying to tell me that he left behind a pile of rubbish which finished 2nd in the Premier that same season?

I therefore accuse Kevin Keegan of wasting the best chance that Newcastle ever had of reaching the standard set out above, no success no foundation for the future

This cannot stand. He left behind a team which completed the season in SECOND PLACE in the Premier. No foundation for the future? Compare the legacy Keegan inherited to the one he left. Purlease. Tino (worth £7m) Shearer (£20m), Sir Les (£6m) Ginola, Albert, and others who would be shipped out to make way for the likes of Andersson and Rush. No juniors? Erm, Hughes, anyone? Harper? Ameobi? Chopra, Elliot? All on the books during a time when KK's focus was where it should be - on the first team.

I do not credit Keegan with the stadium, methinks Lord Taylor had a big say in the outcome, credit Peter Reid with SOL next

Taylor had no say at all in the outcome except to specify that it would be all seater. Taylor did not specify that it be 50000 or that it remain in a prime city centre location. We would NOT have the SJP we have now without the Hall/KK revolution. There is no stadium in the 2nd division (which is where we were going) which comes remotely close. The SOL came courtesy of the European Impoverished Areas Fund or World Wildlife Fund or something similar. SJP came via the KK success and promotion to the Premier.

I don't worship Keegan or any other player (or human being). KK will get my affectionate applause at the start, followed by a jovial "RE- JECT" before I launch into Robson Wonderland. I will always thank KK for what he did for us, and will continue to hope that even his magnificent achievements will be surpassed by the present incumbent.

I must admit I've not read so much nonsense in a thread since, since - well since the last one I started I guess. :-)

Could the next KK critic attempt to explain why salvation from the third tier to qualification for the CL, during which time the club revenue grew TWELVE-fold can be defined as failure?

-- Anonymous, February 17, 2002

As I understand it, Keegan didn't just up and decide to quit. He was given an ultimatem when the club was on the verge of becoming a PLC, more or less 'Sign or resign'. He, (and I, as if it mattered,) wasn't happy with the possible fate of the club as a PLC and decided to leave. If that's 'quitting', so be it, but it doesn't make KK any less admirable as far as I'm concerned.

We'll never know how he would have handled being as strapped for cash as we have been lately, and maybe it's one of his managerial flaws that he needed the cash resources to be immediately available, rather than being able to spot bargains.

Nevertheless, the highs I experienced when he played for us and then when he was manager, will always stay with me as the best I've experienced in quite a number of years supporting the mags.

On balance, he can have the freedom of the toon forever.

-- Anonymous, February 17, 2002

Spot on jonno.

Didn't realise the World Wildlife Fund paid for the SoL :)

-- Anonymous, February 17, 2002

I had the utmost respect for Keegan until late on when I felt he cost us the premiership with some very poor tactical decisions. Most people at the time were screaming for him to tighten up at the back late on in games (Blackburn and Bindippers away???????).

This is the first reasonable criticism of KK in this thread. In answer, I think it boils down to a matter of opinion. It will never be provable. The KK style was all out attack. Had we had a policy of tightening up after getting ahead, it MIGHT be that points would have been salvaged in the games you mention. But what about all the other games when caution was thrown to the winds and the opposition was crushed? Who is to say, that if we had tightened up we might not have lost 2 points to a late jammy equaliser? Tightening up is no automatic game finisher, and teams like Arsenal, Leeds, Bolton and Spurs have all failed to tighten up against us in recent weeks. The point you make will always remain moot.

IMHO, what cost us the league that year was about 11 last minute winners by Cantona. Man Utd were hugely lucky that season especially at SJP, in the same fixture where they were again outclassed but this time, justly slaughtered just a few months later.

-- Anonymous, February 17, 2002

It did all boil down to that one game against Man Utd.

Had we won it, we would have basically been Champions.

Still gets me thinking "what if?" when I remember that match.

Jammy Mancs.

-- Anonymous, February 17, 2002

You've all got strong opinions and good reasons for them. But the fact is that it doesn't really matter what we think on here. Tonight Keegan WILL get a fantastic reception. And he will be remembered as a great manager for years to come. Whether he deserves it or not, it will happen. Tonight will be amazing. We'll never know why Keegan left. I heard all sorts of reasons at the time, some of which I wouldn't dare write on here. But we have to look at what we do know. He got us into the premier league and we came very close to the title. If he hadn't done that, BR probably wouldn't be with us now. We'd be in the lower divisions dreaming of promotion. Now we're dreaming of the double.

I think he deserves the reception he'll get tonight.

-- Anonymous, February 17, 2002

He will get a great reception, and I'll be contributing to that.

-- Anonymous, February 17, 2002

There are a few things here that have yet to be discussed. First off a clarification...it's been said he was given an ultimatum. I know it to be the other way around. He told the club that if he would leave if the club went to a PLC.

Why? Why would someone who had the "only job he ever wanted" decide that at that time he'd leave? Why at the brink of ultimate success did he quit? The messiah had saved us and now all of a sudden he simply quits...

Let's look at his "amazing record"... he "saved" us from the third division. He took us to the top, albeit we have nowt but memories of pretty footie to remember him by. He brought respect and admiration to the club. Oh we were so close....why leave... the dream was realised!!!! Or was it?

He quit, simply put, he quit.... why? Yet now we know why...the club going to a PLC forced his hand. He understood that the next steps were inevitable...he'd have to sacrifice... again why?

1) We had the HIGHEST payroll in the league. This, while having helped us to heights we have not known. That had to be brought down. The PLC had demanded it. Their ideals were different.

2) Our foundation was gone. The reserves were done. The castle had been built but was pretty in design only. It was no fortress. We were exposed at the back. Liverpool showed that any team who had a bit of pace could destroy our "pretty" football. Keegan's ultimate downfall was that his success had come too soon. Then the expectations of him became huge and the risk of failure hung over him as a big as a hangmans noose. You will note he took a completely different approach at Fulham, simply because he knew what he did wrong here.

3) The lack of ultimate success haunted him. Success is measured in silver my friends, and he had not delivered that. Having lost the league to Manure left him a beaten and desparate man. Time had run out. The PLC was a mere formality by that time.

Julius Cesar: "I come to bury Caesar.... not to praise him"

I'm sure Keegan still loves us...he just loves Man. City a bit more.

-- Anonymous, February 17, 2002

Keegan gave us expectations again - clearly you are rightly bitter about the dashing of them spaarx. The older supporters have had to drain the dregs of failure time and time again - so forgive us our sad and rather pathetic support of someone who rescued the club along with the Halls and others. Clearly it would have been better to let the club descend into obscurity rather than experience the ultimatedly flawed stewardship of a quitter.

-- Anonymous, February 17, 2002

Very true True. :-)

-- Anonymous, February 17, 2002

Strangely we'll never know what would have happened if he had stayed as Sparxx clearly would have prefered he did, cos he hates the quitter part of Keegan.

At the time I wasn't gutted as I felt he had started to lose it. The Novemeber/December period had been poor (for us and our expectations at the time) . The 7 games up to Boxing Day had produced 5 goals, 4 points, and a League Cup defeat at Boro. We weren't playing well, and we didn't seem to be able to play the way we all knew we should.

The financial side of things may well have been a catalyst that sparked the revolution but it wasn't the single thing that pushed him out. My feeling was that he hates losing, or not winning. He has been driven all through his life by the belief that he can be the tops, all the way down to racing bikes in Superstars. When he lost the league run in, and had to come to terms with the fact that he'd given something his absolute best and it wasn't good enough he couldn't cope. I think the affection that many have shown on here was contributory as well. We forgave him the disappointment cos at least he'd tried (compare with our neighbours). He hated the "its okay Kev" attitude, cos like Buff and Sparxx and all of us really, he wanted to win.

He didn't win any silverware for us, so it would be fair to say that trophy wise he was no better than Lee, Dinnis, McGarry, Charlton, McFaul, Smith, Ardiles, Dalglish or Gullit. They may or may not have had the finances he had, but as he has been oft quoted this last week he spent a net £40m over 5 years, or £8m per year, not mega bucks.

-- Anonymous, February 18, 2002

Macbeth, you forgot Colin Suggett!!

-- Anonymous, February 18, 2002

Maybe the board should have had the foresight to have accepted his resignation the previous summer instead of forcing him into a corner.

-- Anonymous, February 18, 2002

the king is dead... long live the king!

-- Anonymous, February 18, 2002

.....amen.

You'll be pleased to know sparxx that KK received an enthusiastic but brief welcome, and was then largely forgotten as the game got underway.

You'll also be pleased to know that there was a thunderous round of "Robson's Wonderland" during the 2nd half which 46,000 of the Toon Army decreed was the appropriate place to leave it all. The fans have spoken.

-- Anonymous, February 18, 2002

Pleased to hear the majority seemed to get it right Clarky. Onwards and upwards!!

-- Anonymous, February 19, 2002

We already said goodbye and thank you at Beardo's testimonial: because it didn't happen on the telly it doesn't exist though, a bit like the violence on Sunday.

-- Anonymous, February 19, 2002