When Coventry City bought firebrand David Speedie
ALL this talk over Marlon King has got me thinking back to when the City bought Speedie from Chelsea.
Speedie turned into a bit of a Sky Blue legend, but at the time his signing was a little controversial because he had a reputation as a hothead who was forever getting sent off and booked.
And for that reason a lot of clubs were put off by that but not the City thankfully, because he quickly became an Highfield Road favourite.
I can recall his debut against Spurs which we won 2-1 and he scored, he was a bundle of energy that game and was all over the pitch, he played with his heart on his sleeve which is a polite way of saying he got stuck in.
I also recall on many occasions when Speedie would square up to a six foot odd defender wanting to sort it out there on the pitch, which could look funny at times because he was only about five foot seven, then he would calm down a bit and score a cracking goal or lay off a brilliant pass to a team-mate.
Comparing him to King is probably wrong because although he was aggressive on the pitch he was laid back off it I heard,but what I'm trying to convey is that sometimes clubs have to take a gamble on players and sometimes it pays off and sometimes it doesn't, nothing ventured so to speak.
But if Marlon King does sign for us and he is as passionate and exciting a player as Speedie was the gamble would have been well worth it I reckon.
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Rationalise it all you want, the man has multiple convictions for a variety of terrible things. He may protest his innocence for his most recent conviction but he is undoubtedly guilty of most if not all his other misdemeanours.
I suspect that he could be a great acquisition for the football club in footballing terms alone, but he would also be a unpleasant indicator of where this club's ethics lie. Signing him would send a clear message: it's okay to beat up girls in nightclubs so long as you're a talented footballer. Is that a message we, as fans, want associated with our club?
Fair comments Ben,this Marlon King transfer speculation looks like it's causing friction already and he's not even here yet.What I'm saying is if we are talking about football then let's sign him,if on the other hand we are talking on a moral issue then obviously we have to take into account his offences,which doesn't look good to say the least.
I'm a Coventry City fan and want us to win everything going,and we need a striker to do that so like I keep saying can we as a club afford to not sign him ?
Morals don't win football games do they, only footballers can do that !
Some things are more important than football.
One could argue that King has served his time and therefore paid the price for his crime. However i doubt the poor female student feels that way nor do i believe she feels overly safe when approached in a nightclub.
If Kings crime had been a one off then yes he would deserve a chance but where do you draw the line? How many chances does a person need before you start to wonder whether they will ever change 4? 5? 14?
Signing King is not just about the club, it is a far bigger issue.
It is about the younger generation being told that crime pays. That morals and standards will always give way to money and greed.
With his latest conviction, King would not be allowed to teach children, why then should we deem him suitable for entertaining or becoming a role model for them?
As we know, with strikers there is no guarantee of goals. Why drag the name of the club through the dirt on the off chance that a man deemed a risk to women is going to take us to the promised land?
Apparently we 'can't afford him' under our wage structure but he 'might be willing to drop his demands' just to team up with Aidy again.
At best Coventry is being used as a pawn in a transfer game.
WE've not taken well as fans to criminals. Kyle, Palmer, Hughes all got a terrible reception so Aidy might find things trickier than he imagines at the club.
King isn't any greater name than Eastwood, Westwood, Morrison et al.
After hearing him on the radio blaming everyone but himself for everything, like Joey Barton or Johnathan Woodgate.
No thanks. But if he comes, I just hope he respects the club and himself a heck of a lot more than before.
Mornings all,
It's a interesting article, but I think the comparison of King with Speedie is a little tasteless.
Speedo, for all of his faults, committed his 'crimes' on the pitch against opponents who were at least his physical equal (and often much bigger). Anyone here fancy taking on Gary Bennett?
And to the best of my knowledge, he didn't make sexual advances to centre-halves and then punch or spit at them when he was rejected.
Marlon King is a six-foot bloke who hits five-foot women. Just because they turn him down. And he hasn't just done it once, he's been caught doing something similar at least three times.
I'm all for second chances, but nothing that I've seen or read even hints at a shred of remorse.
I can't bear the thought of this chap wearing a City shirt, no matter how good he is. What are we going to do when opposition fans start taunting him - stand up for the bloke?
Sorry, but if it comes to it I'd rather lose without King, than win with him.
Sorry Duffer you thought me comparing Speedie with King was tasteless that wasn't my intention,I was trying to get across that when Speedie signed it was a bit controversial at the time because he was labelled a hothead.But on the pitch not off it,no your right he was never a problem off it.I see in todays Telegraph it looks like King is coming,so it will be interesting to see the reaction from the fans now.I can never remember in all the years I've been following the Sky Blues where a new signing has caused such vitriol and anger amongst so many,will it go away I've a feeling not !
Hi Kevin,
No offence taken mate, it's a good article and an interesting viewpoint - and you made the point yourself that off the pitch Speedie was a different bloke entirely. (I suppose he'd have to be - or he'd probably have been sharing digs with Marlon by now) ;)
Tasteless probably wasn't the right word to use - controversial might have been a better phrase.
And I hate being 'holier-than-thou' - I've done lots of daft things in my time, and paid the price for a couple of them. But it's the nature of the stuff that King has done, and his complete lack of repentance that grates with me. I just think it shows the club in a terrible light, I wish he'd go somewhere else...
Either way though, it's perfectly fair you showing both sides of the argument. Like you say, I think it's going to be a divisive signing if it happens.
Interesting comparison between Speedie and King. I spoke to a couple of the '87 lads a couple of years ago (very prominent members of the side) and they were unequivocal in their view that Speedie was the wrong signing for the club. They respected that he was a very talented player, but they gave the clear impression that he was a big time charlie who didnt fit in with the 'all for one/one for all' spirit that was the hallmark of the Sillett/Curtis era.
i just hope that the same won't be said of King.
My Speedie blog has ruffled a few feathers but it wasn't intended to be.
Maybe I shouldn't have chosen him as a comparison to King,because he was just fiery on the pitch,but I stick with what I wrote about when he signed for us, because it was a little controversial,a lot of fans thought he was too hot to handle.All those worries were for nothing in the end,because Speedie became a player the fans loved, he was volatile at times yes,but so entertaining.
let's all hope when things settle down a bit,we can look back at all this and say it turned out good in the end !
David Speedie was my favourite Cov player of his time and the thing that used to amaze me was how good he was in the air for one so small. He was always out leaping 6ft + players. Didn't one season he score a hatrick of headers in two seperate games?
How you can use Marlon Kings name in the same breath as this Cov legend I don't know!
He was one of my all time favourite players John, and yes he was brilliant in the air for a little bloke, and you may be right about him scoring with his head three times in two games, as I said you got the lot with Speedie!
But as I have said before now I have used Speedie because of his reputation of being a firebrand, and not because of sordid behaviour off the pitch.