Contrary to popular opinion, I take no pleasure from the enforced retirement of Dean Ashton. However, that retirement has been on the cards for a very long time and the belated announcement does pose certain questions that should now be answered. These include:
1) Did we buy a pup when we shelled out for Dean? He arrived wrapped in more bandages than an Egyptian mummy and rarely, if ever, looked capable of competing in five games in a row. Given his undoubted ability, why were no other clubs eager to sign him? Was the word out there on the street that Ashton was more porcelain in a bull ring than bull in a china shop?
2)To what extent did we bugger him further by rushing him back when he clearly was not fit? It was obvious to most of us that Ashton was overweight on his first return and that he was reluctant to get stuck in. He would not jump, looked slow and gave the impression that he was frightened of a hard tackle.
3) When did we know that the writing was on the wall? Did we try to offload him to Stoke, knowing the extent of the injury? Was Duxbury spinning when he kept saying that Ashton was going to return and was this false promise designed to stop fans demanding that we buy a replacement?
4) How much did Zola know? Was he lying when he said he was hoping for Ashton's return? If he was lying, how can we trust anything he now says? If he wasn't lying, how can he be so bloody naive? Either way, the mantra "In Zola we trust" now has a hollow ring doesn't it?
5) Are we entitled to compensation? If so, how much and will it be invested in a replacement? If compensation isn't due, why not? Is it because we scuppered our own claim by playing Ashton when he wasn't ready?
On a personal level, this is all very sad. Yes I have been proved right but I would much rather have been proved wrong. I have given Dean a hard time on here, perhaps unfairly. However, he has delayed this announcement for an inordinately long time and has been collecting £60k a week in wages whilst the pretence that he was going to return was maintained. With the club having no control over his recuperation and rehabilitation, have Ashton and his medical team been pulling the wool over the club's eyes I wonder?
Lots of questions but can we expect any answers? I'm sure Dean Ashton has a book in him somewhere but can we trust him to tell the truth? Can we trust anybody now connected with West Ham United?
21 comments:
You really are a C U Next Tuesday.
Why am I?
If our club cannot be trusted to give us honest up to date information regarding a players injury, what can they be trusted on? Had Duxbury spoken the truth about the seriousness of Ashton's ankle, what would we have done? This is why I don't understand why the club had to lie.
Whatever their intentions were, they made a big mistake.
I can understand Ashton staying quiet either because of his contract or the fact that he must have been depressed and in a dark place knowing the inevitable. Duxbury was just blatantly lying. Zola was just toeing the line.
What a loss. Hope he keeps his head up and I wish him the best for the future.
Anyone know the medical name for the problem Ashton was having after the broken ankle?
Answers:
1. When we bought him he was certainly not injury prone. This particular injury was a new one while on England duty so the answer is NO.
2. Rush him or not, he was always going to retire from this injury. It is just that at the time nobody really knew the extent of the injury. If you had been out for as long as Deano you would have put on a bit more weight than you already carry........which is alot.
3. Dean has known he was going to retire for approximately 2 months, prior to this there was always hope he would return (I know this as fact as I know a member of the family). He was never offered to Stoke although they may have made an enquiry but when told of his injury that is where it would have ended.
4. Zola only saw him once as he has since been on re-hab and ops so he was only being told what his medics would have told him and that is, that he was hoping to come back.
5. Yes we are entitled to compensation through the FA if we can prove that the injury he has retired from was initially caused while on England duty (which it was) The problem here though is that he did make a comeback and they could argue that WHU had been negligent. However, West Ham do have their own Insurance policy for these events.
On a personal level, you are a sad muppet.
cOL
what was the extent of injury? The fact that Eduardo can still get a game leads me to believe Ashton has absolutely nothing left in his ankle.
:(
This is all fucking tragic.
How bout for starters the FA give us back that 5 million quid Tevez fine that ended up costing us an additional 20!!
So cOL, how do you know how much extra weight I carry? Amazing how many people on the net know people at the club or members of the family. You do wonder why these people only share the information they have always known AFTER the event!
I don't understand why they keep insulting you, Fanno.
I know we had our differences before, and even though we don't agree ALL the time, what you're saying is legitimate. It's typical high school English class. You make your assertion, and you back it up. That's what your doing.
Although I'm beginning to agree alot more with you than I did before.
Losing Deano is the most tragic event for us since the great one's passing. I'm totally gutted this has befallen our club, how much bad luck do we have to endure? There's no telling where we'd be if he had not been called up by McClown. Tevez?aston would have been a dream partnership. Best of luck deano and now it's time for everyone to move on and demand the answers you seek!
I think an 'all the best Dean' would be enough HF. I think everyone in the world knows what questions you want to ask and boy does it bore the hell out of us.
Kareem, people hate being proved wrong and I keep proving them wrong! Thus the abuse!
TIS, if you are so bored by the articles on the site, why do you read them and reply so regularly? I'm glad to have you on board but it seems like masochism to me for you to keep returning!
Because I love your articles HF. I think you're a modern day Chaucer, and although I fight the temptation, my finger are addicted to typing 'the games gone crazy' and with a bit of help from google it correctly tells me, as you would, that it is 'the game's gone crazy'. Not only do I visit this site to be enlightened with your opinions of Duxbury every two seconds, but also to catch up on all the English lessons I bunked.
p.s. I adore the way you're very quick to find somebody to blame for everything, yet no question on why SWP went in so hard on Ashton during training.
I am deeply gutted at the loss of deano I sit here pondering what might have been. Having read most of the articles released yesterday im close to tears out of sympathy and regret for a young man who could have been an iconic legend cut down in his prime.
And then i read your blog, Are you a hammersfan?????? whilst most hammers fans are realing at the tradegy you seem to basking in some demented glory over the whole saga.
At a time when our players need encouragement to play better (considering half the team are youngsters and need encouraging). its synical fans like you who find fault and conspiracy theories in everything the club does that demoralises the squad.
I like all hammers am not happy with our current position but i want to get behind the team so we progress not demoralise them (which they realy need right now dont they???????????)
Deano was a great player who got us to the f.a. cup final a fact you seemed to have forgotten.
you sure your not a millwall or spurs fan in disguise?????????
Norbury, you miss the point and seem to have been missing it for some time. How can you be so upset now? His retirement has been signposted longer than was Tony Blair's!
Deano was never a great player but he was a very good player and you are right to wonder "what if". However, you are wrong to say that Ashton alone got us to an FA Cup Final and you might do well to ponder on the fact that he made it onto the pitch for the Final but was unavailable due to injury for 2 of the 3 games between the semifinal (winner scored by Marlon Harewood, not Dean Ashton) and the Final. I don't think he was ever fully fit as a West ham player sadly.
I am certainly not happy that he has been forced to retire. However, I am happy that AT LAST we have been told the truth!
To TIS:
Whan that Aprill, with his shoures soote
The droghte of March hath perced to the roote
And bathed every veyne in swich licour,
Of which vertu engendred is the flour;
Whan Zephirus eek with his sweete breeth
Inspired hath in every holt and heeth
The tendre croppes, and the yonge sonne
Hath in the Ram his halfe cours yronne,
And smale foweles maken melodye,
That slepen al the nyght with open eye-
(So priketh hem Nature in hir corages);
Thanne West Ham folk to goon on pilgrimages
And palmeres for to seken straunge strondes
To ferne halwes, kowthe in sondry londes;
And specially from every shires ende
Of Engelond, to the Championship they wende,
The hooly blisful martir Curbishley for to seke
That hem hath holpen, whan that they were seeke.
norbury it sickens me to the pit of my stomach that this sad excuse for a human being is happy that he thinks he has been proved right. I have just read Deano's exclusive interview and it just saddens me that we have lost a top notch striker. This Muppet couldn't careless as long as he has been proved right and will no doubt be sat in front of his computer screen just before 3. Me along with 3500 others will be at Birmingham doing what we do best SUPPORTING our team.
I hope whoever scores from our lot has some kind of little tribute planned for Deano. That would be nice.
Some people do struggle with reading for meaning! I quote from the opening of the article: "Contrary to popular opinion, I take no pleasure from the enforced retirement of Dean Ashton" and from the penultimate paragraph, "On a personal level, this is all very sad. Yes I have been proved right but I would much rather have been proved wrong. I have given Dean a hard time on here, perhaps unfairly."
As for "OSP", you had better get a move on if you want to get in a drink before kick off. Any traffic problems and you will miss the match!
I take it you are not going today?
No, I'm not going today. Nor are you, obviously!
Beautiful HF, beautiful
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