Ray Parlour on Vale vs Arsenal tie

[robf]

He comes across as a very decent bloke and has some complimentary things to say about Vale's cup tie against Arsenal in 98.

 

If you want to skip to the Vale part, it's about 3 minutes 30 seconds in...

 

[video=youtube;c7MM-RTXnC4]

[Fosse69]

Wengers first double hinged on a penalty shoot out at the Vale, how many current Arsenal fans know that?

[TheSage]

You're right, Rob, he does sound like a lovely bloke and not at all like the combative, flame-haired player I recall in midfield for the Gunners. What a nice, well-spoken bloke. Top man.

[JOHNNYAITCH]

He's on the Talksport breakfast show 2-3 times per week..comes across as a decent down to earth sort

 

More classy than some Arsenal fans were on the tube after the match at Highbury who kept referring to Aspo as a donkey!! We (nearly) showed 'em in the replay! What games they were!!

 

3 Jan 1998

Arsenal: Seaman, Winterburn, Vieira, Bould, Anelka (Wreh 69),

Bergkamp, Overmars, Parlour (Boa Morte 69), Keown,

Petit (Hughes 46), Grimandi.

Subs Not Used: Manninger, Upson.

Port Vale: Musselwhite, Hill, Tankard, Bogie, Aspin, Snijders,

Ainsworth, Porter, Talbot, Naylor (Foyle 79), Corden.

Subs Not Used: Van Heusden, Mills, Glover, Jansson.

Booked: Porter, Corden, Talbot.

Att: 37,471

 

The replay was an immense occasion and performance..14000+ in attendance. I'll always remember the quality of our play, Bergkamp's goal, the shoot out and the banter the Bycars had with David Seaman over who was really England's no.1 (Mussie obviously).

 

http://arseweb.com/97-98/reports/140198.html

[TheSage]

Great days they were and that 0-0 at Highbury must rank as one our best ever performances. We even had a good bench then, let alone the starting XI.

[Tosh]

What a refreshing thread, all the others at the moment are giving me a headache!

[valefan16]

Not a particularly weakened Arsenal side either so a sign of how well did.

 

Parlour seems a decent lad, some players are total **** on the pitch but can often be top class of it... Didier Drogba a similar example who despite his antics on the field was one of the nicest of it donating a percentage of his wages to build infrastructure in the Ivory Coast etc.

[beasty77]

19 years ago, wow. That Vale side though. This was also the season we beat Huddersfield away 4-0 too. Where did it all go wrong.

[LancyTony]

What a fantastic game the replay was! Couldn't get to the away one, but me and son wouldn't have missed the home game for anything! Great game, totally end-to-end - I don't remember Arsenal having any lengthy periods of domination? I'm not sure we've really come close to that atmosphere, since? And what a nerve-tingle for the shootout!!! Great times!

[SuperValiant1876]

Met Ray in Magaluf the year they won the double (2002?) Nice bloke, got the round in.

[ClntonBoulton]

My Lad plays for Congleton CC and they had him as their speaker at a Sportsman's Dinner last year. Sean went out him afterwards in the pubs in Congleton and said what a great bloke he was......he told Sean, "You should have beat us that night. We were dead lucky!" Made my Lad's night cos he was only a little un and we were there.

[robf]

I went to both ties and the away performance is often overshadowed by the penalty drama in the replay - but we were immense at Highbury. One of the Vale defence's finest days I reckon.

 

Anyway, here's the Vale Park tie...

 

[fuzzyvalefan]

Wayne Corden's best performance in a Vale shirt buy a mile.

 

 

Also, that Dennis Bergkamp goal is arguably the best I've ever seen at Vale Park. Such an incredible player.

[Spunk Trumpet]

What a night!

Arguably our finest ever performance in defeat.

I was 17 at the time and used to think Ray Parlour was bang average. That night changed my whole perception of him. Never knew he was so quick on the ball and such an intelligent footballer.

Massively underrated.

As for us, we were superb. Individually and collectively.

I never appreciated just how good a side we had back then until recent times.

What a time to be a Vale fan that was.

Great memories.

[RayWalkers40yarder]

what a game, look at the team now and all you want to do is put your head in your hands.