Best player YOU have played against?

[Telscombe Seagull]

Kerry Mayo when at school and Tommy Elphick on the beach once. both made me realise why i didnt havea career as a pro (or even amateur!)

 

[Hillian1]

Paul Ifill

Same as.

He was at Millwall at the time and somehow was playing in a summer 6 a side tournament at st Francis in Haywards Heath, I spent our entire match against his lot trying to kick him and never got close, he knew what was coming and was gone before I got near.

Crippled his mate though, which made me smile.

 

[withdeanwombat]

Lionel Messi.

Though to tell the truth he looked a lot older and fatter. And a bit balder, too. Come to think of it, he looked a lot like my elder brother. I was Cristiano Ronaldo at the time. I won 3-1.

In truth, Peter Allen, of Brighton and England Boys, Tottenham Youth, and Leyton Orient.

 

[tronnogull]

Darren Hargreaves who is Owen's older brother and who was the better player until a knee injury got the better of him.

 

[T soprano]

Vinny Samways
Warren Barton

 

[Guinness Boy]

In Englsnd played once as a lad against erstwhile "remember him?" Seagull Gavin Geddes who it has to be said was pretty useful.

In Taipei one of the other ex pat teams had a player who'd been on Bayren Munich's books before getting a serious knee injury. He couldn't run at all. Before I knew his past I came up against him playing on the left as I was filling in at right back - very much not my position. I thought he was easy as he couldn't run. They hit a ropey high ball to him which he killed dead, shimmied inside me and slammed in to the top corner from 30 yards at about the pace Kaz hits it at. I was swiftly moved inside then subtly replaced. He lasted another 5 mins before he came off because his knee hurt.

 

[turienzo's lovechild]

Sam Rents, Joe Gatting and Joe Keehan when I was a kid

recently, a current Eastbourne Borough player

 

[Butch Willykins]

Tom Ince. His old man (Paul) asked if his son could join in our game of 5-a-side whist on holiday in Portugal. He was only about 14 at the time, ran rings round us.

 

[turienzo's lovechild]

oh, and @Mellotron of course

 

[Cadiz Seagull]

I played for London Hotels against Amsterdam Hotels back when God's dog was a puppy, and Johan Cruyff kicked off, does that count?

None of us knew he was, he had just made the Ajax first team. You could tell from the way he kicked off he was going to be a superstar.

 

[Shropshire Seagull]

Terry Connor
Andy Rollings

Both circa early 80's

 

[Vegas Seagull]

Teddy Maybank

 

[Soulman]

I played against Nigel Spink, then later we played in the same team, very good keeper and a nice bloke. I also played against Neil Smillie a few times, he was good but i think he made it because his Dad was an ex pro.

 

[atfc village]

If we're going Cricket aswell i managed to dispatch Graham Thorpe to the boundary when he played for Farnham cc,he made a mess of my Stumps next ball

 

[dejavuatbtn]

Gerry Armstrong. Put a header past me in goal at 100 mph (so it seemed at the time). Also playing was Mike Trusson who was the polar opposite.

 

[Brownstuff]

My mate Dykey who is a Tomas Brolin lookalike and actually not too dissimilar in skill level apart from being much slower than Brolin
I don't think I ever managed to get the ball off him either in training or match scenario (local football)

 

[US Seagull]

I used to play with Darren Freeman's brother in the street a lot when we were kids. I was always in goal because I'm shit. Once in a while Darren would pop up and drill a shot at me.

I also when to school with Ross Johnson.

 

[Prince Monolulu]

A name that keeps cropping up, I marked Darren Freeman at Hove Park in about '93 when he was obviously a ringer for a Sunday League side. I was in my late 20's and I was feckin' knackered. He didn't score though!

 

[The Face]

Russ Martin, Jake Robinson, Wes Fogden

 

[Bevendean Hillbilly]

Jason Macateer when I was at Tranmere...bloody good he was too.