[Albion] Who's the flairest of them all? Quarter Final 3: McCourt vs Gotsmanov

[stewart12]

Quarter Final 3- the other 2 have a day left on them here and here

Paddy McCourt

Nationality: Northern Irish

Albion Career: 2014-15 (10 appearances, 0 goals)

Credentials: Looked like he turned up to matched having slept in a skip the night before. Couldn’t do anything other than epic solo runs. A proper Sunday league style player.

Progress: Finished 1st in Group C, gathering 44 votes (44.4%). In the second round won a 4 way battle against Leon Knight, Neal Maupay and Alan Duffy, getting 44.3% of the vote.

vs

Sergei Gotsmanov

Nationality: Soviet/Belarussian

Albion Career: 1990 (16 appearances, 4 goals)

Credentials: Outrageously exotic signing for the time. Enigmatic skill wizard and was once given a Lada car. In many ways paved the way for a lot of the others in this tournament

Progress: Finished 2nd in Group B, gaining 13 votes (13%). Beat Alireza Jahanbaksh in the second round 52-14.

 

[hans kraay fan club]

By rights it SHOULD be Sergei, but (one pre-goal celebration apart) I just remember him being BRILLIANT rather than FLAIR. He actually seemed like a quiet, humble, very sensible young bloke.

Paddy was a poundland George Best. Extravagantly talented, but clearly no aptitude to make anything of his talents. I bloody LOVED him.

 

[stewart12]

it's Paddy all day long for me

 

[stewart12]

daily bounce, got about a day left on this and it's TIGHT

 

[Baldseagull]

Gotsmanov wasn't flair, he was just very good, in the way Dunk or Gross are very good, with moments of flair. Mc Court was all flair, f*** a simple pass, no matter how drunk and incapable he was.

 

[MattBackHome]

The Derry Pele was a supernova who burned too bright, too quickly, and we were blinded by his brilliance. Utter archetype of flair.

 

[Garry Nelson's Left Foot]

I've gone Gotzmanov because I named my goldfish at uni after him.

 

[Herne Hill Seagull]

Greatest respect, Baldseagull, but wasn't flair? The man beat at least 17 players in a mazy run and stopped on the goal-line to celebrate before he knocked the ball into the net. Only the great Robin Friday would have been as ballsy. I'd suggest he was the absolute definition.

 

[Iggle Piggle]

I was walking back from Hove dogs across Hove park and shouted "Sergei" who then proceeded to get in his advertised painted - shit - motor whilst waving back.

If that's not flair I don't know what is.

 

[Baldseagull]

Greatest respect, Baldseagull, but wasn't flair? The man beat at least 17 players in a mazy run and stopped on the goal-line to celebrate before he knocked the ball into the net. Only the great Robin Friday would have been as ballsy. I'd suggest he was the absolute definition.

My reckoning is a flair player is always trying to dribble round a man or two, nutmeg someone, backheel a pass. On top of that they keep trying to do that even when it really isn't a reasonable option, it fails, and it annoys their teammates. Bonus flair for long hair and drunkeness. Gotsmanov was a far, far better player, but not nearly as flair as McCourt.

 

[Harry Wilson's tackle]

By rights it SHOULD be Sergei, but (one pre-goal celebration apart) I just remember him being BRILLIANT rather than FLAIR. He actually seemed like a quiet, humble, very sensible young bloke.

Paddy was a poundland George Best. Extravagantly talented, but clearly no aptitude to make anything of his talents. I bloody LOVED him.

A full pound you say?

Yes, he was mesmerizing.

However....this ain't flair: On 31 May 2023, McCourt was found guilty by a Derry court of one count of indecent assault.[63] He was given a three-month sentence, suspended for two years, and was placed on the sex offenders registry for five years.

Edit: but he wins an appeal ..... albeit, christ, the absolute state of him

 

[Cheshire Cat]

McCourt was just a mess.

Gotsmanov was the canine's sphericals.

 

[Comrade Sam]

McCort did f*** all for us when we needed something. Gotsmanov is up there with Zamora and Vincente for instant absolute class. For most of my near 40 years watching the Albion these 3 were the only ones that within seconds of touching the ball, you knew they were a world above everyone else on the pitch. The man was a supreme talent and if he hadn't been prime LeTissier's understudy at Southampton, he would have set English football alight. Whatever Paddy McCort may have flared elsewhere he certainly didn't for us.

 

[Mellotron]

This competition is never going to truly live up to it's potential all the while we still have a sizeable demographic who seem to think the vote is basically "who was the better player".

 

[Cowfold Seagull]

By rights it SHOULD be Sergei, but (one pre-goal celebration apart) I just remember him being BRILLIANT rather than FLAIR. He actually seemed like a quiet, humble, very sensible young bloke.

Paddy was a poundland George Best. Extravagantly talented, but clearly no aptitude to make anything of his talents. I bloody LOVED him.

I can remember trying to initiate a chat with Sergei Gotsmanov in the players lounge at the Goldstone, fans who had joined some scheme to help fund the club every month, (can anyone remember the name of it? l can't), had been invited as a thank you to meet the players, and hear a spiel from Barry Lloyd.

Alan Curbishley said to me, you won't get much out opf him mate, l think he works for the KGB.

As for Paddy McCourt, l'm afraid l have little time for gifted players who waste their talent.