No Fear For Peter Pointer

What a refreshing change; a manager that is not in total awe of Darren Huckerby and not afraid of saying so, either.

Yes, Darren Huckerby can turn on incredible bursts of speed, dazzling and amazing the fans as well as opponents. However, how often does he wander back after he has lost the ball with hands on hips and mouthing off to linesmen and referees for 'missing' challenges that he felt were not completely fair?

Admittedly, Hucks is knocking on in years, and he is no longer able to keep it all going for 90 minutes. As a consequence, he can become almost invisible for prolonged spells.

Nigel Worthington would have said and done nothing. In fact, Worthington sucked up to Huckerby sufficiently to allow him to play against Burnley despite being visibly unfit, and dropping Paul McVeigh in the meantime.

So, it was refreshing to read that Peter Grant is not afraid of taking Huckerby off if he isn't doing the job. This can lead to a couple of things; either Huckerby will get himself fitter so that he can keep up his blistering pace for the full 90 minutes, or he will learn to pace himself so that he is consistent throughout the game.

The important thing, though, is the fact that PG will not be letting anybody enjoy a free ride; no matter what their superstar status might be.

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