First featured in last season’s matchday programme, Daily Mirror sports writer Mike Walters recalls some of the best individual displays he has witnessed the Hornets come up against…
Ahead of Saturday’s Sky Bet Championship clash against Hull City (December 2, 3pm KO), this piece focuses on a former attacker who represented the Tigers on both sides of the white line...
Eight points clear at the top in November, Watford only scraped into the play-offs on the last day of term on goals scored.
And that was only after a nervous vigil on the touchline at Blackpool, waiting for confirmation that Wolves had not overhauled them on the line.
The 2007/08 season had ended with three consecutive home defeats, of varying degrees of bad luck, rotten finishing or poor football, against Crystal Palace, Barnsley and relegated Scunthorpe.
Maybe the fans saw what was coming in the play-off semi-final against Hull, who had soundly beaten the Hornets 3-0 on Humberside on the run-in, because the 14,713 attendance for the fist leg at Vicarage Road was 2,000 down on the campaign’s average.
But two goals inside the opening 23 minutes, followed by a landslide of ill fortune, sealed Watford’s fate. There would be no instant return to the top flight, and manager Aidy Boothroyd’s star was waning as quickly as it had risen.
It was typical of the Hornets’ perverse luck that the Tigers’ opening goal was scored by former England forward Nicky Barmby, his first bullseye in nine months.
Now playing for his hometown club, Barmby was a member of England’s Euro 96 squad, making three appearances from the bench in the tournament, and later that year he scored the opening goal of Glenn Hoddle’s reign as Three Lions coach.
At club level, Middlesbrough (£5.25 million) and Everton (£5.75m) both shelled out record transfer fees to sign him, while Barmby’s move across Stanley Park to join Liverpool for £6m in July 2000 was the first time in 41 years, since Dave Hickson, that the Toffees had sold a player to their neighbours in red.
On his day, Barmby was elusive, skilful and a decent finisher - as Watford found out to their cost when he turned Fraizer Campbell’s cross under the sprawling Richard Lee after eight minutes.
Dean Windass left the Golden Boys with the proverbial mountain to climb 15 minutes later, and Tigers keeper Boaz Myhill’s masterclass kept Watford at a safe distance, but referee Kevin Friend was Barmby’s most immediate rival as the game’s most influential protagonist.
Only Friend knows why he disallowed Danny Shittu’s blameless, towering header from a Jobi McAnuff corner after just four minutes - a critical moment because Watford had not lost any game after taking the lead that season.
Any hope of diminishing the two-goal deficit was curtailed when Friend chose to send off John Eustace after an hour following an outbreak of rutting stags near the touchline, the outcome expertly directed from the visitors’ bench.
Eustace’s red card was later rescinded - but a fat lot of good it did Watford on the day.
The Hornets, belatedly switching to a more fluid attacking formation, would take the lead in the return leg before going down 5-1 on aggregate. Hull were nervous until Barmby - yes, him again - capitalised on Lee’s mistake to equalise two minutes before the break.
As for Friend, I fear he never lived down that poor decision to rob Shittu.
Even in Watford’s narrow FA Cup final defeat by Manchester City four years ago, the game was goalless when Abdoulaye Doucoure’s shot was blocked by Vincent Kompany’s arm in the box. Friend saw no reason to intervene and nor did his VAR accomplice Andre Marriner. Really?
Merry reffin’ Christmas, Mr Friend.
