Big Sam’s Yoyo Relationship With SA Premier League Stars
Sam Allardyce is one of the most popular managerial names from the Premier League but the former England manger, but the man had a yoyo relationship with South African Premier League footballers he has managed in his career.
During the duration of his career he has managed six South Africans namely Mark Fish; Quinton Fortune, Aaron Mokoena, Benin McCarthy and Elrio van Heerden. Either a fallout or the players being not fancied by the manager has happened to the players.
The first to have a fallout with Sam Allardyce was 1996 AFCON winner Mark Fish when the former defender opted not to renew his contract with Bolton but make a switch to Charlton Athletic 2002. What ticked off Allardyce was Fish dishonouring their hand shaken contract agreement.
“I don’t like what happened, I spent such a long time it. He said so many things and we did so many things…then he failed to sign the contract, for whatever reason; you have to accept that,” said Allardyce about Fish.
The next South African international to encounter Sam Allardyce was Quinton Fortune. The midfielder was released by Manchester United in 2006and left without a club. Celtics and Manchester City opted against signing Fortune because concerns about his injury history but The Trotters and Sam Allardyce would his saving grace offering him a one-year contract after impressing during their preseason. “Quinton is a player I have admired for a very long time; he is a quality of Premier League experience and he can play in a number of positions. He will be a very welcomed addition to our squad.”
Unfortunately, Quinton Fortunes times with Bolton that season was not the most successful as the South African played six games in the Premier League and one in the FA Cup making up a total of seven appearances in the 06/07 season.
In December 2008, Sam Allardyce was appointed manager of Blackburn Rovers. There he would find two South Africans; former Bafana Bafana captain Aaron Mokoena and the countries all-time leading goal scorer Benni McCarthy. The trio would finish the 08/09 season well finishing in 10th position and Benni McCarthy finishing as the teams leading goal man.
But in July 2009, Aaron Mokoena would leave Blackburn Rovers after he had fell down the pecking order, there was no hostility between the defender and Allardyce. Big Sam could not guarantee Mokoena minutes he desperately needed regular first team football in order to make the 2010 World Cup, the best move for Mokoena was to join Portsmouth.
In Benni McCarthy, Sam Allardyce had one of most renowned strikers in the Europe, Chelsea who were managed by McCarthy’s former mentor Jose Mourinho, wanted to sign the striker but Blackburn Rovers refused to sell. Allardyce believed he could still get the very best of McCarthy, and to do so he wanted him to shed some weight. Well McCarthy didn’t take kindly to that suggestion, when to speaking Ali Bacher, Benni McCarthy aired out his dissatisfaction Allardyce.
“He came in and wanted to change the dynamics of the team, he was very big on sports science. Then he said to ‘Benni your height is 1,85m and your weight is 83kg-85; at your age you should be between 75-80’ and I said to him coach ‘coach is you mad or what, when I was playing in South Africa.’ It was impossible, we did bio kinetic stuff that tell you what your height and weight should and I was perfect, I did not need to change.”
For not meeting the weight standards wanted by his manager, McCarthy would start getting fines on a weekly basis until he met the weight requirement. That gesture infuriated the South African and he took it up with club and gave them a reason to fine him; by boycotting training.
“He then fining me $20,000 per week, at the end of the week half my salary is has been taken. I went to him and told him that what I didn’t agree with what he was doing, because he was cheating me out of my job.
I went to the club and said to them ‘you don’t allow me to leave when I want to, you keep me here against my will and then bring a coach who fines me left, right, and centre because he wants my weight to be lesser’, I told them if they continue to fine me I wont go to training.
The following week, I get fined then the next day I did not pitch up for training; now I gave them a reason to take my money.”
Going on strike helped McCarthy as Blackburn were left with no choice to sell him when West Ham wanted him.
“Then West Ham came in for me, I told Blackburn to let me go because I was not going to play for a coach who keeps fining me, they eventually let me go as I wasn’t going to training.”
The feud between the two that was followed closely by the media affected McCarthy’s time at West Ham, plus a knee injury. Ironic though, Sam Allardyce would end up following McCarthy to West Ham.
Worth mentioning that during that period Allardyce signed South African winger Elrio van Heerden on a free from Club Brugge. The Port Elizabeth born man, never got a sniff of Premier League football under Allardyce, fair to say Big Sam impressed by him, like the rest of the pack.
