There's more to Stoke than Rory Delap (From Northwich Guardian)

Long throws and one-eyed sportswriters

3:10pm Thursday 20th November 2008

• Print
• Email
• Comments(2)

PROMOTION to the Premiership has brought many changes to the life of Stoke City fans, some good and others less so.

The most obvious of these is the hype that surrounds the league and the greater coverage that all its teams receive.

Journalists who probably never knew where Stoke was, were vaguely aware it had a football team and had never seen that team play are suddenly posing as experts on us.

But you would think that they’d manage to find more than one thing to talk about.

Instead, the national media are now obsessed with Rory Delap long throws to the exclusion of everything else about the team. Frankly it’s become boring and they need to get a new line.

You don’t beat teams in this league just by having one player with a particular talent, you need 11 players with the physique, skill and the self-belief to compete with some of the best players in the world.

You don’t beat teams in this league just by having one player with a particular talent

Ian Probert berates the more ignorant members of the sportswriting profession

We already have one goal of the month winner, Ricardo’s strike against Villa. To see it, click below His 'goal' that was wrongly ruled out against Everton would have been raved about had it stood and been scored by say, Joe Cole.

Others may think my team should apologise for not having the talent that Chelsea, Manchester United or Arsenal can muster. Dream on.

Our greatest strengths happen to be scoring from set pieces, making it difficult for more talented teams to play and sheer bloody mindedness.

All of which is within the rules of professional football, despite what whinging Arsenal fans would have you believe.

Of course top four teams would rather that we tried, like Barnsley famously did, to out-football them to stay in this league. Barnsley got relegated.

Football teams cannot be judged by vaguely comparing you with the best Holland or Brazil sides.

The best teams are not just full of fantastic attacking players, they include those who can tackle, block shots and are physically up to the task at hand.

In August, most writers said my team ‘would do a Derby’. Stoke already have more points than Derby mustered in a whole season. If we can beat West Brom and Hull in our next two home matches, we will already have 20 points.

I’m happy to judge my team’s fitness to play in the Premiership at the end of this, our first, tough season in the top flight.

If we survive, Rory Delap will not be the only reason.