I would think Cresswell’s ship has sailed now being 32 years old.
Rico would probably need a move to bigger/more fashionable club than Brentford but if he did, and if he had a good start to next season, he could figure in the early season England squads to at least be in and around the conversations for the World Cup squad?
Might also be worth giving Rico an England cap to stop him representing Jamaica if they came calling for him 
Of course, there has been a lot of inflation since those days. & I don’t think this always gets taken account, especially when talking about transfer fees being broken. Buckley came back for £175k which is the same as 700k now.
I think Allan Clarke went to Fulham for 35k which is the equivalent of 480k today
The Doug Lishman fee is equivalent to £280k now,
I wonder if our add on is for an “England cap” or “International cap”, so Rico playing even for Jamaica could get us some ££!
Yeah but where was he in 98/99?!
Wow. Imagine Arsenal signing a player today for £280k who then goes on to be their fourth (equal) highest ever goalscorer in the League.
Crikey, didn’t realise Cresswell was that old. In that case Rico would be at the front of the queue for sure. The Jamaica thing is interesting. I wouldn’t put it past Walsall to be stung by having put a clause in that specifies an “England Cap”, rather than an “International Cap” 
Pat_W,
Yeah but where was he in 98/99?!
I don’t understand the question.
Playing football as a young schoolboy in Belgium!
It’s the last time we finished above Man City also beating them to automatic promotion, so anytime anyone brings up anything to do with them (especially since they got rich) my response always revolves around the 98/99 season. I suspect that might be the case for sometime as well as I don’t see us getting above them for a season or 2 at least!
I think Henry is behind Mitchell in the pecking order at present as he got a call up in March and is younger than Henry. Also was nominated for Premier league Young Player of the season
Pat_W,
It’s the last time we finished above Man City also beating them to automatic promotion, so anytime anyone brings up anything to do with them (especially since they got rich) my response always revolves around the 98/99 season. I suspect that might be the case for sometime as well as I don’t see us getting above them for a season or 2 at least!
Yes, of course. How could I forget those fine Graydon years. We certainly gave Man City a run for their money in those days. I remember Keegan managing Fulham before he went on the manage England. How football has changed since then, we’re a mere shadow of the team 24 years ago.
To think of how far we’ve fallen from the glory days under Graydon doesn’t bare thinking about.
When I became a Walsall fan in 1963 I wanted us to win a major cup competition and have a season or two in the top flight. We very nearly achieved the first item on the bucket list in 1984, I would like to live long enough to see us playing in the Premiership, but the way we’re going I doubt my young grandchildren will ever see that in their lifetime!
Luis Saha and Steed Malbranque in that Fulham team and Sir Rays collection of free transfers and misfits finish as runners up. I doubt we’ll see the like again but we can live in hope!
Each to thier own but I have no desire to see us in the prem. Just completely about money and dont get me started on VAR. Would like to see us have at least a few more years in the champ and maybe some proper local derbies with Blues, Albion and hopefully the gold and black cack end up back down there when Fosun decide they have had enough
I don’t have an issue with VAR so much, it keeps the officials in check. I wish we had a form of it in the lower leagues, a lot of referees would be found out very quickly as to how bad they really are. However, I do with the current off-side rule.
Let’s revert back to raising the flag and blowing the whistle when the player is actually off-side instead of the delay we encounter today.
I’ve always disliked the off-side rule, goal hangers all day long for me. It would be a lot more entertaining imho.
No thank you. Football is all about spontaneous moments of joy and celebration (however fleeting they are as a Walsall fan) and VAR completely kills that. I hope it never filters it’s way down to the EFL.
No, too early for either of them. Barry Hayles and Geoff Horsfield were in the team though, and not too shabby. Steve Finnan, Paul Bracewell, Chris Coleman, Kit Symons, Steve Hayward (booooooooo!!!) were also in the team and the keeper was some bloke called Maik Taylor, no idea who he was or where he went. I think Paul Peskydildo was there as well, and Goose Uhlenbeek, and iirc the left back was Rufus Brevett, or was that later?
I’m sure they signed Philippe Albert on loan from Newcastle for the second half of the season, which was quite a coup.
I believe Rufus Brevett was in the Fulham team when we played them in the cup, but I could be wrong ( it may have been a league match).
Anyway, what I do remember is that he tried to play a curling ball down the left channel but got it all wrong and put it into the crowd instead. Stupid me tried to catch it only for the person in front to fingertip the ball straight into my face, smashing my glasses in the process. Oh how I laughed. Watched the rest of the match through the one remaining lens.
I’d forgotten him, but I think you are right. I think he had one of the best football songs ever, to the tune of Rupert The Bear - Phillippe, Phillippe Albert, everyone knows his name…
I would have sworn they signed the French Connection around about the same time we brought in Darko but fair enough, I take it they signed them that summer before the div 1 season started?
Still, look at the City, Fulham and Stoke squads next to ours and it really does put on stark relief how bloody good at his job Sir Ray was!
