Bonzo and Redknapp

[Oldun]

I blame 2 people, that horrible git from Oxford ( can't even repeat his name) who after signing said his mrs wasn't happy about moving to west ham and wanted to leave, about a month after signing ( I would say for a man of Billy's standing he must have been stunned and upset) and redknapp himself he said he spoke to billy about the situation after billy said he was jacking it in and billy said go for the managers job himself!
Redknapp should of done the decent thing and said if you leaving then I'm leaving as well !

He did say that if it upset Bonzo then he would not take the job but he had his fingers crossed behind his back
when he said it,
.

[WHID to deserve this?]

Harry may have helped to engineer Bonds leaving the club but we were dreadful at that time (although Harry was a coach so perhaps he should have gone too). Loved Bonds as a player but, when Brown had Bonds come out and say that the Bond Scheme was good, I think a bit of me died inside.

Bonds would have been sacked anyway - I guess he never expected his best mate to step in to his berth so quickly.

[Oldun]

Harry may have helped to engineer Bonds leaving the club but we were dreadful at that time (although Harry was a coach so perhaps he should have gone too). Loved Bonds as a player but, when Brown had Bonds come out and say that the Bond Scheme was good, I think a bit of me died inside.

Bonds would have been sacked anyway - I guess he never expected his best mate to step in to his berth so quickly.

Although Bonzo was not the greatest manager ever, to say that we was dreadful when this happened is wrong.
Where do you think we had finished in the league when this happed WHID?
I will tell you where 13th, above the likes of the Spuds and Chelsea and we got through to the 6th
round of the cup.
But i should imagine the back stabber told Brown in the famous behind closed door meeting, that was all down
to him and not Bonzo.

[Modern]

I'm just saying there may be two sides.

TC: Very good mates and we got on well as I used to help him with his coaching with the youth team and in the evenings when he was doing a little bit of part time and still playing. So I was quite happy. Then Bill said to me: 'I want to restructure it a little bit. I want you to go back to being in sole charge of the youth team then that's your department. I think that's what you're best at doing, that's what I want you to do. I'm going to bring a coach in'. So I said: 'who are you going to bring in?' He said: 'I'm going to bring in Harry'.

'I've spoken to Harry; he's at Bournemouth and needs a new challenge'. I thought ok, they're good mates, good buddies - it'll work. This was after about a year because the first year we just missed out, next year we got promoted when I was doing a lot of work with Bill as I had the reserves at that point with Ronnie. But we didn't invest, and got relegated again. It was at that point that they felt we need a change here, we need fresh blood - and that's when they brought Harry in. I think it was within one or two years that we went up again. Then I just went back with the youth team and carried on with the work I'd been doing ever since.

KUMB: That must have been a difficult period for you, because you had been close to both Billy and Harry and obviously they didn't see eye-to-eye...

TC: Yeah, it was tough. The only light I can shed on that story is that during that pre-season when it all happened, we were running in Epping Forest, pre-season training and I was at the back with H. He just said to me: 'I've had a fantastic offer from Bournemouth'. I said: 'What's that? and he said 'they want me to come back and be a Director of Football really, to almost run the club. You know, either be the manager or appoint the manager. It's my hometown club,' he said, 'and I'm really tempted. I don't know what to do.'

I said 'have you told Bill?' So he said 'yeah, yeah I've told Bill.' I said 'what has Bill said?' and Harry said, 'Bill said well Harry, that's your decision mate - I can't make that for you.' And that's as far as the conversation went. Then they went on pre-season to Scotland and it all blew up, didn't it. I still don't know to this day - Billy's never let on, Harry's always said it was out of his hands and I believe him, I really do believe him.

KUMB: You can't imagine Bill ever going to the press with anything really. He's a very private person.

TC: He's never said a word. The only thing I do know is that he's never spoken to Harry [since].

KUMB: Which suggests that Bill perhaps felt that Harry had been less than straightforward?

TC: I don't know. I can't... I don't want to guess it. They're the facts as I know them.

KUMB: There's one thing for sure - if you and Harry were at the back of the group running Bill would have been at the front!

TC: Yeah! When they did offer Harry the job - I was here [Chadwell Heath] - he said 'I've got to go back to Upton Park and do a press conference as they want me to take the job'. He said 'I don't want it, I'm not having it'. And Frank Lampard said to him 'are you serious? What's the point? If you don't have it someone else will if you don't want the job. You've got to take it'.

'No I don't want it. People keep saying I've done this and that - I haven't done nothing'. So I said 'well if your conscience is clear just go and take the job'. So he did - not from my advice but I did say that and then he took the job and was successful, very successful.

[Oldun]

I liken it to finding out that your best mate for over 20 years is shagging your wife and then him saying
that was all her fault and if you want you can stay in the house in the spare bedroom.

[FrostyLemon]

I knew this thread would be started by someone with a low post count. Sneaky journo trying to make a conspiracy over Brooking and redknapp I reckon .

[Up the Junction]

Should he turn it down being a West Ham man himself?

Redknapp used to watch Arsenal with his old man, his only association with West Ham prior to this point was that he played for us for a few years. He was no more a West Ham man than Teddy Sheringham, in that sense.

As for Billy's job? You just don't do it, do you. Or perhaps you would Modern, I personally wouldn't in those circumstances. But the way Redknapp describes it, as anyone who's met him would know, is him all over ("oh, well, if I didn't take it someone else would have...")

Oldun has it right. FWIW I did the interview with Tony Carr you c&p'd above - and I suspect he knew a bit more than he was willing to place on record.

[Modern]

I don't think I would UTJ but I don't know, if someone said we are going to be getting rid of your mate anyway, as a result we are offering you your dream job which it would have been to HR, I think maybe I would take it, maybe that makes me a massive twat

I'm not saying I would lobby for him to be sacked of course that would be well out of line, I don't see how anyone could do that to one of their best mates. It's just we have no real proof that went on. I respect Bonds for keeping his council though don't get me wrong he's clearly a first rate human.

[Oldun]

It seems you have the same principles as your manager then,none ,perhaps it a Modern thing.

[RichieRiv]

So you've got Billy Bonds who has never spoken a word about what happened and Redknapp that can't keep his trap shut about anything.

I don't think we'll ever know the real truth, not unless William of Woolwich decides to speak out, which he won't. But on the basis that one man conducts himself with integrity and the other is nothing more than a shyster, I know where I stand.

[beckton]

Redknapp seems quite calculating. I remember the Bournemouth story at the time of Bonzo leaving and these sort of things always seem to crop up when twitchy is looking for a better contract.

And now England don't want him Chelsea are supposed to be interested. I can't see Levy fooling for it though.

[ooh look who it is]

So you've got Billy Bonds who has never spoken a word about what happened and Redknapp that can't keep his trap shut about anything.

I don't think we'll ever know the real truth, not unless William of Woolwich decides to speak out, which he won't. But on the basis that one man conducts himself with integrity and the other is nothing more than a shyster, I know where I stand.

[Oldun]

And who can forget the alledged betting scam when he suddenly left Southampton and returned to Portsmouth,he had
nothing to do with that either.

[Baker's Dozen]

There are plenty of people who know the truth. Redknapp courted previous employers Bourmoth, (a ploy he repeated with the Southampton / Portsmoth bed hopping later on in his career) and played them off against West Ham…

I'm not going to finish the accusations for fear of litigation against this website. I've lurked enough to know that this can be an issue for UTJ

It shouldn't take much to fill in the blanks though.

[billybondsballbag]

I've known plenty of people who say one thing whilst thinking another, and the fact that Harry said, "I can't take that job, it wouldn't be right," (or words to that effect) sounds like he was waiting for the approval of others rather than being honest and saying what was really on his mind. After that, it's just a case of retrofitting the past so that your memory of events is that you did the right thing and only did the deed when everyone else told you that it was okay to do so.

Regarding Bonds' performance as manager, my memory of that time is that he was doing a pretty good job; nothing stellar, but, given the lack of investment, holding his own. As has been stated, we finished 13th with more than 50 points in 93/94, so that's hardly a complete failure of a season, is it?

[Up the Junction]

... the fact that Harry said, "I can't take that job, it wouldn't be right," (or words to that effect) sounds like he was waiting for the approval of others rather than being honest and saying what was really on his mind.

This, 100 per cent.

[GaryP]

I've known plenty of people who say one thing whilst thinking another...

bang on. Harry is a lying bellend, proven on many occasions.

[el pato]

Redknapp takes stick for airing his version of events re Bonzo,s sacking and his appointment,but to be fair,he was responding to accusations that he stitched up Bonzo.How truthful the answers were i would,nt know,but at least we get one side of the story.I may be wrong,but i can,t recall too many dissenting voices coming from UP at the time,certainly nobody following out the door in support of Bonds.

[DaveWHU1964]

I just think you have to look at the personalities involved. Bonzo has shown amazing dignity over the years in not saying a word about whatever happened. He was an old fashioned straight forward, honest type in many ways. For such a man to utterly turn his back on his former best man says all I need to know. None of the words I used to describe Bill would immediately spring to mind when it comes to describing Redknapp.

I somehow feel that the 'victory' if that's what it was was symptomatic of the way the game was going a the time and has certainly gone since in that honourable, un-complicated, decent types got swept aside and replaced by ruthless opportunistists.

[bbevan55]

I knew this thread would be started by someone with a low post count. Sneaky journo trying to make a conspiracy over Brooking and redknapp I reckon .

You are wrong mate. I've been a supporter for 46 years. Bonzo is my all time favourite hammer. Just thought it was a good topic to discuss. COYI