Latter-day Fulham Heroes

[HatterDon]

Although elderly, I am late to Fulham. As a result, I'm usually quiet when legendary Fulham players rate their own thread. I only go back to about 2004 with The Mighty Whites. So, with that limited background, here's my own Fulham Pantheon:

1. Moritz Volz -- still my favorite Fulham player of all time. I'll be wearing his jersey on Sunday. Interestingly, I ordered it the day he was shipped out to Ipswich on loan. I've worn that #2 jersey many times, but he never did.

2. Louis Boa Morte -- He was the player who first caught my eye and caused me to look for Fulham matches on the television. I'm still a fan of his.

3. Brian McBride -- He got me to FulhamUSA.com and then, after a rather tall gentleman dropped by that long, lost site and invited us all, to Friends of Fulham. There is a huge sense of pride among all FulhAmericans that McBride comported himself so well here, and left as a Fulham hero.

4. Ian Pearce -- As mentioned in his own thread, a resolute defender and a legend for that Pompey goal scored with a busted foot.

5. Klaus Jensen -- Tremendous passer and the best Fulham player of a dead ball in my limited memory. It was a shame he was injured all the time.

6. Simon Davies -- I can't say anything bad about Super Taffy, and I never will.

7. Clint Dempsey -- Mean, onery East Texan who is too stubborn and too proud to be an average player. The guy I want in my foxhole.

8. Aaron Hughes -- Professional, quiet, business-like. If I had a son, I'd like him to be like Aaron.

There are several others who almost make my heroes list: Bocanegra, Diop, Malbranque, Hangeland, Murphy, Niemi, but those 8 will do for now.

[Burt]

Blimey - a list of true greats there Mr HD sir.

My personal favourites are drawn from my teen years - Ivor and Roger Brown were my childhood heroes.

Nobody has come up to them since. Sure there have been more skillful and successful players etc. but Ivor in particular had the added ingredient of being a Fulham fixture rather than a transient figure who stayed for a couple of seasons before following the lure of a "bigger club".

For some reason I am big on loyalty. I must be old-fashioned in that respect.

[TWFL]

I know these aren't quite from your era but they are not far off and "they" are:

Louis Saha - When not injured he was a great player and personally was a favourite, absolutely gutted the day he left.

Rufus Brevett - Got to love the guy. He bombed up and down the left flank and another one of my favourites. 

And...
EVDS - an absolutely amazing keeper and one of the best at the cottage in recent years ( bar Mark of course! ) and was a hero of mine and have watched out for him since.

[MJG]

Blimey - a list of true greats there Mr HD sir.

My personal favourites are drawn from my teen years - Ivor and Roger Brown were my childhood heroes.

Nobody has come up to them since. Sure there have been more skillful and successful players etc. but Ivor in particular had the added ingredient of being a Fulham fixture rather than a transient figure who stayed for a couple of seasons before following the lure of a "bigger club".

For some reason I am big on loyalty. I must be old-fashioned in that respect.

+1 for Ivor, No 1 player of all time.
Chris Guthrie was a player I liked when I first went and I think all the No 9's who came after him, I have always judged them against him.

have a soft spot for Ray Lew as well, he's been here through the good, the bad, the downright ugly. And when I worked closely with the club in the late 80,s early 90's he was always good to deal with.

[zzamora]

Sir Woy- If it wasnt for him, where would we be?  :Haynes The Maestro:

Ray Lew- Ever present. And a solid coach/ caretaker. (5-0 Brentford...)

Bobby Zamora- Has the magical moment about him. Will never ever forget that goal vs Shaktar at home.

Johnny Pantsil- Remember taking a mate to a fulham game a few times ago last season and the thing they loved most (apart from the brilliant atmosphere and awesome football of course) was Pantsil's lap of acknowledgment. Always gave his worth for the team and had some very Fulhamish moments.

[SoCalJoe]

Have to throw in Zoltan Gera, scored some absolute cracking goals, and some monumental ones as well. Throw in the postmatch interview after the Hamburg winner and you couldn't help but like him. Not sure who had it, but the 'Don't Mess with the Zoltan' avatar was class.

[MOR :]

For what it's worth these are my favourite Fulham Players...

Tony Macedo
He was my Fulham hero when I was young. I saw him play many times. I used to stand behind the goal at the Putney End. So he was always the closest player to where I was standing. For me he was undoubtedly the best Fulham keeper I've seen. In those days, Brylcreem was fashionable, and Tony used lots of it, with his hair slicked back from his forehead. Brave keeper and a great Fulham man.

George Cohen
He was the right back for England in the side which won the 1966 World Cup. He proved his worth as a committed and strong full back for Fulham and England, especially adept at supporting wingers with overlapping runs.

Robbie Herrera
He made some 144 league appearances for Fulham at left back, scoring twice. The situation surrounding Robbie's move to Fulham was a unique one. Fulham fan or fans contributed some £60,000 for the signing of Robbie. A lovely bloke who I still keep in contact with and see whenever I can.

Steed Malbranque
He became a firm favourite during his 5 years at the club playing a total of 211 games and scoring 44 goals. He had some magical touches, and he went down a storm in his years at the Cottage.

Roger Brown
One of the bravest footballers I've had the pleasure to meet, and a fantastic hard working centre half who also scored his fair share of goals. Remember the picture of Roger after Fulham won promotion against Lincoln with a cup of tea in his hand, a cigar in his mouth and blood down his shirt. Roger lost his fight against bowel cancer; this man is a true Fulham legend.

Bobby Moore
He is widely regarded as one of the all-time greats of world football, and was cited by Pelé as the greatest defender that he had ever played against. He came to Fulham late in his career but you still saw what a class player he was.

George Best
Another player who came late to Fulham .He was a winger whose game combined pace, acceleration, balance, two-footedness, goal scoring and the ability to beat defenders. Best stated later in life that he enjoyed his time most while at Fulham, despite not winning any honours.

Brian McBride
During his time at Fulham, McBride became a fan-favourite as well as team captain; after leaving the club, Fulham re-named the sports bar at Craven Cottage McBride's in his honour. A player that always gave everything in every game. He had a reputation as a battler with a high work rate. Why aren't there more players like him.

John Mitchell
1974-75 became a historic season for Fulham and John Mitchell was a central figure in all the drama as Fulham shocked everyone by bravely battling their way to the FA Cup final for the only time in the club's history. Mitchell scored the important goals in the semi-finals that got us to Wembley. And my boy is named after him. Also another lovely bloke who always makes time to speak to you when at Fulham.

Johnny Haynes
An inside forward, Haynes is widely regarded as the greatest footballer ever to play for Fulham, particularly noted for his exceptional passing skill and ability to read a game. An accomplished England international, he made 56 appearances for his country including 22 as captain. Pelé was once quoted as calling Haynes the "best passer of the ball I've ever seen". Although I caught him at the end of his career he still oozed class.

Les Barrett
Another  fan favourite at Fulham. Les was one of the few Fulham players who excited the crowd when he received the ball; there was an air of expectancy, that something exhilarating was about to happen. Les wasn't a prolific goal scorer but he was a great provider. I was very surprised he stayed at Fulham but he was nothing if not  loyal and, like Haynes before him, he gave all his best days to Fulham.

Manager - Alec Stock
When Alec Stock joined Fulham, we were a cash-strapped club with tradition, which Alec Stock enhanced by recruiting the former England captain Bobby Moore to play alongside Alan Mullery. Stock's Fulham entertained, and though we didn't rise above mid-table status, we notched a club first by reaching the FA Cup Final in 1975. Still, it was a remarkable feat by the gentlemanly Stock and his sacking in December 1976 by an aggressive, financially driven bunch of tossers was mourned widely. Alec Stock was an old-fashioned, impeccably mannered football man, and popular with his players. It was appropriate that Fulham, should have clinched the First Division title on the day of his death. Thanks for the memories Alec.

[MOR :]

HatterDon just for you...

[HatterDon]

thanks! Super cool.

[jarv]

For me....

Graham Leggat, JHaynes of course, Jim langley.

Conway, Barrett, Callahan and Slough.

Tony Gale, Paul Parker (stolen from Fulham), Mitchell and Gerry Peyton (rarely did anything wrong).

[Motspur]

Some great names being banded about but my personal favourites are:

Steve Earle, Jimmy Conway, Les Barrett, Simon Morgan, Brian McBride, Brede Hangerland, Aaron Hughes & Bobby Zamora.

The theme is that these players all, I feel, could have been at better clubs at the time but stayed with us. I know Earle went to Leicester but my recollection was that we sold him rather than him wanting to go and they were all great players. 

[Jack Fulham]

Boa Morte was my boyhood hero, pretty sure he is the reason I am left footed and the reason I play left wing. My other favourites are Lee Clark, Barry Hayles, Steve Finnan, Volzy, Rufus Brevett and Chris Baird.

[Peabody]

Of course, I rate Haynes, Macedo, Leggatt etc but you did say recent, so I am surprided that know one has named Leggy, got to be up there, has'nt he?

[MJG]

Boa Morte was my boyhood hero, pretty sure he is the reason I am left footed and the reason I play left wing.

Left footed...on the left wing...thats so yesterday.

[Burt]

Of course, I rate Haynes, Macedo, Leggatt etc but you did say recent, so I am surprided that know one has named Leggy, got to be up there, has'nt he?

Deffo.

Particularly for that last-gasp winner against Spurs when we played them at Loftarse Road. 2 down at half time, they were theoretically top of the league, and we stormed it in the 2nd half, scoring 3 times.

I struggle to remember a period of 45 minutes where we played to such a high standard. 

And the faces of the Spurs fans on the train home... Priceless.

[Jack Fulham]

Boa Morte was my boyhood hero, pretty sure he is the reason I am left footed and the reason I play left wing.

Left footed...on the left wing...thats so yesterday.

True, might have to become an inverted winger this season and cut inside shoot, not that it's predictable or anything.

[Travers Barney]

For me

My top players

Travers Barney-Forward (Did not witness)
Taylor James-Defender (Ditto)
Haynes Johnny-Inside Forward-Fulhams greatest(Ditto)
Achampong Kenneth-Entertainer
Saha Louis-Forward


Top blokes:

Goma Alain-Defender
McBride Brian-Forward and throwback
Hangerland Brede-Defender

Chairman

Alf...Changed our lives

We are the whites

[ron]

....we notched a club first by reaching the FA Cup Final in 1975. Still, it was a remarkable feat by the gentlemanly Stock and his sacking in December 1976 by an aggressive, financially driven bunch of tossers was mourned widely. Alec Stock was an old-fashioned, impeccably mannered football man, and popular with his players. It was appropriate that Fulham, should have clinched the First Division title on the day of his death. Thanks for the memories Alec.

Hear, hear....Absolutely hear, hear !