Tony Coton

[Xiphos]

Loved TC and always rated him as one of the best of his era. He's on Talksport now and just heard him talking about why he never played for England. If thats true then Swales is an even bigger twat, and i didnt think that possible.

£300,000 does seem like a lot to pay Watford for a Coton England cap but that's what TC said and i believe him, typical Swales

 

[GaudinosWheels]

Up early with the toddler and as I can’t face anymore baby shark or finding nemo I’ve stuck an old season review on. 93/94 starting with Leeds at home. Coton absolutely on fire making save after save.

Best City goalkeeper I’ve seen in my lifetime (34). Obviously Eddie is a different animal but I do remember as a kid feeling that as long as we had TC in goal we had half a chance.

That said, gutted when he went although having read his book it wasn’t his choice.

 

[Cellarite]

Had enough of Finding Nemo? Is that possible? TC is still my favourite ever keeper.

 

[City_Shirts]

^^^^
Loved that kit too mate. Would still buy that shirt now if I could find one......can’t imagine rocking up to the game in it though!

There’s one on eBay at the moment mate (No it’s not nine)

 

[glyncity]

Years ago (late 70s) a mate of mine went to a holiday camp in Skegness and came back telling stories of a group of lads he'd met on the camp from Tamworth , these lads he told me where pretty handy , liked a rumble and got into a few scrapes after a few beers , one of which resulted in the police attending, all the offenders where taken to the station where they were asked their names , where they were from and their occupations , according to my mate Tony Coton (or big Tone) as my mate called him , answered that he was a professional footballer for Birmingham City , the police where skeptical untill he got his BCFC id card out.
According to my mate , Tony Coton was as hard as nails and the sort of person you messed with at your peril , he told this story before Coton had made his first team debut for Birmingham and as my mate wasnt a big follower of football it seems unlikely he would have made it up..

 

[TonyColemansbagofapples]

Top bloke. Met him a few times since (last time at an academy match). Arguably City's best keeper of the last 50 years. That Leeds game he was sensational Also would have faired well with todays keeper sweeper style.

 

[gordondaviesmoustache]

Top bloke. Met him a few times since (last time at an academy match). Arguably City's best keeper of the last 50 years. That Leeds game he was sensational Also would have faired well with todays keeper sweeper style.

Sorry mate, but I totally disagree with the last part. He was pretty poor with his feet and I recall him bemoaning the backpass rule when it came in. I also remember him picking the ball up when it was passed back to him just after the rule had been introduced and the ref did nothing! I think everyone was on a learning curve at that point.

That said, I loved TC. He made a save against Barnsley in the 5th round of the Cup in ‘94 that always sticks with me. He was definitely the best keeper in the country for a couple of seasons, possibly longer, although he got a hard time off certain sections of our support early on in his City career, who seemed to prefer Andy Dibble for some unfathomable reason.

Edit: correction the Barnsley game was in 1993.

 

[Mancity1980]

Sorry mate, but I totally disagree with the last part. He was pretty poor with his feet and I recall him bemoaning the backpass rule when it came in. I also remember him picking the ball up when it was passed back to him just after the rule had been introduced and the ref did nothing! I think everyone was on a learning curve at that point.

That said, I loved TC. He made a save against Barnsley in the 5th round of the Cup in ‘94 that always sticks with me. He was definitely the best keeper in the country for a couple of seasons, possibly longer, although he got a hard time of certain sections of our support early on in his City career, who seemed to prefer Andy Dibble for some unfathomable reason.

I remember that ignored back pass, he even put his hands to his face in embarrassment, it could not have been more obvious!

As regards his feet, no keeper was tested then like they are today. The preferred mode of operation then was boot the back pass beyond the half way line. What I do remember about Coton’s kicking was that they never went into touch and invariably went towards a city player near the wings. Pretty poor with his feet? There were far worse examples at the time of keepers who struggled with the rule change, Dave Beasant anyone?

 

[GaudinosWheels]

There’s one on eBay at the moment mate (No it’s not nine)

Yeah seen it, don’t love it enough to pay £75 though! Cheers though

 

[gordondaviesmoustache]

I remember that ignored back pass, he even put his hands to his face in embarrassment, it could not have been more obvious!

As regards his feet, no keeper was tested then like they are today. The preferred mode of operation then was boot the back pass beyond the half way line. What I do remember about Coton’s kicking was that they never went into touch and invariably went towards a city player near the wings. Pretty poor with his feet? There were far worse examples at the time of keepers who struggled with the rule change, Dave Beasant anyone?

Yeah, upon reflection maybe I was a bit harsh, but he wasn’t discernibly dexterous or nimble with his feet, so I’m not sure why anyone would conclude he’d make a sweeper-keeper.

I remember his response too! Everyone around me in the Kippax burst out laughing when he did it; followed by the inevitable busy chatter among them, not quite believing what they seen.