Dion Dublin: a tribute

From the archive: this is an article I published in the Capital Canaries fanzine in 2007, arguing that veteran England international Dion Dublin should be voted Norwich City's Player of the Season for the 2006-2007 season. The honour went to Darren Huckerby - but Dion won it in his second and final season, before inventing a musical instrument and becoming a TV pundit.

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When Nigel Worthington made what proved to be his final signing as Norwich City manager, the Canaries fans (or at least those who post on Internet messageboards) were virtually unanimous in their disapproval: certainly nobody envisaged a potential winner of the Barry Butler Memorial Trophy for Player of the Season. A relatively unsuccessful crop of signings in 2005-2006 eroded fans' faith in Worthington’s transfer ability, straining the relationships between board, manager, players and fans.

Having spent half the money received from Dean Ashton’s sale on Robert Earnshaw, Worthington’s hands were apparently tied over the summer, despite the sales of Robert Green and Leon McKenzie. He plugged the right-midfield gap by spending £600,000 on Lee Croft; limited to free agents outside the transfer window, Worthington opted to sign one player to provide cover for two problem areas in a desperately thin squad and recruited 37-year-old Dion Dublin.

Having seen other thirty-something strikers struggle in recent seasons, many fans were sceptical. However, Dublin came with a pedigree: after his release from Norwich in 1988, he made two FA Cup quarter-finals with Cambridge United, helping them secure successive promotions; they nearly made the top flight in his final season, and were relegated immediately after his departure to Manchester United.

A broken leg hampered Dion’s progress at United (he still won two Premiership medals and an FA Cup) before a move to Coventry City galvanised his career. Scoring 61 goals in 144 games and striking up effective partnerships with Peter Ndlovu and Darren Huckerby, Dublin finished as joint top Premiership scorer in 1997-98 and made his England debut that season, eventually winning four caps.

After moving to Aston Villa for £4.5m in November 1998, having missed out on the World Cup, Dublin played some of his best football, despite breaking his neck against Sheffield Wednesday in December 1999 – three vertebrae in his neck remain secured by a titanium plate. Returning to action in April 2000, Dublin helped Villa to the FA Cup Final, the highlight of his Villa Park career.

He joined Leicester in 2004, playing mostly in central defence, before winning the Scottish League and League Cup in a brief spell at Celtic in 2006. On 20 September 2006, Dublin’s move to Norwich was announced, and he made an inauspicious start to his Canaries career in a 3-1 defeat at Plymouth.

Fairly ineffectual (and seemingly unfit) during his first start in Worthington’s swansong against Burnley, Dublin’s transition to cult hero and potential Player of the Season began at QPR, when he sprang from the bench to turn an intelligent move into a fine equaliser.

His presence seemed to give the team a lift, and the attack a focal point besides Earnshaw: poor defending cost Martin Hunter’s team three points, something that Dublin could also help rectify. Used at the back for the 1-0 win over Sunderland, Dublin instantly formed a useful defensive partnership with young Jason Shackell, which held for another impressive victory, away at promotion-chasing West Bromwich Albion.

His second goal, whilst playing in defence, came against Sheffield Wednesday, and his third, as a striker proved the only goal in a home game against QPR. After the game, new manager Peter Grant said, “"He is a great player to have around the place, not just for what he does out there on the pitch, but also for the influence he has on his colleagues.”

In this comment lies the crux of why Dublin would be a worthy Player of the Season. Last season, the team seemed to lack leadership, with a talented team never approaching promotion; this year, Dublin has often been the difference between Norwich anxiously looking over their shoulders and languishing in the bottom three. His contributions against fellow strugglers QPR were vital, his equaliser at home to Leeds even more important.

Pickings from Norwich City’s Academy have been slim recently: at Southampton, Dublin was the Canaries’ only youth team graduate. Dublin has doubtless influenced Shackell’s increasingly assured centre-back displays, and his training ground presence may well have helped Chris Martin become the club’s most promising young forward since Craig Bellamy.

Dublin has not been an inspiration just to City’s young players, but also fans. At half-time against Stoke, a young lad kicked a stray ball back on to the pitch: Dublin headed the ball home and gave him a wave.

Since City’s Premiership adventure ended, this rapport has been missing, and few players have really appeared to enjoy their football. Dublin always plays with a smile, and quickly developed a strong relationship with his supporters – his hilarious wave to the Tamworth fans (not to mention his pivotal role in steering Grant’s team through a potentially embarrassing fixture) will live long in the Canaries’ fans memories.

Despite his age, Grant considered keeping Dublin on as a player, stating, "He sets a shining example to other players about what can be achieved if you work hard and look after yourself.” Few Norwich fans would now begrudge Dublin another season: since Martin’s emergence and Huckerby’s return to centre-forward, Dion has been relied upon less, his age meaning he must be used economically, but his presence in the squad provides experience and leadership, and a delightful enthusiasm that radiates from the pitch to the squads.

Darren Huckerby and Robert Earnshaw played more matches and scored more goals, but neither has transcended expectations to the astonishing extent that has Dion Dublin, and at the lowest ebbs of another difficult season for Norwich City, it has often been Dion who pulled the team off the floor. Given his contributions on and off the pitch, Dublin – amazingly – proved a wonderful final gift from Nigel Worthington and would be a worthy Player of the Season.