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| The 'Barton Out!'
years
Just as Brian Fidler had helped knock Albion out of the FA Trophy as a player, only to join the Brewers some years later as manager, so John Barton, a member of the Kidderminster team which had foiled Albion at The Hawthorns seven years earlier, would arrive at Eton Park in the summer of 1994 as the 25th manager of Burton Albion. |
| On paper, Barton must go down as one of the most successful managers in the club's history. Whilst never reaching the headline grabbing heights of 1985 or 1987, nor acheiving the Championship-winning consistency which has eluded Albion for more than half a century, his four and a half years in charge saw steady progress on and off the pitch. |
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| In his first
season as manager, the club's then highest ever league position - third in
the Beazer Homes Premier Division - was acheived, while the following season
saw an appearance in the First Round of the FA Cup, as the Brewers came close
to pulling off an upset which would definitely have gone down in the
annals of Albion history. Having been 2-0 and 3-1 down against then Second Division Bradford City at Valley Parade, a second goal from promising local-born midfielder Darren Stride levelled the scores at 3-3, all of them in the first-half, in an astonishing Albion fightback. Spurred on by Stride and influential captain Simon Redfern - by now the club's longest-serving player, and a fans favourite - the Brewers continued to defy the gulf between the two sides, and came within a crossbar's width of going in front from a Dougie Keast lob in the second half. But once again luck was not on Albion's side, and with a lucrative Eton Park replay looming, lanky striker Ian Ormonroyd snatched a winner for Bradford with just two minutes left on the clock. It was a bitter pill to swallow. By now, there had been more changes in the boardroom, with local millionaire property developer Stan Clarke taking over control of the club. But whilst he did pay off some of the club's debts, this was no benefactor in the mould of a Jack Walker. Clarke was more of a hunting and fishing man than a football enthusiast (although he would later invest in Stoke City's new stadium), and it appeared that his main interest in Albion was selling Eton Park for housing, and moving the club to a new ground. The plans that were put forward could hardly be considered ambitious for a club of Albion's stature, and if the millionaire businessman could not see much potential in the club that is hardly surprising, as he was hardly ever there. In 1997, the chairman under Clarke, Ben Robinson - who'd returned to the Albion boardroom after a decade away - took full control again, and at last, Albion seemed to have a Chairman who was willing to put words into action, to give them the best chance of acheiving their goal of Conference football. |
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| A rare site - silverware at Eton Park. High hopes at the start of the 1997-98 season as John Barton's team line up with the Southern League Cup and Birmingham Senior Cup |
| A share issue
was launched to raise money, and the redevelopment work needed to bring Eton
Park up to Conference standard, was, at last begun. Hopes of a late push
for promotion behind surprise champions Gresley Rovers, who's ground was
not up to Conference standard, faded away, but the club did at least end
up with some long-overdue silverware. Local rivals Tamworth, champions of what was now called the Dr. Marten's League Midland Division, were beaten at the Lamb Ground to win the Birmingham Senior Cup, and Sudbury Town, heading in the opposite direction after volunteering to quite the league and return to regional soccer, were defeated over two legs to bring the Southern League Cup back to Eton Park, 33 years after Peter Taylor's team had first won it. It was the league however that remained Number One priority, as Barton's side began the 1997-98 season with the weight of expectation at Eton Park greater than ever. |
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A
busy close-season had seen Albion perform a raid on neighbours Gresley
Rovers, to bring the backbone of the Moatmen's title-winning squad to Eton
Park. Central defender Mark Blount, and midfielder Tony Marsden signed for a joint-£13,000 fee, with veteran ex-Derby County frontman and Gresley assistant manager Andy Garner following soon after. Striker David Holmes, an £8,500 capture from Gloucester City, who had only narrowly missed out on promotion to rivals Cheltenham the previous season, and non-league International defender Nick Ashby from Rushden & Diamonds, completed the line-up which made the Brewers' amonst the pre-season favourites to lift the title. Some erratic early-season form soon burst the bubble of pre-season optimism, but any on-the-field concerns were put into perspective when real life tragedy struck the club. |
| The
body of club captain Simon Redfern was discovered at his home in Duffield,
Derbys, on the night of Sunday 19th October 1997. The suicide of the Brewers'
longest serving, and most influential player left the club in a state
of shock. Since making his debut alongside his brother Dave in Albion's 1986-87
Trophy-winning season, 'Redders' as he was popularly known, had established
himself as the fulcrum of the Brewers' team for the best part of a decade. Called upon at times of need to play as a central defender and even a forward, it was at the heart of the midfield action where Redfern was most at home. His commitment, invention and skill (and a phenomenal strike-rate for a midfielder), together with his sense of humour and approachability off the field, made him a hugely popular figure amongst the fans, and his tragic death, at the age of 30, left a gaping whole at the club. |
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| His trademark number 8 shirt was left unworn for most of the season as the Brewers went about the task of picking themselves up from such a numbing blow, but much as they would have liked to win the league 'for Redders' the team was found wanting again, although a late run of good form saw the Brewers sneak into another third place finish. It wasn't good enough to earn promotion, but it was enough to ensure John Barton would keep his job... for now. |
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| Saturday 25th October 1997 - a minute's silence is held before the game against Cambridge City at Eton Park, the first match after the death of Simon Redfern |
Top The coming of Clough
While John Barton
had brought Eton Park it's first silverware in more than a decade, and equalled
the club's highest ever league placing twice in the space of four years,
he never really won the universal backing of the notoriously fickle Burton
public. |
|
A
career which took in 14 England caps had seen Clough Jnr. move to Liverpool
and latterly Manchester City, and at 32, Clough was in the process of severing
his links with City, after a disappointing spell at Maine Road, when the
Burton Albion vacancy came up. Rumours of his appointment had been circulating, but few took them seriously, and so it was with no shortage of ceremony when on Friday 23rd October 1998, the club unveiled Clough, along with his former Forest team-mate Gary Crosby, as their new management team. Clough's arrival as player-manager was to have a huge impact on the club, who during his reign would receive more column inches, television and radio coverage than at any time in their history. |
| A spell of
consolidation in Clough's first six months in charge was followed by a memorable
Golden Jubilee season, in which the Brewers, with their manager pulling the
strings on the pitch as well as off it, acheived their highest ever
league placing, finishing second behind runaway leaders Boston United,
reached the First Round of the FA Cup, which they exited after a replay to
Rochdale, and lifted the Dr. Martens League Cup for the third time in their
history. Clough's managerial potential had soon attracted the attention of other clubs, and since his arrival at Eton Park his name has been linked with an endless succession of league clubs from Nottingham Forest down. It was therefore an added boost for the Brewers as they prepared for the 2000-2001 season that Clough signed a new three-year deal with the club, despite being just a year and a half into his existing three-year contract. |
| Hopes,
as ever, were high that Albion could go one better than second place, as
Clough continued to build upon a squad which already boasted an abundance
of talent, with the likes of defenders Darren Wassall and Jason Kavanagh
being brought in to add their wealth of experience to the raw talent of
youngsters such as Dale Anderson and Aron Webster, and the reliability of
midfield duo Darren Stride and Neil Glasser, a Summer 1999 capture from Grantham
Town. However, despite being universally tipped to finally claim their place in the Conference, the Brewers' hopes were undone by Chris Kinnear, twice a Southern League title-winner with Dover Athletic, who's Margate side lasted the distance stronger to deservedly take the shield back to Kent. |
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| Albion acheived
a league double over the eventual champions, and enjoyed more cup success
with a First Round appearance in the FA Cup, and a run to the Quarter
Finals of the FA Trophy culminating in a 1-0 defeat at Hereford United in
front of the live television cameras. This was however scant consolation
for the Brewers as the ultimate prize, the title, slipped from their grasp
by a mere three point margin. Not that you'll hear too many people complaining. The club is in probably it's strongest position, on and off the pitch, in it's 52-year history. Ground improvements have continued apace, with a new £80,000 floodlighting system installed, the main stand extended to double it's original size, and more improvements either completed or in the pipeline. |
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| Keeping it in the family - Brian Clough has been a familiar figure in the Main Stand at Eton Park since the appointment of his son as manager. Here Clough Jnr and Senior are pictured, along with chairman Ben Robinson, at the end of season awards presentation - May 2000 |
| Crowds are
at their highest level in over 25 years while, aside from his duties as player
and manager, Nigel Clough has become a familiar figure in the Burton area,
appearing at countless openings and events, and in the process raising the
profile of the club in the community. While the club's decision to voluntarily switch back to the Northern Premier (UniBond) League for the 2001-2002 season was initially greeted with alarm by supporters, the early signs were good, with the Brewers continuing to make progress on the pitch, while attendances continued to rise. Whether or not they can finally acheive their dream of Conference football, those of us who've followed the Brewers through the lean years of the decade post-Wembley, with it's endless succession of managerial disasters, it's FA Cup and Trophy humiliations at Ashton United or Solihull Borough, and home crowds which at times dipped below the 400 mark, will make sure we enjoy, appreciate and relish every moment of the current golden era which we're priviliged to be a part of. |
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