he missed out on the chance of making a quick and easy £120,000. Thereis no record of him ever having said, âThank God the club did so well as it was struggling a bit at the time.â
The aftershock ripples of the Clarke transfer didnât end there. Had the money stayed with Redknapp, it would probably have been put towards buying a bigger home or invested in a local business; he would later buy an Italian restaurant in Bournemouth. And the club might have stayed in the Third Division. As it was, the half million proved to be the financial launchpad for Redknapp to acquire the team that was to win Bournemouth promotion to the Second Division in the following season. It bought John Williams, a centre-back from Port Vale whom Redknapp has often described as his best-ever signing; defender Tony Pulis from Newport; strikers Dave Puckett from Southampton, Trevor Aylott from Crystal Palace and Carl Richards from Enfield; and goalkeeper Gerry Peyton from Fulham. All of them turned out to be shrewd acquisitions by Redknapp, and they would never have been possible without the Clarke windfall.
The John Williams deal shows just how cannily Redknapp operated. âI didnât really want to leave Port Vale,â says Williams. âI had just bought my first house in Holmes Chapel and I was feeling settled. But Clarkie [Colin Clarke] had tipped Harry off about me and he wouldnât take no for an answer. Eventually, I agreed to go down to Bournemouth and Harry took me straight out on to the beach. After Port Vale, I thought I was in Magaluf. He then chatted to me and my wife about the best private schools in the area . . . he later told me his trick was to sign the wife, not the player.
âAnyway, it worked on me. I think I agreed to the move on the spot. I got a small signing-on fee, but it wasnât about the money. My weekly wage only went up from £250 to £300. I signed because I liked Harry.â
Redknapp began his career as full-time manager at Bournemouth on a tide of goodwill from the supporters; he wasnât Megson andhe was a former Bournemouth player, someone who understood the club and had demonstrated his loyalty by buying a house and settling in the town. Within a month, he had become a local hero when his team beat Manchester United 2-0 in the third round of the FA Cup. âThat was the thing about Harry,â said Glenn Rodgers, a Bournemouth season ticket holder. âHe could deliver these fantastic days, when the impossible seemed to become possible, that you knew you would remember for the rest of your life. It was a bit like having the most fantastic sex with your girlfriend; you instantly forgot all the times she had played hard to get or ignored you. Memories of defeats that shouldnât have happened quickly melted at the prospect of another good time just round the corner.â
And the good times did continue, at least for a while; Bournemouth avoided relegation and won the Associate Members Cup (now the Johnstoneâs Paint Trophy) in Redknappâs first season. Two years later, Bournemouth won the Third Division Championship and were promoted to the Second Division. Within three years, they were relegated and no one was exactly sure why. Redknapp was still talking a good game to the local press, he was still active in the transfer market, bringing in high-profile and high-value players, such as Gavin Peacock from Gillingham for £250,000, George Lawrence from Millwall for £100,000, Bobby Barnes from Swindon for £110,000 and Luther Blissett from Watford for £50,000, but the team just didnât gel on the pitch.
âThere was a lot of head scratching,â says Pete Johnson, âbecause on paper the team looked easily strong enough to stay up, despite a long late-season injury list. So had Harry just found his level? Was he a good manager for the lower divisions but didnât have the tactical nous for the higher ones? Had he become so focused
The aftershock ripples of the Clarke transfer didnât end there. Had the money stayed with Redknapp, it would probably have been put towards buying a bigger home or invested in a local business; he would later buy an Italian restaurant in Bournemouth. And the club might have stayed in the Third Division. As it was, the half million proved to be the financial launchpad for Redknapp to acquire the team that was to win Bournemouth promotion to the Second Division in the following season. It bought John Williams, a centre-back from Port Vale whom Redknapp has often described as his best-ever signing; defender Tony Pulis from Newport; strikers Dave Puckett from Southampton, Trevor Aylott from Crystal Palace and Carl Richards from Enfield; and goalkeeper Gerry Peyton from Fulham. All of them turned out to be shrewd acquisitions by Redknapp, and they would never have been possible without the Clarke windfall.
The John Williams deal shows just how cannily Redknapp operated. âI didnât really want to leave Port Vale,â says Williams. âI had just bought my first house in Holmes Chapel and I was feeling settled. But Clarkie [Colin Clarke] had tipped Harry off about me and he wouldnât take no for an answer. Eventually, I agreed to go down to Bournemouth and Harry took me straight out on to the beach. After Port Vale, I thought I was in Magaluf. He then chatted to me and my wife about the best private schools in the area . . . he later told me his trick was to sign the wife, not the player.
âAnyway, it worked on me. I think I agreed to the move on the spot. I got a small signing-on fee, but it wasnât about the money. My weekly wage only went up from £250 to £300. I signed because I liked Harry.â
Redknapp began his career as full-time manager at Bournemouth on a tide of goodwill from the supporters; he wasnât Megson andhe was a former Bournemouth player, someone who understood the club and had demonstrated his loyalty by buying a house and settling in the town. Within a month, he had become a local hero when his team beat Manchester United 2-0 in the third round of the FA Cup. âThat was the thing about Harry,â said Glenn Rodgers, a Bournemouth season ticket holder. âHe could deliver these fantastic days, when the impossible seemed to become possible, that you knew you would remember for the rest of your life. It was a bit like having the most fantastic sex with your girlfriend; you instantly forgot all the times she had played hard to get or ignored you. Memories of defeats that shouldnât have happened quickly melted at the prospect of another good time just round the corner.â
And the good times did continue, at least for a while; Bournemouth avoided relegation and won the Associate Members Cup (now the Johnstoneâs Paint Trophy) in Redknappâs first season. Two years later, Bournemouth won the Third Division Championship and were promoted to the Second Division. Within three years, they were relegated and no one was exactly sure why. Redknapp was still talking a good game to the local press, he was still active in the transfer market, bringing in high-profile and high-value players, such as Gavin Peacock from Gillingham for £250,000, George Lawrence from Millwall for £100,000, Bobby Barnes from Swindon for £110,000 and Luther Blissett from Watford for £50,000, but the team just didnât gel on the pitch.
âThere was a lot of head scratching,â says Pete Johnson, âbecause on paper the team looked easily strong enough to stay up, despite a long late-season injury list. So had Harry just found his level? Was he a good manager for the lower divisions but didnât have the tactical nous for the higher ones? Had he become so focused
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