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September 6,
2002 (Friday)
Rio: Lay off Bow
and Woody (extract)
RIO FERDINAND has
urged England fans to support his former Leeds pals
Jonathan Woodgate and Lee Bowyer tomorrow.
The duo will end their international exiles against Portugal at Villa
Park after being banned from World Cup duty in the aftermath of their
court case.
And Ferdinand insists it is time to consign those legal problems to
history and give both players unconditional backing.
Woodgate was convicted of affray following an infamous drunken brawl
in Leeds city centre, while Bowyer was cleared of all charges.
The FA ruled a World Cup call-up would send out the wrong message to
England followers and told Sven Goran Eriksson neither player should
be considered for Japan and Korea.
Now those restrictions have been lifted, clearing the way for Bowyer
to win his first cap tomorrow and for Woodgate to earn his second -
more than three years after making his senior international debut.
Some critics still have misgivings about the prospect of the duo
playing for England but Ferdinand is convinced coach Eriksson has
made the right decision.
He said: "The legal situation has all been sorted out and it's time
to let Bow and Woody get back and press for a place in the team.
"I think the fans are ready to cheer them. We want the best available
players in the England squad and we can benefit as a team from these
two."
Ferdinand appreciates more than most how much the duo suffered during
two years of legal wranglings and revealed: "I really admired how
they coped with everything.
"Bow, in particular, was unbelievable. Even during the trials he
turned up for Leeds and just carried on playing.
"We never really spoke about the case at the time. We knew they were
both in a high-pressure situation and the last thing they wanted to
do was talk about the legal stuff to us.
"So we just took the mickey, had a laugh and tried to take their
minds off those problems."
Woodgate, who last played for England in a European Championship
qualifier in Bulgaria in June 1999 during Kevin Keegan's reign, is
likely to partner Ferdinand in the middle of defence tomorrow.
Ferdinand added: "The minute I arrived at Leeds, he and Alan Smith
were the players who most impressed me.
"Woody is very confident in his own ability and not in awe of anyone.
He's a great player and I really enjoyed having him around.
"He's one of those defenders who doesn't dive in and put himself at
risk. He stands on his feet and defends properly."
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