North East stars World away from call-up

Nov 11 2009 by Luke Edwards, The Journal

Darren Bent's England recall has restored a North East link with the national team. Chief Sports Writer Luke Edwards bemoans the fact he is probably the only such player with a chance of making Fabio Capello’s World Cup squad for South Africa.

IT is a potentially damning indictment of the state of North-East football that it is far from certain we will have any sort of representation in England’s World Cup squad next summer.

The strength of its status as a hotbed of football may have waned in recent years, but the region has a long and proud history when it comes to our national side on the international stage.

Whether it has been local lads going into battle with the three lions on their chest or whether it has merely been the big name stars from Newcastle, Sunderland or Middlesbrough who have carried the flag for England on international football’s biggest stage, there has always been a local flavour to the national banquet.

Yet when Fabio Capello names his 23-man squad for the finals next year, it is feasible there will be nobody from the North East on the plane – or even an adopted son to represent it.

Manchester United’s Geordie midfielder Michael Carrick has been a regular in the national set-up for the last four years, but he could lose his place in the Red Devils midfield to Owen Hargreaves as soon as he returns to fitness and, with it, you suspect his slot in the England squad.

Although highly-rated at club level and a central figure at Old Trafford, Carrick’s international career has never really sparked into life despite winning 17 caps since his debut against USA in 2005.

Another player who still has much to do to persuade Capello of his worth is Sunderland striker Darren Bent.

The 25-year-old has enjoyed a fabulous start to his career at the Stadium of Light and fully deserves his call-up into the squad to face Brazil in Qatar this weekend. However, there is no disguising the fact he is only there because of injuries to Aston Villa pair Emile Heskey and Gabriel Agbonlahor and West Ham’s Carlton Cole.

All three have been picked ahead of the Londoner by Capello this season and Heskey, in particular, appears to be certain to go to his second World Cup finals as he is Capello’s preferred choice as a partner to Wayne Rooney.

Cole’s stock has also risen sharply over the last 12 months and the West Ham star is probably Bent’s biggest rival for a place in the side if you consider the fact Rooney and Jermain Defoe are assured of a place in the travelling party.

In 2006, Sven Goran Eriksson only took four strikers to Germany, which may mean Bent is in a three-way fight with Cole and Peter Crouch. Even if Capello is more ambitious than his predecessor, Bent, as things stand, looks the odd man out, although he can least comfort himself with the fact he has become Sunderland’s first England international since Kevin Phillips played against Holland in 2002.

That could all change with a starring performance against the Brazilians this week, while there are bound to be injuries over the course of another gruelling Premier League campaign, which at least means the door remains slightly ajar for Sunderland’s £10m summer signing.

There is no hiding from the fact, however, it is a tenuous link for a region which once provided six of its own to the side which came within a penalty shoot-out against Germany of reaching the World Cup Final in Italy n 1990.

Paul Gascoigne was the star of the tournament and was joined by Berwick-born Trevor Steven, Chester-le-Street’s Bryan Robson and fellow Geordies Peter Beardsley and Chris Waddle in a squad managed with distinction by a certain Sir Bobby Robson from County Durham.

Robson had also been manager when England reached the quarter-finals in 1986 when Beardsley and Bryan Robson both featured along with winger Steven. Robson junior was also present in the rather less successful 1982 campaign in Spain.

When Sir Alf Ramsey led England to their one and only World Cup triumph in 1966, the North East did more than just host the odd group game at Sunderland and Middlesbrough. In the Charlton brothers, the small Northumberland town of Ashington provided England with their best player, Bobby, and one of its first-choice centre-backs, Jack.

The pair were again pivotal members of the squad which failed to hold on to its crown four years later in Mexico.

In France in 1998, Newcastle’s Geordie captain Alan Shearer had skippered the national side to defeat to Argentina in the second round but, even when there has not been a local representative, at least the Magpies have been able to send one its stars along to the party.

Alongside Shearer in 98 there was Rob Lee and Gareth Batty, while Middlesbrough’s Paul Merson also made the trip across the English Channel under Glenn Hoddle.

In 2002, Kieron Dyer made the long journey to Japan and South Korea with Boro’s Gareth Southgate and, four years ago Michael Owen went as Newcastle record signing to join Carrick.

North East World Cup history

1950 Brazil

Wilfred Mannion (Middlesbrough)

Jackie Milburn (Newcastle United)

William Watson (Sunderland)

1954 Switzerland

Ivan Broadis (Newcastle United)

1958 Sweden

Bobby Robson (WBA)

Bobby Charlton (Manchester United)

1962 Chile

Bobby Robson (WBA)

Bobby Charlton (Manchester United)

Stanley Anderson (Sunderland)

Alan Peacock (Middlesbrough)

1966 England

Bobby Charlton (Manchester United)

Jackie Charlton (Leeds United)

1970 Mexico

Bobby Charlton (Manchester United)

Jackie Charlton (Leeds United)

1982 Spain

Bryan Robson (Manchester United)

1986 Mexico

Peter Beardsley (Newcastle United)

Trevor Steven (Everton),

Bobby Robson (Manager)

1990 Italy

Peter Beardsley (Liverpool)

Trevor Steven (Glasgow Rangers),

Bryan Robson (Manchester United)

Paul Gascoigne (Tottenham Hotspur)

Chris Waddle (Marseille)

Bobby Robson (Manager)

1998 France

Alan Shearer (Newcastle United)

David Batty (Newcastle United)

Rob Lee (Newcastle United)

Paul Merson (Middlesbrough)

2002 Japan- South Korea

Kieron Dyer (Newcastle United)

Gareth Southgate (Middlesbrough)

2006 Germany

Michael Owen (Newcastle United)

Michael Carrick (Manchester United)