Sir Bobby Loses Cancer Battle

The football world is mourning the loss of a true legend today after Sir Bobby Robson lost his long battle with cancer. The former Ipswich manager won trophies with teams across four different countries, earning himself numerous awards for his contribution to the game in the process. However, Robson’s reign as Ipswich manager was amongst his greatest achievements. On and off the pitch, Bobby Robson left his mark in Ipswich and will be remembered fondly by all.

Legendary former Ipswich Town and England manager Sir Bobby Robson has died today, aged 76.

He passed away peacefully at around 6:30am this morning at his home in County Durham after a long battle with cancer. He had fought the disease five times since 1991.

Robson will best remembered in Suffolk for his reign as Town Boss which saw him win the FA cup and UEFA cup.

Roger Osborne, who played under Robson said: "Everybody in the area would have known Bobby Robson simply because he put Ipswich on the map. I've travelled all over the country with work and when I ask people where Ipswich is they don;t know. When we were playing in Europe and we were in the top four of the first division all through the seventies, everybody knew where Ipswich was."

"Bobby was a workaholic and absolutely football mad, he would turn up at the club at  9 o'clock in the morning and still b there at 21 o'clock at night if we'd had a youth or reserve game in the evening. He seemed to want to run the club, right through the club, so he was always on very good terms with everybody at the club from the chairman, to the tea lady and the grounds man. In as much as he always had time for people and I suppose that is the one thing I remember about him more than ever."

After 13 years at the club, Robson left Ipswich in 1982 to become England manager. He was to become England's second most successful manager ever, guiding the Three Lions to the semi-finals of the 1990 World Cup.

He later went on to win league championships in both the Netherlands and Portugal as well as winning trophies in Spain.

Sir Bobby’s death comes just five days after his last public appearance at St. James’ Park, where a charity match was being played to raise funds for the Sir Bobby Robson Foundation. On the day, Sir Bobby was also presented the Emerald UEFA Order of Merit award for his contribution to the game.

Early this morning crowds began to gather at Portman Road to pay their respects to the Ipswich Legend. Flowers, scarves, caps and football shirts were laid at the feet of his statue, which was also adorned along with the barriers surrounding it. 

There was also a minutes silence before Ipswich’s pre-season friendly with Spanish side Valladolid, which was followed by spontaneous applause from the thousands of fans. The club has announced that all proceeds from tonights game will be donated to the Bobby Robson Foundation.

A book of condolences has been opened at Portman Road and will be available for fans to sign over next 3 days. 

Spotlight on: Adam Le Fondre

After a consistent season Rochdale F.C. are in a good position to qualify for the League 2 Play-offs, and Adam Lefondre is the man whose goals have powered the push for promotion.

Lefondre joined Rochdale on loan in the 07/08 season during the January transfer window from Stockport County. He impressed manager Keith Hill and made the move permanent in the summer for a fee of £40,000. Lefondre settled well at Rochdale and his impressive form has made him a firm favourite with the fans. His impressive form has put him at the top of the scoring charts with 16 goals so far this season.

I visited Spotland to meet the League Two scoring sensation which coincided with their home game against Darlington, a meeting that would be crucial in deciding their league finishing position. 

The game ended with Rochdale losing 2-0, which was a hammer-blow to their chances of automatic promotion. However, Lefondre remained positive about the upcoming fixtures and the prospect of the play-offs, he said: “we needed to win to give ourselves a psychological edge over the other teams because we played early, but we haven’t won so I think we’re pretty much nailed on the play-offs. We’ve just got to try and win the last two games and see where it takes us.”

The play-offs hold bad memories for Rochdale after they narrowly missed out on promotion last year. The side made it to the final last year only to lose at Wembley to local rivals Stockport County, an experience that Lefondre believes will stand them in good stead this year: “I think we’d be better for it but its a horrible experience to lose at Wembley and I don’t want to go through that again. I want to win at Wembley as everyone does but, it’s all about getting promotion now and striving for that.”

The play-offs are an immediate route for Lefondre to play at a higher level, something the striker has always dreamed about. Lefondre has always seemed destined to do great things, growing up his raw talent was plain for even the biggest clubs to see: “I was about six or seven and I was playing for my local team. I scored something like five goals in a game when a United scout was there watching and he took me down to United. I went to Stockport from United and just went from there really, and came through Stockport’s’ ranks.”

Lefondre worked hard to progress through Stockport’s youth teams but is quick to acknowledge the work his dad put in to support his career: “my dad drove me everywhere, took me everywhere, whatever i’ve needed he’s given me and a lot of credit goes to my dad for where I am today.”

If rumours are to be believed the ‘Dale hitman could get his wish of playing at a higher level regardless of how Rochdale’s season ends. Lefondre has many admirers and established Premier League clubs Manchester City and Everton are said to be tracking his progress, something Lefondre is playing down at the moment: “Everybody wants to play at the highest level they can, but i’m just concentrating on playing for Rochdale at the minute and being as successful as possible with them.” 

However, the striker believes he has has the ability to score goals in any league: “You’ve got to have your own opinion of yourself and I honestly think I can play at a higher level but I just want to see this season out with the team and be more successful than last season.”

Rochdale paid an estimated £40,000 for Lefondre, which is a significant amount for a club of their stature. Despite this, Lefondre says he felt no added pressure due to the price-tag: “no not at all I think they got me on the cheap really (laughs). No, I didn’t feel any added pressure. I think they’ve more than got their moneys worth out of me, i’ve scored near enough 40 goals for Rochdale now and hopefully long may that continue.”

Lefondre is already thinking to the future and his long term goals in the game. At 21 the striker is ambitious but understands there is a long way to go to establish himself in the game saying: “I Hope to play in the Championship, but you never know football is a funny game. It’s how lucky you are really and being in the right place at the right time but hopefully I can be playing in the higher reaches of the divisions.”