Three of my most vivid memories of Paul Robinson are (1) the back pass from Gary Neville that bounced past Robinson into the net against Croatia, (2) the long range free kick when Robinson scored for Spurs against Watford, and (3) the time when I saw Robinson play in goal for Spurs against Blackburn in November, 2006.
Robinson’s fortunes has changed considerably since that cold night in Lancashire. But the reason that Robinson stood out for me that night was at the beginning of the second half at Ewood Park. When Robinson was heading over to the goal to place his goalkeeper’s bag in the rear of the net, the Rovers fans started spontaneously singing at Robinson. “England’s number one; England’s, England’s number one.”
Robinson, clearly appreciating the singing, turned around and applauded the thousands of Rovers fans standing beside me in the Blackburn End.
It’s rare in modern day football to hear fans applaud a member of the other team. This one shining example shows how classy Blackburn fans are and how well Paul Robinson should fit in with his new club who signed him for a fee of £3.5 million.
Robinson is no Brad Friedel, who appears likely to move to either Aston Villa or Manchester City. But for Robinson, his move to Blackburn is a perfect opportunity to start all over again, regain his confidence and try to fight for the opportunity to be the number one goalkeeper for England once again.
